One of my best friends from high school got married about a year ago, and her husband joined the army shortly after. He’s doing what he loves, making decent money, they get a lot of government benefits, and she’s extremely proud of him. But, the only downside is deployment. It’s a scary time for both spouses, and horrible for the one left at home. Plus, she misses him like crazy! I’ve never seen anyone freak out so much over a short phone call. Seriously, I have no idea how she does it. When my man goes up to Michigan to visit family for a week, I get pretty bummed out by day 3. And she has to survive months of him being gone! It’s tough to survive, but not impossible. For help on making deployment less terrible, check out these tips from Danielle at The Frugal Navy Wife. They center on enjoying your time alone, focusing on yourself, and finding other productive things to do:
-Eat the food YOU love
-Experiment with new recipes
-Blog it! Or write about it in a journal. It’s therapeutic. Just be sure to not disclose info about your spouse and the specifics of their deployment (homecoming dates, how long they’ve been gone, where they are, etc.) if you’re putting it online. Safety first. Focus on YOUR life!
-Set special “deployment-only” activities: Pamper yourself. Take the kids to Chuck-E-Cheese. Give yourself SOMETHING to look forward to.
-Don’t watch the news- it’s important to stay informed, but sometimes it’ll just drive you crazy.
-Write a letter a day or make care packages. Your spouse or significant other will LOVE them! Seriously. They live for stuff from you and your kids.