Last week I spoke of a program called Operation Iraqi Children that provides children in war torn Iraq with school supplies and other necessities. In this post I’d like to discuss a program for children at home.
Military children have unique obstacles to overcome that their non-military friends, family or teachers may not fully understand. When their military parent is home chances are their life is not unlike most other children’s. They go to school, play with their friends and the troubles of the world aren’t their concern—as it should be. This changes, though, when a parent is sent overseas for long periods of time to fight a war half a world away.
Depending on the age of the child, their main concern may be a simple as “I miss Daddy” or “When’s Mommy coming home?” They may have a very hard time adjusting to the absence of a parent and acting out with fear, frustration and anger is a common symptom of their stress.
I know when my husband was deployed my two girls had a very hard time adjusting. At first there were many tears and I couldn’t so much as leave the room without them worrying about where I was going. This fear turned to anger as the weeks went on and both were prone to temper tantrums and defiance the likes I’ve never seen in them before. Eventually, through many discussions and assurances that Daddy was fine and coming home, we worked through it.
Older children, while more capable of understanding the “why” behind a deployed parent’s absence, are also susceptible to emotional stress due to their ability to comprehend the dangers involved with war. Everyday we are exposed to reports, be it on television or in the newspapers, giving the public the latest updates on military operations and casualty rates. For a child with a deployed parent this steady stream of information can serve as fuel to the fire.
Operation Military Kids is a program catering to the specific needs of our military youth. Through community awareness and hands on assistance they help ease the burden placed on military children during a parent’s deployment. Their website gives an overview of the program as well as state by state contact information and other resources for military children. If you are a military family with children or know one check out their website for more information on how they can help the military kids in your life cope with their unique situation.