Returning from combat requires a transition period for both the service member of his/her family.
While the war zone survival and coping skills taught to our troops are valuable and promote positive life-saving action in combat, they are not the same set of skills needed to function well at home, on the job or in school. Each service member needs time to transition back to his/her family and community since those combat habits and skills can create challenges in civilian life. Just as it took time to develop the combat habits, it takes time to stop using them. The service member may not be aware of having these habits or using these skills. Some people make this readjustment on their own while others find assistance helpful.
The return of a service member also puts stress on his or her family, who have to readjust to the return of their loved one. Service members and their families may not be aware of the ways that they have changed or the need for readjustment. Some service members and families make this transition on their own. Other times, service members, family members or families as a whole, find assistance to be helpful.
Signs of difficulties that may benefit from some outside assistance may appear in the behavior of the service member, the partner or spouse of the service member, children within the family, or other family members. As a general rule, you should be concerned when any of these issues begin to disrupt the ability of the service member, family member or child to function effectively in their personal, professional, or school life.
Service members may experience:
- Guilt about actions or shame over some failure
- Excessive drinking or drug use
- Uncontrolled or frequent crying or other extreme reactions to events that normally would be handled more calmly
- Sleep problems (too little, too much)
- Depression, anxiety, or anger
- Verbal or physical relationship violence
Challenges that may be experienced in the relationship between the service member and spouse/partner:
- Adjusting to changes in each partner
- Extreme difficulty in communicating
- Difficulty with intimacy and trust
- Conflicts about parenting and decision making
- Family violence
- Divorce
- Sexual problems
- Aggression
Here are some behaviors you might see in your child that indicate he/she is having a difficult time with the deployment of a loved one:
- Increased clinging, crying or whining.
- Increase in aggressive behaviors.
- Withdrawal.
- Changes in sleeping and/or eating patterns.
- Easily frustrated and harder to comfort.
- A return to developmentally earlier behaviors such as thumb sucking or toileting accidents.
- Increase in attention-seeking behaviors, both positive and negative.
- Additional Resources:
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www.apahelpcenter.org
Click on this link to download (in PDF) tips from the American Psychological Association for families to remain resilient during a military homecoming. -
www.mentalhealthamerica.net
Click on this link provided by Mental Health America for information about PTSD including symptoms, who is affected, how to feel better, and helping someone who may be suffering from PTSD.