Spotlight on Students: Military Dependents & Stress Coping Mechanisms

The following is a post written by a student, Taylor Morris.  This post highlights her work that she completed as part of her requirements in Ant 411: Culture Areas of the World.  Students have the opportunity to explore material through their own research.  Please show your appreciation for her work through the comments.

By Taylor Morris

            Curiosity Question: How do military brats and their families cope with the many different challenges of being a child or spouse of someone who is serving the country?

           

            Military Brat is a term to describe the child of a parent or parents who serve our country whether it be in the Marines or Military. Millions of Americans belong to a subculture known as “Military Brats.” They have unique lives and there are interesting challenges that they face as kids into adulthood. We often misuse or misunderstand what the term represents. It doesn’t just mean our service members children. The term means so much more than that. It is a term that represents sacrifice, endearment and it is the representation of the brave service members, mothers and fathers who are away from their families to serve our country.

            There are millions of Americans who identify themselves as Military Brats. It is important for people to understand what the term really stands for. A very often thing you always hear about military brats is that they constantly move around a lot. Military families are assigned to a new installation every two to three years. Often, they are assigned to a new place they will call home all the way across the country or even overseas, where they will be introduced to a different culture. Many military brats struggle with the meaning of what home is. Answering the question “Where are you from?” is not the easiest or so simple for many military brats. Without a true home, many military brats struggle in the real world that is outside of the world they have known for so long. Some aren’t always successful and often feel like outsiders. They feel like they don’t belong and don’t have a true place that they can call home. They often move around between jobs to look for a place where they may feel comfortable. They sometimes enroll in the service, feeling as though the military is the closest they will ever have to a home.

            The stress of moving can also cause a strain on marriages. Some spouses want to settle down and enjoy a life without always moving or having their partner gone but that life does not exist in the military. There are also positives to moving often. Military Brats get to experience and see a variety of diverse cultures. This causes them to be rather open-minded. They tend to be accepting of people with different ways of life. This causes military brats to have great social skills and are more likely to conversate with many people from different backgrounds.

            A military base is a community that is often fenced off from the civilian world around it. On base you will find pools, gyms, schools, restaurants, bowling alleys and lots more that will make on-bae living enjoyable. Many brats go to an army Department of Defense schools on base which consist of military brats from all over. Many military brats struggle with transitioning to the civilian world. The hardest thing to deal with is leaving the military community that they are so use to. There is no more traveling often, benefits like health care, military discounts or the close-knit culture of the military base. Some find that living in a single place for more than a few years to be scary.

            Some bounce around from job to job to fill that desire to meet new people, see new things and continue to live the lifestyle that they once lived as Army Brats. Military brat life is stressful, fast paced scary and often confusing. Military children are always moving away from friends, missing their parents who are deployed and trying to adapt to new cultures. Life aafter the Brat life can also be challenging as well. Trying to understand civilian culture and trying to connect with civilian kids is not always the easiest. Although it’s a challenging lifestyle, being a military brat to many is also an exciting, eye-opening and learning experience. Brats are always learning about new cultures, traveling and have a diverse group of friends. It’s an upbringing that challenging, wild and crazy but has also brought so much enrichment in lives of so many individuals in the world.

           

                                                            Bibliography

Johnson, S.J. et al. (2007). Psychological needs of U.S military service members and their families: A preliminary report. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.