Spouses want study on deployments Published Jan. 13, 2009 By Karen Jowers Air Force Times Air Force Times -- Prolonged, continuous deployments and their effects on military families need to be seriously addressed in the coming year, said the wife of the Chief of Naval Operations, the wife of the Army chief of staff, and other senior spouses who participated in a panel discussion Nov. 18. "It's also long-term effects -- we do not know the effects of these deployments on our children," said Sheila Casey, wife of Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey, noting that little research has been done in that area. "You do a study, and you are already there. The effects are already there," she said in a panel discussion held during the annual meeting of the Military Officers Association of America. "The Air Force is the newer service to commit to longer deployments," said Bev Fraser, wife of Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. William Fraser. "We've learned from our sister services, but we've learned it's still difficult." One thing the Air Force is beginning to see, she said, is that retention is not the issue. Rather, "it's being bitter because you have to stay in [the military] because of the economy." Casey said everywhere she travels to talk with Army families, she hears about difficulties in getting access to medical and mental health care. "Doctors are deployed, and staff levels are down. It's hard to get appointments. And you have to get an appointment to get a referral," she said. The military has been working to get more mental health doctors in its network, she said, but there is a shortage of mental health providers nationwide. The spouses discussed helping others avoid volunteer burnout. Casey said spouses are "stressed and stretched" in their work helping other Army families. "After being at war for seven years, people need a break. You cannot continue to do and do and do. I see it in family readiness groups everywhere I go," she said. Senior spouses need to learn how to transition from being "doers" to "mentors," she said. She said she tells spouses that if they try to do it all themselves, they are not passing along their knowledge to those who will follow them. "We don't do people any favors by keeping the knowledge to ourselves," she said. The group had a clear message for young military spouses: Even with the demands of military life, you can follow your own dreams -- whether it's having a career, furthering your education, or staying home with the children. Casey went to work when her children started school. "I made a decision at that point that there was no way I could live my life through my husband," said Casey, currently chief operating officer of The Hill, a newspaper that reports on Congress. At the majority of her husband's duty stations in their 38 years together, she was employed, she said. Five of the eight spouses on the panel were teachers, including Ellen Roughead, wife of Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead, who chose to leave teaching and stay at home after her daughter was born. Roughead said whatever path spouses choose, they should develop and maintain relationships to support them. She noted that when the senior spouses met -- many for the first time -- prior to the panel, it wasn't 10 minutes before they were sharing helpful information with each other. "The bond is because we all have a common denominator," Roughead said. "The service is a common denominator." Nina Sargent, wife of a Coast Guard lieutenant and attendee at the panel discussion, said it was encouraging to hear the insights of senior spouses. "The life of a military spouse can be not only rewarding as a family, but your career can be rewarding as well," she said. "It's exciting that so many women have succeeded. It gets me excited for my future as a military spouse, and as a mother, and for my career."