How’s A Career In The Military Like? Can A Woman In The Military Lead On A Normal Home Life (husband/kids)..

while in the military? Does she have to stay on base every day or live near base? Can she move to another base to be near her husband’s work?

5 comments to How’s A Career In The Military Like? Can A Woman In The Military Lead On A Normal Home Life (husband/kids)..

  • TLS

    Well of COURSE they can have a “normal” life.
    Thousands of women are both members of the military and mothers…many of them are married to other military, some are married to civilians, and others are single parents.
    Not all military jobs deploy constantly, and not all of them are combat-related. Women in the military are construction workers, security services, nurses, pilots, paralegals, chaplains and drill instructors. They go to school, to church, to PTA meetings. They drive their kids to little league and piano lessons and are just like working mothers everywhere…except they wear a uniform and know they have a commitment to leave if required.
    Some moms deploy…some take remote assignments…some work in relatively dangerous occupations. And some don’t. There are dozens of jobs in the military and combat fields are currently closed to women.
    Military men have wives and kids, right? It’s exactly the same. Yes, sometimes the kids get left with dad while mom deploys…and sometimes both parents deploy and the kids live with grandparents, aunts, uncles or close friends until their parents get back.
    All spouses and children of military members…whether they are cvilian or military themselves, understand there are times when the needs of the military trump everything else. That means there are weird hours, deployments, exercises, restrictions of various kinds…but it’s still family and people work it out.
    Military kids in general are pretty resillient, resourceful and used to change. Even in “traditional” military families where dad is the member and mom is a civilian, the average military child moves 5-6 times before he or she graduates high school.
    Most military members and their families can live on or off base together as conditions permit. The one constant is that you have to live close enough to get to the base quickly in the event of a recall.
    No, the military doesn’t relocate people because their spouse (male or female) got a civilian job somewhere else. If you need that kind of flexibility, you join the reserve or guard so you can go where your spouse goes. All branches have a variation of the “join spouse” program where the attempt to locate dual military couples near one another. My husband and I went to different bases, 30 miles apart, and lived in between.
    A military career is a wonderful thing. You get to benefit from so much good training and education, you have good benefits, you get to travel and see so many things and meet so many people…and you get to give back at the same time.
    I’ll bet if you ask any of the thousands of retired military women who are moms if they’d do it all again, the vast majority of them would give you a resounding “yes!”

  • tmcmcocm

    Well being in the military has many challenges for women. If single (low rank) with no children, you stay on post in the barracks. If married, you can live on or off post, as long as you can get to work on time. There is a program in the military called joint domicile where both military personnel can live together on the same base or bases close to each other when married. If you don’t have that permission, they can split a married couple up. Oh and during deployments, you may be split too. If you have children, you must have a family care plan stating who will be a short term care provider and long term care provider in the case if you both were not able to care for your children due to mission related absence. You can possible get a choice of duty station, but that depends on your job in the military and where you are most needed. Good luck!

  • NWIP

    Yes, we have lots of female friends who are in the military. Most of them are married with children and their husbands working and they don’t have a problem at all. They have deployed, they also have had times when they come home every night as well. If married then they don’t have to live in barracks unless they are at unaccompanied school or overseas unaccompanied. They instead qualify for militayr housing or living out in town in a place you rent or own. Yes it is difficult but nothing more than a lot of other marriages out there have been through.

  • Shannon M

    Well My father us to be in the navy and its was very fun he got to get more exercise, and got to see all of the cool ships. And no she can’t because she has to be ready for anything to happen and learn how to use a riffle gun, how to load it, and also how to fly a plane. So there’s absolutely no time for her to keep an normal home life.

  • Natasha N

    It depends a lot on what brach he is in. My boyfriend is a Marine and he works 7:30-4:30 We live off base.. if you guys are married then you have a lot more options. you can live on base in one of the houses.. you could live off base in military housing.. or you can just rent an apartment not in military housing but they will still pay you BAH (Basic Housing Allowance) how much you receive depends on the area where you live. Most branches of the military work with married couples very well and try to grant them the requests they ask for. hope this helps

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