I love to read. Sure, I enjoy learning; but, there are just so many smart, thoughtful, funny, and witty people out there who find ways to say things better than I could ever imagine. Early in my career, I found myself bringing in quotes from my reading to share with my patients - these little nuggets of goodness that made me think of them or a situation we were talking about.
This past week, I shared information on a treatment for posttrauma nightmares called Exposure, Relaxation, and Rescripting Therapy for Children on the Center for Deployment Psychology’s podcast, “Practical for your Practice”. Given this, I began thinking a lot about current potentially traumatic or stressful events that have been going on around the world; and the need for more trauma-informed sleep solutions for military youth experiencing stressors and subsequent sleep problems.
There have been several points in my career where I was the sole (or sole pediatric) provider in a particular area. I remember those periods with a mixture of emotions: gratitude for the opportunity to serve those in need coupled with concern that I lacked geographically close colleagues or referral options for my patients. Consultation with colleagues (usually far away) was a lifeline and a way to ensure I offered the best evidence-based care I could, especially when patients were on long waitlists for referrals to other specialists who needed to be involved in their care. Nonetheless, at times I felt like I was operating within the echo chamber of my mind (pun intended).
In this blog, Jennifer Nevers, MSW, LCSW gives us a glimpse into her personal story of navigating family life during a drill weekend as an Army National Guard Soldier. She shares her experiences with logistical challenges, family-work life balance, expanding her support system, and finding connections through her lived experiences of military life.
In last week’s blog, my colleague April Thompson shared about military family well-being during the military-to-veteran transition. The military-to-veteran transition is just one of the many transitions that military families experience. Today I want to talk about another transition many active duty military families experience regularly, frequent moves, and how it impacts the education of military children. It feels like an appropriate focus given that April is the Month of the Military Child. I will also share several resources that I have found to be helpful as a psychologist, a military spouse, and a parent of a military child.