Natosha Monroe

To explain all the aspects of pre-deployment to those who have never experienced them, I would have to write a manual. Instead, I've chosen four key things to explain that are good to know when supporting Troops during this phase of military life. 1. The Emotional Roller Coaster. Don't be or act surprised when Troops behave differently in the time period before they leave--specifically if it's a dangerous, lengthy, or unclear assignment. The person may be more introverted than usual or more irritable than usual. Even with my knowledge of psychology & wonderful support system, I noticed a change in my behavior. Although I often suppressed it, I felt tense & was easily irritated. I didn't enjoy having to constantly "dummy things down" to answer people's questions which were "silly" to me. I wished they'd stop & just listen & be supportive-not make me explain things they didn't understand. Not fair, I know. Then I felt guilty if I lost my patience. Most of all, I feel sad to leave my loved ones--knowing I am voluntarily causing them to worry about my safety overseas.

I’ve been asked to write about my personal experiences as I deploy to Afghanistan, so I’m going to be open and honest in offering a true look into one Soldier’s life. It’s not all about the PTSD and guns and violence that we are bombarded with in the media, but so many other things as well. I’m going to open up about things in ways I perhaps haven’t previously shared with family and friends for fear of worrying them or hurting their feelings or maybe because I just didn’t think they’d “get it.” Hopefully things I write will click with people and help them to better understand their military client, friend, or family member--or even themselves.

Did you know there are no Licensed Professional Counselors or Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists in any of the military branches? I have been an Army Reservist since 2001 and I chose to be enlisted to get a well-rounded experience and to understand the Army from the enlisted perspective first. I expected to become a commissioned officer once I graduated with my Masters Degree in Professional Counseling so I could offer therapeutic interventions to Troops. That’s when I found out the sad fact: There is no MOS (military occupational specialty—in other words an identifying code for a job title/position) for “Counselor.” Huh?! There are psychologists, psychiatrists, and masters level social workers—but no professional counselors or therapists offering their skills to Troops. Again, huh?!

Expectations are high in the military and there is little to no room for error. Just imagine the level of stress you might feel knowing you can’t make a mistake. Add to that the stress of having someone’s life in your hands…seeing blatant distortion of facts from a liberal media…constant public scrutiny…the recurring feeling of “being just a number”…being spoken down to by civilians and people in the military who outrank you…worry of someone “throwing you under the bus” to shift the blame away from them…having your medical records lost…not receiving your paycheck…not receiving your award because someone never filed the paperwork…living in quarters barely longer and wider than your twin-size bed…These are all typical things Troops experience before they even get on an airplane to go anywhere—I’ve experienced them all. Understanding this underlying stress of military life may help you to see why people seem so tense. This may also shed some light on why it’s sometimes difficult to make that instant connection with Troops. It may be due to an automatic perception that you are not genuinely interested and/or that each Troop is just a number to you, too. Do your best to prove them all wrong.

Contrary to popular belief, the fact that some Troops are enlisted does not necessarily mean they are not educated or qualified to be commissioned officers. While college-level education is not required as with officers, many enlisted Troops* are indeed educated and successful regardless of their military rank.* Recognizing this can save a counselor (especially a civilian counselor) from losing serious rapport points with a military client.