Military life can be very challenging at times. Whether you’re dealing with a deployment, a bad PCS, PTSD, or a not-so-great neighborhood. The stresses can add up and take their toll. Our friends at the DoD BeThere Peer Support Call and Outreach Center have options for military and veteran families facing challenges.

Military Life Challenges – Where to Turn for Help

By Julie Dymon, Military Spouse

In order to close on our house (PCS in Virginia, U.S.A.), we needed an alive-and-well statement from my husband (on TDY in Portugal). Without the ability to read or speak Portuguese, he had to find a fax machine in the middle of goat herds and farms to send that statement at the right time. While the stress of PCS-related challenges was all on us 20 years ago, now there’s an easier way. You can find solutions and sort out the issues of everyday military life with peer support from military spouses and veterans. They’ve been there before, and now they have resources and encouragement to share.

Solution Hub for Military-life Challenges

All Active Duty, National Guard, Reserve, and family members are eligible to use the DoD BeThere Peer Support Call and Outreach Center for free, 24/7/365 from anywhere in the world. When you contact the call center you enter in which branch of Service you’re with (or enter “other” for family members) and a Veteran or military spouse (for family members) peer specialist will answer your call. If you prefer, you can choose to speak with a male or female.

Are your kids giving you a hard time with their behavior? Do you need some pointers for making a monthly budget? Does your spouse need help finding a job or do you need to know how to find the best child care provider OCONUS? All the answers to these questions and more are just a call, text, or online chat away.

Talk to Someone Who “Gets It”

You don’t have to explain all the finer details of military life to BeThere peer specialists because they get it. It’s like having a battle buddy or milspouse friend on the other end of the phone, ready to point you toward the solutions you need. Peer specialists will also follow up with you for as long as you want them to.

No issue is too big or too small. If you had a bad day, your spouse is deployed and you need to vent to someone, call a BeThere peer specialist. You can even arrange for a video chat in case you just need to see another adult human after you’ve been surrounded by kids all day. If you are feeling anxious about something at work, you can text a peer specialist for a boost of confidence. When you’re deployed, try the online chat feature for help finding resources or just to talk.

Having multiple ways to connect with a peer specialist is convenient. Some people prefer phone conversations, while others would rather type in an online chat mode or send a brief text message.

Confidential

There’s truly something for everyone at the DoD BeThere Peer Support Call and Outreach Center. Gather base information, get tips on coping skills and nab the resource you’ve been searching for — all in one place. Call 844-357-7337, text 480-360-6188 or chat online at www.BeTherePeerSupport.org for free, confidential peer support tailored to your comfort and convenience.

PCSgrades.com is a review platform for military and veteran families. Leave a review of your prior duty station and read the reviews of where you are PCSing to. Home is where the military sends us and together we can make a difference!

Author: Julie Dymon is a writer and editor for The Bowen Group where she works on the DoD BeThere Peer Support Call and Outreach Center contract team. She’s also a freelance writer, editor, and blogger. As a military spouse, her favorite duty station was NAS Sigonella in Sicily, Italy. Find more of Julie’s military-life experiences, tips, and encouragement on the Military OneSource Blog Brigade. Once their kids are through college, Julie and her husband (a retired Senior Chief with 22 years of service) will embark on their long list of space-A travel and car trip adventures.