FORT POLK, La. -- When a unit deploys or comes home, there is always fanfare. There are crowds, speeches, reporters, and cameras. In those crowds it is easy to see smiling faces of children waiting excitedly for their Soldier to come home.
Many of the Soldiers with 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division left behind children during their deployment. These Soldiers prepared their families in addition to themselves and their equipment for the hardships of deployment because it may be the children and Family Members who endure the most.
The Child, Youth and School provide services to Soldiers and Families to help with the stress of coming home.
"Here at CYS we try to help deploying Soldiers and their Families as much as possible. We offer free onsite child care for the mandatory deployment meetings, 16 free hours Respite Care per month for each child, $2.00 an hour after the Respite Care each month, and great discounts on our School of Knowledge, Inspiration, Exploration, and Skills Program," said Luwanda Rider, the outreach director for CYS. "Soldiers and spouses can come by our offices to find out more about the programs that we offer and to see if they qualify."
Even though coming home is supposed to be happy and exciting time for Soldiers and Families alike, there can be challenges as Families reunite. Researchers at The National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Honolulu conducted a study of more than 300,000 children. They found 16.7 percent of the children with deployed parents had a mental health diagnosis. Most children were diagnosed with anxiety, behavioral problems, depression, sleep disorders, and stress disorders during the study years of 2003 to 2006.
Most parents try to protect their children from these worries, but it's not possible to protect them from everything. The changes associated with one parent returning after being gone for a long period of time can affect children in many ways.
"We do sometimes see kids going through a difficult time when a parent has deployed or is getting ready to deploy. We try to hook that child up with one of the youth sponsors from the Youth Sponsorship Program that has experienced a deployment. The sponsors are able to communicate on that child's level. The children can always talk to me or any management on duty and there is always a Military Family Life Counselor on call if the need ever arises," said Maria Lauenstein, Supervisory Program Specialist for the Siefred Youth Center.
When Soldiers return after a deployment they often return with a memory of how things were when they left. It doesn't matter if the Soldier was gone for six months, nine months, or a year, it is important to remember people change.
"When a deployed Soldier returns home many thing about their household may have changed, but especially the little ones," said Kristina England, Family Advocacy Program manager. "Children grow so fast and during the nine months that a parent has been gone the children will have gotten bigger and will have started to develop personalities of their own. Some of the kids may be shy at first or even a little standoffish, give them some time. Remember that they are relearning you just as you are relearning them."
The CYS headquarters building is located 6880 Radio Road, building 400. Soldiers and parents can reach them at 531-1955.
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