Mother of five thankful for SRU during pregnancy

FALLS CHURCH, Va.- There are hundreds of jobs in the Army called an MOS, which means Military Occupational Specialty. For Staff Sgt. Brittany Ramsey MOS could also mean Mom Of Several. “My house is organized chaos. I have a boy who’s seven, a boy who’s six, a girl who’s four, a boy who’s three, and a girl who’s two, “ she said, laughing. The mother of five never stops. But she had to stop and focus on caring for herself during her fifth pregnancy.

“I had gestational diabetes and a pelvic floor prolapse that was happening before delivery. I never thought the Soldier Recovery Unit (SRU) would be for me. I always thought it was for Soldiers medically retiring.”

Ramsey arrived at the Joint Base Lewis McChord (JBLM) SRU in March 2022.

“My commander referred me during my fifth pregnancy. I was assigned to the 555th "Triple Nickel" Engineer Brigade, and I was their master driver at the brigade level here at JBLM. She saw this program as an opportunity for me .”

To be clear, the SRU isn’t for pregnancy. However, when complications during pregnancy arise, like in Ramsey’s case, they can help. Today, Ramsey is thankful the SRU included her in their recovery program. “Physically, I'm pretty good. I am being recommended for surgery, but it's musculoskeletal recovery. I’m going to apply to see if I can stay active duty on a modified plan, but if that doesn’t work out, I have a plan,” said Ramsey.

She took advantage of the Career Education and Readiness opportunities at the SRU. “My mom always told me I was going to be a lawyer someday because I am argumentative,” said the always-on-the-go Soldier Mom.

She is approaching that day as she is now in law school. “I am in the JD flex program at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. It allows me to do it from Washington, and I will fly in when I have an in-person event I must be at. Twist my arm,” she chuckled.

Ramsey is familiar with the law, having started her career there. “I worked as a paralegal in military law for the first ten years. I love real estate law, property management, and elder care.”

After serving seventeen years in the Army, Ramsey is ready to face whatever the future holds, and she knows she made the right decision to accept help from the Army Recovery Care Program. “If I had gotten out and not come to the SRU, I would not have finished my degrees or certifications. I appreciate the coaching and mentoring they offer. They check and balance with you. What can we schedule? How is it going? What else needs to be done? They always offered encouragement!”

Ramsey's takeaway from this experience is to pay attention to your body and accept all the available help. “Time is valuable, and it's always better to keep moving when you have an injury. It's important to keep your body and mind moving. You will get that at the SRU.”