MILITARY: Deployment stresses probed

Survey searches for what works for troops, families confronted with multiple war zone assignments

By MARK WALKER - Staff Writer | Sunday, June 22, 2008 8:45 PM PDT ∞

CAMP PENDLETON ---- The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have sent hundreds of thousands of local Marines and sailors on repeated deployments, assignments that often exact a mental and physical toll.

Those frequent deployments also strain the wives, husbands and children left behind.

Trying to learn how the troops and their families are coping, the Office of the Secretary of Defense has commissioned the nonprofit Rand Corporation to survey troops and their spouses to determine how well their needs are being met.

"Despite decades of experience with family support programs, we still don't have good data showing us which programs give us the most bang for the buck," said Laura Miller, a Rand military sociologist based in Washington. "We're centering the survey on finding out what the needs are for service members and their families."

The online survey is on the Camp Pendleton Web site, www.cpp.usmc.mil.

The survey wants to hear from spouses such as 21-year-old Christi Velthouse, whose husband, Lance Cpl. David Velthouse, is on his first deployment.

Velthouse said she and her husband missed the predeployment briefing for his unit. During those gatherings, representatives of various military and civilian support programs detail their services.

Velthouse said having a job, school and a friendly ear help her cope with the first long-term separation from her high school sweetheart.

"It's been a lot different than what I expected," said Velthouse, whose husband is at sea with Camp Pendleton's 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit and may wind up in Iraq.

"It was significantly harder during the months leading up to it, but now that I'm going through it, I'm finding that I am capable of doing this," she said.

Velthouse is attending Palomar College and works as a lifeguard at the base. She has a roommate whose significant other also is with the 15th MEU, so the two are able to share feelings and support each other, she said.

"Going to sleep by yourself and being alone on the weekends are the hardest times," she said.

In April, Rand released a study saying that nearly 20 percent of all service members ---- approximately 300,000 troops ---- have reported suffering from symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder or major depression.

Through the first part of this month, 38 single and 136 married Marines had completed the Rand survey while 317 spouses had answered the dozens of questions.

The survey ---- which is being conducted at Camp Pendleton and at Fort Lewis, a U.S. Army base in Tacoma, Wash. ---- will remain online for a few more weeks.

The survey asks questions including whether spouses have had problems with the military culture and policies, or issues with household management, health care, marital problems and child care.

Issues abound

Marine reservist Dana Reed has been serving as the I Marine Expeditionary Force's deputy chaplain since January, the second time he has been recalled to active duty since the invasion of Iraq.

A pastor with the United Church of Christ in his civilian life, Reed spends much of his time providing counseling services.

With about 11,000 local Marines on assignment in Iraq this year, Reed said, he is seeing increasing numbers of spouses and significant others dealing with relationship and parenting stresses.

With rising fuel and food prices, economic pressures also are emerging, he said.

"When it comes to relationships, there seems to a hardening of sorts," Reed said. "There's a certain resignation about deployments that says, 'This is the life and I just have to go through it again.' It wears on people."

Reed said he believes some couples simply don't talk much about the strains of separation.

"It's like they put up a protective shell where it becomes difficult for people to open up and talk about just how hard it is," he said.

The chaplain said he counsels 12 to 24 people a week, roughly double what he sees in his civilian pastoral work.

The predeployment seminar that Velthouse and her husband missed features representatives of various assistance programs outlining their services.

Too often, however, Reed said, people are reluctant to step forward in that setting because of how it may be perceived by unit commanders.

"If I were to gather 250 to 300 people in Windham, Maine, and parade them in front of a multitude of free services they were eligible for, I would hear, 'Glory hallelujah,' " he said. "But for some reason, there is a culture in the military that is hard to crack that stops people from stepping forward in those settings."

Family readiness

Marianne Espinoza serves as the family readiness coordinator for Camp Pendleton's 1st Marine Logistics Group.

The spouse of a Marine officer, Espinoza makes sure troops and their spouses get help when needed, often relying on spouses who serve as "key volunteers" within each unit.

"Everyone is assigned a key volunteer and given a link to all the information and programs that are out there," she said. "We don't baby them ---- we enable them to help themselves."

With the Iraq war in its sixth year, Espinoza said improved communication with troops in the war zone has eased many of the stresses that existed when e-mail and video hookups were spotty.

Suzy Patterson is one of the key volunteers for the unit.

She said she often gets questions from young wives needing help with child care, automotive issues, access to bank accounts and concerns when a loved one overseas has not been in contact.

"And there is that loneliness issue and there's always an underlying stress when they're gone," she said.

When the troops do return, Espinoza and her staff caution spouses to be aware that issues often emerge after what she called the homecoming honeymoon phase.

Bill Rider, president of the local advocacy group American Combat Veterans of War, said he believes a substantial number of returning troops ignore the various programs that are available.

Many, he said, avoid being identified as someone with a problem, choosing instead to self-medicate to cope with combat stress

"There are a lot of programs at Camp Pendleton, but the message that comes from midlevel commanders is, 'Suck it up, devil dog, you are OK' when often many are not," Rider said. "I think the generals get it, but a lot of young colonels don't want to confront these issues in their command. The end result is you wind up with a lot of sick people."

Contact staff writer Mark Walker at (760) 740-3529 or mlwalker@nctimes.com.

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