Deployment Cycle Issues

Overview | What to Look For | What to Do | What to Avoid
What to Expect | Troubleshooting

Overview

Once a unit and the Marine deploys, readiness challenges manifest in different ways. The new challenges for the families are how to solve the problems that have come up during deployment and who is it that can help. The possibilities are numerous and varied as to what could be potential problems once a Marine deploys, but most are not too far outside the scope of what can be considered “normal situations” or those commonly experienced during deployment.   There are, however, exceptions that no one can plan for.  In any case, the time for prevention is past and it is now time for active problem solving.

Some of the more common problems that arise during deployment involve challenges to the flow of communication and information and emotional issues (especially if Marines are in harm's way).  Families can sometimes seem to disappear and many of the fears that prevented a Marine from connecting their spouse with the unit are now preventing the spouse from reaching out to the unit as well. The problems that may have been surmountable in the past suddenly seem overwhelming and put additional stress on the spouse.

When these challenges are happening to the families in your unit while you are forward deployed with your unit, you will have to rely on your rear party detachment to keep you informed of any trends or major problems. Sometimes, even communication between the forward and rear party is a problem.  You may have to trust in the training and education you have provided the rear party detachment and know that there are many programs, services and volunteers who are ready, willing and able to assist your families while you are focused on your mission. 

What to Look For

• Marine with family seems unfocused on the mission

• Marine is worried or frustrated with family problems

• Marine spends more time than expected trying to communicate with his family

• Marine is not communicating with his family

• Marine seems frustrated, angry, or despondent after communicating with family

• Family contacts unit expressing frustration with situation

When you are looking for signs that might suggest a Marine is having trouble his family back home, you need to be aware of some of the typical reasons that things can go wrong at home while the sponsor is away:

• Communication challenges- Families are frustrated with the communication process. Communication and education are the two pillars of support during the deployed phase. Unfortunately, there are many ways communication can breakdown for families. Some problems involve the unit, some are a result of actions taken by the family and some just happen. Regardless, the families need to know that all efforts are taken to keep the family informed and involved and that communication is a two-way process. The families must also reach out to the unit via the Key Volunteers (KVs) and the Family Readiness Officer (FRO) or rear party personnel.

What to Do

As a leader, you will have to do what is right for the entire unit, but if one of your Marines is having more trouble than the rest with their family during deployment, you should take them aside and help them out so they don't affect the readiness of the rest of the unit.  Here are some things you can do:

• Ask the Marine how things are going with his family back home.

• Use active listening skills to encourage the Marine to confide in you.

• Determine which areas in particular need to be worked on.

• If technical communication problems are the issue, help the Marine get through to the family.

• Arrange for the Marine to contact the Family Readiness Officer (FRO) in the rear party for on-site assistance with the family. The FRO will contact the family and put them in touch with appropriate helping agencies. Follow-up with the Marine to ensure progress.

Some things that can be facilitated by the both forward and rear parties are as follows:

• Ease the stress and emotional swings of spouses. KVs will be the best way to judge if the spouses are feeling emotionally overwhelmed. They will cue into the emotions when they are talking on the phone with the spouses or when they see them at unit events. Spouses who exhibit severe emotional swings or seem to stay with one or two negative emotions may need to seek professional help. Signs and symptoms of depression can manifest in people differently. Rear party personnel should be educated on the signs and be comfortable if need be, to make the referral. Some mood swing is normal and expected.  For those times of heightened stress, the command is able to request Stress Management support from the local Marine and Family Services (MFS) counseling staff. They may also be able to tailor briefs relative to the needs of the unit and families. MFS also provides classes on a variety of other topics such as parenting classes, new parent support and couples counseling. Contact your local MFS office to coordinate.
• Prevent withdrawal of family. The best way to prevent this from happening is to activate and involve the Key Volunteer Network (KVN) at a very early stage – even before deployment begins. KVs will establish a relationship with their families and build a trust that can stand the test of time. They are the first point of contact with these families and are responsible for updating families through phone calls, personal contact and electronic/regular mail. If the KVs are not able to link with the families they lose the personal connection as well as the opportunity to bond the family to the unit and the other families. Families will be less likely to withdraw if there is someone calling and making sure they are all right. The connection to the KVN is also very important to the unit as the KVs are able to track trends in family issues and provide updates to the readiness roster.
• Watch for recurring issues.The need to have your rear party personnel properly trained and educated on local support programs and services is imperative and is most needed when unit families are experiencing trouble. The information and education gained before the unit has deployed will pay off once the unit is gone. Coping with reoccurring issues, or any issue, will be the main focus of the rear party and they will need to have very good problem solving skills and people skills.  Often times, the families are in crisis when they reach out to the unit. Having KVs and rear party personnel properly trained, educated and sensitive to families' problems will mean faster, targeted resolution to family problems down the road. Common issues include pay, mail delivery and email access.

What to Avoid

• Inadequate training of rear party personnel.

• Not making the timely upkeep of unit readiness roster a priority.

• Not responding to the emotional stress of the unit families.

• Not keeping unit families informed - not activating KVN phone tree/email flow, not communicating in a timely fashion, not coordinating newsletter info, not updating unit website/answering machine.

• Not stressing the importance of every family being connected to the unit – regardless of families' location, situation, etc.

• Not maintaining emphasis on importance of family readiness and family support.

What to Expect after Taking Action

• Most Marines and families will respond positively to unit leaders taking an interest in their problems if it is done with their best interests in mind.
• The Marine's family will get assistance from the Key Volunteer (KV) or Family Readiness Officer (FRO).
• The Marine should be willing to keep his leader apprised of general progress with the problem so far as it affects unit readiness.
• Fewer recurring issues.
• More problems being handled by KV or rear party personnel.
• Happier families due to their being better informed, more in contact with spouse, and unit support personnel.
• Fewer families falling out of touch with unit.
• De-escalation of stressors and emotional swings.

Troubleshooting

• The unit loses track of the family.
  Families may decide to move out of the area while a Marine is deployed or simply break contact with the unit. Either of these actions results in families being less informed, more vulnerable away from the caring and watchful eye of the unit. The Key Volunteer Network (KVN) is the first point of contact with these families and is responsible for updating families through phone calls, personal contact and electronic/regular mail. If the KVs are not able to link with the families they lose personal touch, the personal connection, as well as the opportunity to bond the family to the unit and the other families. The CO's best option to ensure that the REDs are up to date and that the KVN has current and continuously updated rosters.
• The unit spouses are overly emotional due to combat involvement of unit.
  For those times of heightened stress, the command is able to request Stress Management support from the local Marine and Family Services (MFS) counseling staff. They may also be able to tailor briefs relative to the needs of the unit and families who may require help coping with a suicide in the unit or a training accident. MFS also provides classes on a variety of other topics such as parenting classes, new parent support and couples counseling. Contact your local MFS office to coordinate.
• Number of family issues seems to be increasing.
  Rear party personnel may be overwhelmed with situations or are not educated on local resources, support programs and services. Rear party can contact the local MCFTB office or higher headquarters FRO for a brief on local services and problem solution assistance.  The unit KVN may benefit from refresher training on local resources as well.
• Communication challenges.
  There are many varying factors to the communication challenges and trying to control all of them is impossible. The ones that are able to be impacted by command influence are those that unit owns - the timely upkeep of unit readiness rosters, amount of contact with families via the KVN, the number and timing of unit events during deployment, and how proactive the leaders' endorsement and involvement are in the readiness process overall.