The military is an institution that requires long periods of separation from loved ones. Soldiers have to spend extended amounts of time away from their significant others due to training, deployment, and operations. This can take a toll on their relationships and lead to emotional exhaustion.
They are also expected to maintain high levels of relationship quality despite these challenges. The following explores how soldiers cope with this contradiction.
The first challenge soldiers face is managing their own emotions. They must deal with feelings of loneliness, anxiety, and depression while away from home. Many soldiers experience homesickness, which makes them feel like they don't belong where they are and wish they were back with their families. This can be particularly difficult during holidays and special events such as birthdays and anniversaries.
The stress of combat and other dangerous situations can cause PTSD and other mental health issues that make it hard to connect emotionally with loved ones.
To counteract these challenges, soldiers often turn to their partners for support. They talk about their experiences, share their struggles, and rely on each other for comfort. This helps them feel connected even when physically apart. They may also use technology, such as video calls or messaging apps, to stay in touch.
Sustaining long-term relationship quality is not easy, especially if communication becomes infrequent or distant. In addition, the demands of military life can create tension between soldiers and their partners, such as different interests or values.
A soldier who wants to retire early may clash with a partner who prefers a more stable civilian job. These differences can strain the relationship and make it harder to maintain quality over time.
Despite these challenges, some soldiers find ways to maintain connection and intimacy with their partners. They prioritize communication by scheduling regular check-ins and sharing their thoughts and feelings honestly. They may also try new activities together when possible, such as weekend trips or hobbies. Some couples even plan for future reunions and vacations to look forward to after deployment ends.
Soldiers face many obstacles in balancing emotional fatigue and relationship quality. But through communication, planning, and compromise, they can overcome these challenges and build strong bonds that last beyond military service.
How do soldiers reconcile feelings of emotional fatigue with the relational expectation of sustaining long-term partnership quality?
Soldiers who experience emotional fatigue can struggle to maintain high levels of quality in their relationships due to feeling drained or overwhelmed. To reconcile this, they may need to prioritize self-care and seek support from loved ones, friends, or mental health professionals. They could also practice mindfulness techniques like deep breathing or meditation to calm themselves down and regulate their emotions.