Military Moms: July-August - Page 24

[MaerynPearl]

Originally Posted by MarineWife

Thanks, Claire and Mae. I wonder how bad it would look to go to the Chaplain right after joining a new unit...

Chaplains shouldn't be telling anyone about who comes to see them or why... so it shouldn't look bad at all.

[MarineWife]

Thanks, Tabitha. The problem with the private counseling is that he doesn't go consistently. I got to counseling on a regular basis and he's always welcome. It's not that he's unwilling (or at least he says he'd like to go) but he almost always says he can't get away from work. So, I was thinking maybe the Chaplain could make that happen better.

[Soul-O]

MW: The MFLC folks can meet you at your convenience, outside of an office setting, so perhaps your DH might be more able to meet with them as well if it is an evening/weekend appointment. If you did the Tricare Online counseling, I think there are counselors available for evenings/weekends as well. Do you think your DH would be up for that? I agree that the Chaplain may be able to make counseling happen for your DH during work hours.

I hope something works out for you guys soon.

[MommaKitten21]

Originally Posted by grcelizabeth

Hey ladies. I'm looking for some good military books to read that give accurate information about military life for families. Can you recommend any?

I have not had any experience in the book department, but I have had luck with some websites!

Military One Source comes to mind, and there are a few others I have bookmarked at home that I can give you!



Oh, and a side note... I am sooo proud of myself right now and I cant share it with DH so figured I would share it here.... I'm in school online, and classes just ended this week, and my final grade for one of my classes was posted... 87%!!! So even with DH leaving, a toddler, a colic newborn.... and being exhausted... I still pulled off a good grade! Woo hoo! Makes it all totally worth it... and makes me believe I CAN do this!

[~Katie~]

That's wonderful, MK! Just keep taking it one step at a time, you're doing great

[EdnaMarie]

Good for you, MK! That is AWESOME!

[MarineWife]

Yay, MK!

[MaerynPearl]

Awesome MK!

[MarineWife]

How would you react to this?

I've been having a health/medical issue recently that my H is aware of. I told him earlier today that I was waiting for a call from the doc's office about whether or not I need to go in. I was told by a nurse at the office that I should go to the ER. I texted my H to inform him and got no response. I waited probably an hour and then called him. No answer. I called again 3 or 4 times in the following half hour or so. Still no answer so I finally left a message. That was about a half hour ago. So I've been trying to reach him about this for about 2 hours now with no response at all. I don't understand what would be so important at work that he couldn't take a call from me about that. I never call him at work so it's not like he's used to me calling him for silly things. He knows I won't call him unless it's extremely important.

My emotions are really raw right now because I'm dealing with this health issue so I don't know if I'm reacting rationally to his behavior.

[MovingMomma]

MW: Did you try his work # in case something's going on w/the cell?

[Maluhia]

I'd guess he was in a meeting away from his phone and assumes that you have things taken care of/are okay or he would have heard different. It probably did not occur to him that he'd have to be IN his office to hear different. I think our guys do out-of-sight-out-of-mind stuff while at work and therefore he's not doing this because he does not care about you, it is just that he is in work mode and assumes because he has not heard from you (his fault, but it won't occur to him) that things are normal/fine.

[EdnaMarie]

With my husband, I'd assume it was just a military thing, that he was in formation or something. It can take a long time! I am sorry about your condition--go to the ER, is my opinion. I'm thinking of you!

[MarineWife]

I am not going to the ER by myself.

I don't have an office # for him. He hasn't given me one. The only # I can find any of the stupid Marine Corps websites (does anyone else have a lot of trouble understanding and navigating those sites?) is for the FRO. I really don't want to call the FRO asking for my H's phone #.

[Soul-O]

MW: How did it work out? Were you able to get ahold of your DH? I had to go to L&D by myself for monitoring after falling on my stomach last week, so I understand your reluctance to go to the ER on your own. If DH isn't deployed, it would be nice for him to be around at a time like this. Hope you are feeling better soon .

MK: Way to go with the school work! I had to finish up one of the classes I was taking towards my M.A. when DS #4 was just a few weeks old and my DH was away at OCS, so I know how challenging it is to complete school work with the demands of solo parenting young children. Keep up the good work .

[gagin37]

Originally Posted by MarineWife

I am not going to the ER by myself.

I don't have an office # for him. He hasn't given me one. The only # I can find any of the stupid Marine Corps websites (does anyone else have a lot of trouble understanding and navigating those sites?) is for the FRO. I really don't want to call the FRO asking for my H's phone #.

I had this issue with my dh for a long time. It really came to a head when I was down to the last few weeks of my pregnancy with ds. I had no contact number for him at work, and he would leave his phone at home, OR leave it turned off all day at work. OR I would call, and leave a message, and he'd never listen to it. He checks all his voice mail about once a week He is still forgetful about his phone, but he's really made an effort to do better in the last year or so.

I hope everything is ok!

[MarineWife]

Originally Posted by Soul-O

MW: How did it work out? Were you able to get ahold of your DH? I had to go to L&D by myself for monitoring after falling on my stomach last week, so I understand your reluctance to go to the ER on your own. If DH isn't deployed, it would be nice for him to be around at a time like this. Hope you are feeling better soon .

I did finally get hold of him. I called the FRO and left messages on her office and cell phones asking for his office number. Before she called back I tracked down his main office number and called just as he was coming out of a meeting. That was around 4:00. He was able to come home right away and take me to the ER. I hate to call him at work and get other people involved in our business. I don't like to call attention to myself like that. No drama here, please.

He had been in a meeting that rolled into another that rolled into another since about 10:30 and left his phone in his office. Why would you leave your phone somewhere else like that? If you don't want it to ring during the meeting, just set it to vibrate. I had sent the first text about going to the ER at 10:20 but, obviously, he didn't look at it before going into the meeting. What if it had been something with one of the kids?

I asked him if I should have called his office number sooner and he said I could have. His answers like that always confuse me. Of course I could have. I could do anything I want. What I want to know is if I should have. Would he want me to call and have someone interrupt him in his meetings? I definitely would if it were one of the kids or if it were extremely emergent for me, like I needed an ambulance (although I guess I probably wouldn't be calling anyone then ) but this wasn't that emergent.

Obviously, if he's not here, I would go to the ER by myself if I had to. However, when he's here and he's not doing anything but sitting in meetings listening to some guy tell everyone how to fill out a form properly, I think he should be able to get away and go to the ER with me. I was in such a heightened emotional state that I just could not go by myself. I could not speak to my neighbor to ask her to watch my kids. I could not speak to the people at the ER. He had to do all the talking for me.

[Soul-O]

MW: I'm relieved to hear that you were able to get ahold of your DH. It isn't that hard to put the phone on vibrate, then excuse yourself at some point to check the message. Perhaps now that your DH is going to be a company commander, he will get a gov't issue Blackberry that will have to be on his person at all times - no more missed calls, messages, etc..

I'm sorry for your emergency. Hope today is a better day .

[Soul-O]

AFM: Lots of homecomings to celebrate over here. Many of the deployed spouses in my neighborhood were affiliated in some way or another with 4/2ID - the last combat arms troops left in Iraq. There's been a lot of news coverage of the pullout, so we've been able to catch a glimpse here and there of people we think we might know . It's wonderful to see the spouses coming home, but also a little sad because my DH is still over there training replacements (he's combat support - the mission isn't over for them ). I'm looking forward to taking down the service flag and replacing it with a "welcome home" banner!

[MarineWife]

It would be nice if DH would get issued a Blackberry. That's what he expected but has been told that none of the other COs were issued theirs. They had to supply their own. He does say that either way he will probably have to get one.

I heard about the last combat troops pulling out. That is good news. Sorry your DH is still there. Hopefully, he'll be able to come home relatively soon.

[gagin37]

Has anyone here been stationed at Anderson AFB? Dh is talking about volunteering for an assignment out there. It's a 3 year tour. Guam is just...so far away. I can't really imagine what it would be like to move that far away.