Wife & Mother Military Nurse?

[jlibers]

Hi all. I just wanted to get some advice/feedback on becoming a military nurse while also a wife and mother. I'm currently still in nursing school for my ADN and plan on continuing right away to get my Bachelor's and am considering commissioning into active duty Air Force after I graduate. I'll give a little background, because they tie into my concerns:

I am a wife and mother of an 18 month old boy. My husband works as a claims manager at an insurance company and is our main breadwinner at this point. His company does have offices around the CONUS, but in his position he probably does not have the flexibility for transferring around the country (or otherwise) every few years. And, there is 0% chance he wound want to be a stay-at-home dad to follow my career unless I would be making significantly more than him (which I wouldn't be). So, I don't know if he would be able to move with me when I am stationed.

So, can any current military nurses give me some advice or feedback about their own situations or others they know in similar situations? I want to become a military nurse not only to provide for my family, but for personal enrichment and satisfaction. I'm fearful of how often I would be able to see my family if they remain in our hometown.

If I did live on base elsewhere and my family stayed where we are, how often could I realistically plan on seeing them? Could I take my son with me when I am stationed but have my husband stay back in our hometown, or would he have to come with to care for our son? How long do the deployments usually last? Would I be able to even entertain the idea of having more children while in active duty? And, overall, for those that did decide to join (whatever your family circumstance), has it been worth it? Any other tidbits of information, experience, or advice you can think of would be great!

[jfratian, DNP, RN, CRNA]

That's up to you whether it's feasible. You get 30 days of paid leave each year. In my limited experience, they are pretty generous in giving them to you.

Deployments aren't very common right now for most nurses across most branches, but that can always change. The Air Force seems to have the best deployment schedule: 6 months ON and 12 months OFF. The Army and Navy have crazy long 9+ month ordeals.

If you can find childcare arrangements for when you work, then you can take kids to your permanent duty station. Be aware that the military often chooses where you work and what hours you work. You don't get a cushy clinic job with 730-430 hours M-F just because you have kids.

If you get deployed, you would have to send them back to your husband/family. There are routine training courses that are out of state (a few weeks here and there) as well.

Generally, military nurses work about 10-20% more than the average civilian does (like ~48 hours per week). However, the pay is a bit better (especially after you've been in a while). That's when you're stateside of course and also depends on how much of a go-getter you are (how many extra duties you want to rack up).

[jfratian, DNP, RN, CRNA]

The pay comment wasn't clear: I meant the number of hours spent at work depends on how much of a go getter you are.

[Lunah, MSN, RN]

jlibers, it is impossible for anyone to predict how often you'd see your family because there is no predicting where you'd be stationed. But basically you go where they want you to go, when they want you to go. I can tell you that in the Army there are several hoops to jump through if you want to travel more than 250 miles from your duty station, even if it's your time off. Your situation does not sound suited to military life, but that's just my opinion.

Have you considered the Reserves? That way you can still serve, but stay local.

[jeckrn, BSN, RN]

I agree with Pixie on this. I have seen commands bend over backwards for single parents and others who do not care if you have kids and are expected to be at work like soldiers without children. I have seen were a soldier was not allowed to take their child to an appointment and what was told to them is your spouse is not in the military and they have to take them if the appointment is during the duty day. If you take your child with you and your spouse does not you will need to have a care plan for unexpected duties etc.