Kids of Deployed Parents May Face Mental Health Risks

I just read a news story about a recent study that found that children whose parents are deployed in Afghanistan or Iraq face a higher risk of psychiatric problems requiring hospitalization, a new study indicates.

Researchers from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences tracked over 375,000 children, aged 9 to 17, whose parents were on active duty between 2007 and 2009.

"There was a 10 percent increased risk of hospitalization among children 9 to 17 whose parents were deployed," said Dr. Jeffrey Millegan, disaster and preventive psychiatry fellow at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.

I found some really great links that provide all kinds of useful information for kids and adults as well.

Coloring Book Pages for Kids(National Center for PTSD) – PDF

Military Kids: Responding to Their Grief(American Hospice Foundation)

Talk, Listen, Connect: Helping Families During Military Deployment(Sesame Workshop)

When Loved Ones Go to War(Nemours Foundation)

What Military Families Should Know About Depression(Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress) - PDF

Families in the Military (American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry) – PDF

U.S. Army HOOAH4HEALTH: Family Matters(U.S. Army Medical Dept.)

The Emotional Cycles of Deployment

Deployment Guide