On behalf of Stange Law Firm, PC posted in Military Divorce on Wednesday, April 2, 2014.
Military servicemen and servicewomen are modern, everyday heroes. They often find themselves in situations that many of us cannot even imagine. But as great and admirable as these men and women are, they are still human beings, and they still have to deal with human problems. One of these problems is divorce, which appears to be on the rise, particularly between female servicewomen with non-military male spouses.
Despite being a vast minority in the armed forces, female servicewomen have a divorce rate that greatly exceeds that of their male counterparts. At only 15 percent of the active duty force, the military divorce rate for women is almost triple that of men in the military. This could be due to the lack of support for husbands with military wives. For example, one military husband recounted a support group he attended in Germany, in which he was the only male surrounded by 274 women.
The same man claimed that there was a large degree of societal pressure for males to be the bread winners, but that jobs were difficult to come by for spouses of military wives who are constantly on the move. With predictions that a quarter of the armed forces will be made up of women within 10 years, this could continue to be a large problem. Of course, these numbers include Missouri residents, who could easily find themselves facing deployment in the future.
Of course, divorce is not particular to the male demographic of military spouses. The difficulties of being with a spouse who is constantly away or requiring the family to move are as real for women as they are for men. Unfortunately, divorce can be more complex for military couples, as sometimes a military spouse is deployed during the divorce proceedings, and there are additional factors such as the 10/10 rule and the Service Members Civil Relief Act. If you find that the difficulties of a military relationship have become too much for you to overcome, it is important to seek legal advice to help you through your trying times.
Source: KCENTV.com, “Male Military Spouses Lack Support, Divorce Rates Soar,” Sophia Stamas, March 27, 2014
