Published: April 23, 2026
By: Samuel, Navy Child
Being a military child is one of many challenges I have faced while growing up. Unlike many other kids around me at my schools, I have had frequent moves, long separations from my dad, and had to adapt to changes. I have moved seven times in 17 years, going to different climates (from the hot humid weather in Florida to the cold rainy winters of Washington), communities, and learning how to handle change at a young age. While all this was hard on me, it has shaped me as an individual today.
One of the biggest hardships of being a military child is moving so frequently. Every few years, military families are relocated to different bases, cities, or even countries. This means leaving behind all the friends, relationships, schools, and churches. For many kids saying goodbye over and over again can be really tough. It’s such a gut wrenching feeling when you finally get comfortable in your community just to be impelled to another part of the country. Starting all over again and this constant change can sometimes lead to feelings of loneliness or Anxiety.
Another difficult part of having a parent in the military is they get deployed all the time, deployments can last anywhere from 7 to 12 months. During that time I would only have a FaceTime call with my dad once every 2-3 days. It’s the little things that I missed the most, like saying “See you after school!”, giving him a hug before I go to bed, and even his cooking. Also military children have to deal with our family members missing important moments, like birthday’s, holidays, or school events. It can also be very stressful worrying about our parents’ safety, this kind of responsibility and emotional strain is something 98% of kids don’t have to face in today’s world.
There are bright sides to being a military child though, we also have the opportunity to experience a lot of different cultures and places. For example, when my dad was deployed in Japan, my family and I traveled over there for Christmas break. I will never forget how kind the Japanese people were to us and how good the food was. All in all, I’m very culturally diverse, not only have I visited Japan, but I have also visited parts of Latin American and Europe. These experiences made me more open-minded and respectful toward other cultures.
Being a military child is not always easy, but it helps shape strong, adaptable, and resilient individuals. From my perspective, I’ve learned that facing constant change can actually make you stronger over time. The challenges military kids go through teach important life lessons, like how to adjust quickly and stay positive even when life gets difficult. Many of these lessons aren’t learned by others until much later in life. Even though this lifestyle can be tough at times, I think it prepares us for the future by making us more confident, independent, and capable of handling whatever comes our way.
Posted In: Month of the Military Child, Our Stories