I felt really overwhelmed after Taylor left. It is my first time going through a deployment and I had no idea where to start as silly as that sounds. How am I going to survive all these months? What am I supposed to do to pass the time? How do I go back to “normal” life again?
Break the time up into smaller chunks:
The first thing I did was break the deployment up into fourths. I wrote down the date that we would be a quarter of the way through, half way through and three quarters of the way through. On these days I have something special planned, something to celebrate a “milestone” if you will. It could be that you go eat a cupcake or drink a bottle of wine to yourself or go do something you’ve always wanted to do but never had the chance. It could be related to your relationship if you want. My halfway date also happens to be our two and a half year mark so I will probably have a mini celebration!
You can also break it up into months! Once a month do something to celebrate that you just survived another month of this… break it up into smaller chunks to make the task less daunting.
Have a Goal:
Anything. It could be weight loss, to run a marathon, to have your basement cleaned out, to finish 10 books or knit a whole blanket. Anything your heart desires. My personal deployment goal is to pay off my car and save enough to go to his homecoming.
So, I made a plan of how much money I need monthly and I am figuring out my work schedule so I can achieve this goal. Definitely going to keep me busy during these next few months.
Take your goal and break it into chunks too. How much weight do you want to lose a month? How far are you going to increase your running distance a week?
Have a countdown:
For me, this isn’t particularly helpful because it makes the time feel slower if I am literally watching day by day pass for 100 or more days. But for others I heard it works wonders to know that you are one day closer and watch the days dwindle down! There are apps that you can use to put a countdown on your phone.
Journal your Experiences:
This website acts as my journal where I can vent and reflect about what I am going through and what I am learning. I can’t even tell you how much it has helped me to record all my thoughts down and be able to read them back to myself. Find a journal you like and take some time to write in it every day or once a week.
Self Care:
I can’t stress enough how important this is. Take care of yourself! Take baths, do your nails, get your haircut, buy yourself nice clothes to wear, put on lotion everyday, go to the gym, drink water. All of these things are so important. If you need more ideas on how to do this, visit my self care Pinterest board!
Finally, be positive:
The time is going to go by no matter how you choose to spend it. And I wish I could give you the magic secret to make it all go by faster. The best tip I could give you is to be positive. Perspective is everything.
Do you think time will go by very fast if you are moping around, staying in your pajamas all day, everyday, with the curtains drawn and the news constantly on repeat so you can check if anything has happened yet? Or will it go by faster if you are spending time with family or friends, working your ass off at your job or your dreams in general, learning a new skill, etc.?
Not saying I don’t do the whole pajama day thing too but I try my best to choose the positive route more often.
Who says that life should stop completely just because you don’t have your significant other right next to you always? It shouldn’t. You should still grow and learn and have fun because you deserve to. Because life is far too short to be anything but happy even during deployment.
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