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Parental Leave Policies Extended for Service Members

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New parents will soon benefit from more generous paid maternity medical leave, as well as primary and secondary parental leave instituted by the Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard.

These new policies were updated as part of the Department of Defense Parental Leave Program and are retroactive to December 2016.

Parental Leave Policies Extended for Service Members

How do you think these generous parental leave policies will impact military families?

Military Extends Parental Leave Policy for Service Members

The updated and expanded parental leave policies apply to birth parents, including same-sex couples, as well as adoptive and surrogate parents.

Maternal convalescent leave and either primary or secondary parental leave may be combined. Non-convalescent parental leave can be used at any time within the child’s first year of life or after adoption.

Parental leave doesn’t have to be taken immediately after birth or adoption but can be spread out as desired by the service member. However, the allocated leave days must be taken consecutively.

Parents can determine if the active duty member will serve as a primary or secondary caregiver. Birth mothers are not automatically categorized as the primary caregiver.

Related: Should Women Be Included in the Draft?

While the coverage is relatively uniform in terms of inclusivity, there are some slight variations across the services. Additionally, the Army has not announced any changes to their parental leave policies at this time.

Air Force

Active duty airmen can now take up to six weeks of maternal convalescent leave. In addition, primary caregiver leave is also six weeks. Secondary caregiver leave is 21 days.

Personnel may only hold one caregiver designation

This policy is among the most generous of all four services that have announced changes.

“We now have not only the most generous parental leave policy in the Department of Defense, we have the most generous parental leave policy in the federal government,” Kaleth Wright, chief master sergeant of the Air Force, wrote in a Facebook.

Coast Guard

Those who serve in the Coast Guard are granted six weeks of maternal convalescent leave. Primary caregiver leave is also six weeks, with 21 days of secondary caregiver leave allowed. This new policy increases the secondary parental leave from 10 to 21 days.

“The strength of our Coast Guard families determines the strength of our Coast Guard,” said Adm. Karl L. Schultz, Coast Guard commandant. “That’s why time off to care for new family members is really a readiness issue.  Our members need – and deserve – time to bond with their new child and adjust to new routines so they can return to work ready to keep the nation safe.”

Navy

Sailors are authorized six weeks of maternal convalescent leave. Primary caregivers can take six weeks and secondary caregivers can take 14 days.

“Navy’s parental leave program supports Sailor 2025’s goal of removing obstacles that negatively influence a Sailor’s decision to stay Navy when they are looking to start or raise a family,” according to a statement from the Navy.

Marine Corps

Marines can take six weeks of convalescent leave, as well as six weeks of primary caregiver leave. Fourteen days of secondary caregiver leave is authorized under the updated policy. This mirrors the Naval parental leave policy as the Marine Corps falls under the Department of the Navy.

Extended Parental Leave General Policies

All updated parental leave policies are retroactive to December 23, 2016. Troops may combine maternal convalescent leave with either primary or secondary caregiver leave.

While leave categories may be taken separately or jointly, they must be taken in their entirety within the first year following birth or adoption. Service members can only qualify under one of the caregiver categories, per the descriptions in their service-specific guidance.

How do you think these generous parental leave policies will impact military families?

How Being a Mother Changed My Life as a Military Spouse

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My life completely changed when I became a mother. When I saw our son for the first time my whole world changed. Though there were many long nights of sleeplessness, there were also plenty of moments of pure joy. We brought this tiny person into the world. He was ours to love, to teach and to enjoy.

I don’t think it’s possible to know true love and joy until you’ve held your baby in your arms.

I never thought of myself as an emotional or sentimental person, but I certainly am now that I’m a mother. I feel the tears in my eyes when I think about how much he means to me. I love our son. It has been an emotional journey watching him grow.

My husband deployed when our son was nine months old. Deployments can be hard on families, and this one was so much more trying now that I was a mother for the first time and alone with a baby.

I loved seeing our son grow, try new things and explore his surroundings. It seemed like only a blink of an eye and our baby had turned into a toddler. Where did the time go? I missed the baby stage but looked forward to the next steps. I missed the bond that came with nursing once he stopped, but I still get plenty of snuggles since my son loves to cuddle.

How Being a Mother Changed My Life as a Military Spouse

I love the moments when I’m holding our baby girl and she reaches her tiny hand for my cheek. But it makes me sad to think that my husband is missing these moments with her.

Our son is now four years old and almost nine months ago we welcomed our second child into the world, a little girl. My husband deployed just before she turned three months old. That was incredibly hard. I was left with two kids for six months. Some days were really hard and others were amazing.

I thought our son would be jealous of the baby but I couldn’t have been more wrong. He adores her. He wants to hold her, feed her and share his toys with her. He smiles and talks to her and she smiles back. I love the moments when they just stop and look at each other smiling. It brings great joy to my heart. I’m so sad that my husband missed all of this once again.

Related: Celebrating Mother’s Day During Deployments

Last night we had an amazing homecoming. My husband returned from his sixth deployment. I’ve picked him up plenty of times, but this time was completely different. The excitement our four year old showed in anticipation of his arrival was enough to make anyone smile. He stood in the airport with his welcome home sign waving his American flag waiting eagerly for Daddy to come off the plane.

I don’t think there were many dry eyes when everyone heard him shout “Daddy” and run to his father. It was a moment of pure joy.

I love being a mother and seeing these moments. There will be more deployments that will come all too soon, but there will be plenty of time to enjoy our family as a whole. I’m so happy that my husband is home to enjoy our children. I hope with our daughter that he gets to see some of the milestones he missed with our son. As a mother, I couldn’t imagine missing any milestone.

There’s a strong bond between a mother and her child. I love the moments when I’m holding our baby girl and she gazes up at me and reaches her tiny hand for my cheek. Those moments are fleeting so I will cherish every one.

Related: Don’t Forget Military Moms

Though it’s sad to see her grow so fast, it’s amazing to watch her learn and explore. I look forward to seeing her personality grow and to see how she and her brother bond. Being a mother is a remarkable thing and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

5 Breastfeeding Tips for New Moms

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Breastfeeding is hard. For some reason, people don’t tell you that while you’re pregnant. You see ads in magazines of glowing new moms blissfully nursing their babies and think “oh, this will be easy.”

5 Breastfeeding Tips for New Moms

Breast pumps are now 100% covered under Tricare. All you need is a prescription from your doctor.

For most moms, it isn’t that simple. Some women luck out and have babies that are great at latching. They have a steady milk supply and don’t run in to any nursing-related medical problems.

For the rest of us, nursing takes practice and a whole lot of patience. Here are 5 tips for moms that plan to breastfeed their babies.

5 Breastfeeding Tips for New Moms

Learn about Breastfeeding

This sounds funny to say, but breastfeeding isn’t as simple as it sounds. A lot of women give up breastfeeding because they thought it would be easy to do but then discovered that it wasn’t.

I recently had our second child, a baby girl. I watched videos online about how to breastfeed over and over again when she wasn’t latching properly. I nursed our first child so you would think doing it again would be easy, but no 2 babies are alike.

You can learn about breastfeeding through books such as “What to Expect When You’re Expecting,” by watching videos online, by taking a baby education class or by attending a breastfeeding support group. Talking to friends that have breastfed their babies can be really helpful as well.

Prep for Breastfeeding

Once you’ve decided that you’re going to breastfeed your baby, you’ll want to prep for it while you are pregnant. There are a few things to consider.

  • Will you exclusively breastfeed or will you also pump?
  • Will you be breastfeeding in public?

These questions are to determine what items you will need to acquire. If you plan to pump, then you’ll need to get a pump, milk storage bags, bottles and cleaning supplies.

If you are going to nurse in public, then you might want to consider how comfortable you will feel. Some people are perfectly confident nursing in public and some are not. Either way, your wardrobe will probably change. You will want nursing bras and nursing tank tops as well as nursing friendly tops. Some women like to have a type of cover to place over the baby for more privacy as well.

Get a Free Pump

Even if you aren’t sure you want to pump, get a pump anyway. A wonderful benefit of Tricare is that breast pumps are 100% covered and you can get a new one with each child you have. It’s simple to do as well.

All you need is a prescription from your doctor.

You do not have to buy your pump at a specific place. There are numerous stores, home health supply companies and online retailers that will give you a no-cost pump with your prescription. Many now offer free accessories.

Look around for the best deal and see what you can get. Once you have your pump, take it out of the box and read the directions before the baby comes.

5 Breastfeeding Tips for New Moms

This is a picture of the pump I ordered along with all the free accessories that came with it.

Don’t Get Overwhelmed

When the baby arrives, don’t let yourself get overwhelmed with breastfeeding. It’s natural to worry if your baby is getting enough milk and if you’re doing it right. A lactation nurse should visit you in the hospital to help you get started.

Once you’re home things might go well for a period of time and then all of a sudden change. Don’t panic.

Tricare covers lactation consultations. You can get help. You can also join a lactation support group. I joined the one at our hospital. It’s a great way to meet other moms as well.

Enjoy the Experience

Breastfeeding should be comfortable, not painful. You should feel happy in the bond that you’ve created with your baby. Breastfeeding is a unique experience and once you’ve mastered it, you will be able to enjoy it.

There will be times that you want to cry or curse but there will be plenty more times that you look down at your baby and smile just like the women in magazines.

What tips do you have for new moms who are breastfeeding their babies? Share them in the comments section.

 

How to Work Out Without a Gym Membership

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I recently joined a gym but it was the first time I have been in a place where I could do so. Up until now I have had to find ways to workout from home with my kids around. This was no easy task.

Whether it was because of where we lived, lack of childcare options with a deployed husband or lack of extra funds to pay for a gym membership, I had to figure out ways to do so on my own. I couldn’t rely on going to a gym a few times a week.

How to Work Out Without a Gym Membership

The first thing I did was invest in a few workout videos. I knew I could do these at home and work around my kid’s schedule. I found that once I got into a good habit of watching them I started to see success. There are a lot of different choices on videos and programs you can get for home.

You don’t have to always buy them either. A lot of libraries offer copies and some can even be found on Netflix. You might want to try a few different types of videos before you decide on one that really works for you.

Another way I was able to workout with kids around was by using my stroller. My older two boys are just over 2 years apart so when they were little I used a double stroller. I tried to take them out everyday for at least a half an hour but sometimes a lot longer than that. I found it easy for me to put them in the stroller and go, no matter what was going on. I could do it whether my husband was home or overseas and it didn’t depend on him, which was nice.

I have recently heard about a great program called Stroller Warriors. You can find this program at many different military bases. They host weekday morning runs as well as other physical activities you can take part in. You can always bring your children which is the best part. You don’t have to worry about childcare or what you will do with them when you are working out. Besides group exercise like this is also a great way to make some new friends. Both for you and your children. It is always nice to be able to make mom friends doing something that you enjoy. Stroller Warriors also does a lot of outreach and fundraising which is a great way to give back to your community. You can view a list of their chapters on their website.

How to Work Out Without a Gym Membership

When you first become a mom it can seem very overwhelming to try to balance the needs of your baby with your own needs. After a few weeks, most moms feel like they should get back to a workout schedule but it might be a bit of a challenge to do so.

My best advice would be to see what you have available to you and go from there. Most people have a living room or other area that they can work out in. Come up with a good schedule, find a workout buddy and get back to working out on a regular basis. You will be glad that you did.

What are your cost-saving exercise tips? Share them in the comments section.