Texas military personnel involved in multiple deployments already know how difficult it can be to maintain a happy marriage. Even when deployments are not back-to-back, military personnel often work long hours, potentially keeping them away from home more often than they’d like. Situations like this can often lead to divorce. However, new reports suggest the overall divorce rate in the military has decreased over the last year.
Although experts hesitate to believe the rates will continue their downward spiral, the positive news appears to be linked to a lower number of deployments and overseas conflicts slowing down. In 2011, the rate of divorce was listed at 3.7 percent. Last year, the final numbers showed the rate at 3.5 percent.
The numbers include all of the services and both genders. Unfortunately, certain people in the service continued with their current trend of high divorce rates, specifically enlisted female Armed Forces personnel and all Marine Corp servicemen and women. Those rates were much higher, coming in at 9.4 and 9.3 percent. On a positive note, those rates are also slightly down as well, but they remain much higher than the overall service numbers.
Texas military personnel may find it more difficult to make a relationship work, specifically because of their job demands. Certain issues can also be more complex, including child custody and finances. Military personnel about to go through a divorce may want to be aware of their legal rights so they are able to ensure receipt of a fair share of entitlements during the proceedings.
Source: Washington Free Beacon, “Military Divorce Rate Decreases,” Jan. 23, 2013
