A military divorce may come out of the blue or be the conclusion of a long period of troubles and discontent. But in either case, it is very important that a non-military spouse be prepared the face the challenges of his or her new life. But this can be easier said than done. After all, simply trying to keep up with your daily responsibilities is difficult enough and there is not always time to focus on the future.
So, if you are a non-service member spouse who is anticipating going through a military divorce, what things should you be concerned about? Well, in an article on a military-related website, a divorced military spouse describes the things she wished she knew prior to her divorce.
She mentions one mistake she made that is likely quite common; during the marriage, her financial plans were too entangled with her then-husband’s. This created issues regarding her goals for retirement. As such she says it would have been better had she created a financial plan specifically for herself.
Additionally, she points out that divorced military spouses can continue to benefit from installation services including doctor visits, commissary access and various MWR services. An ex-military spouse can contact your installation access control to find out about the services available.
The divorced military spouse also says that having an attorney with experience handling military divorces can be very beneficial. Such an attorney can better understand the very specific circumstances that may arise in a military divorce.
If you are contemplating a military divorce, you don’t have to go through the process alone. An experienced attorney can help you contend with the special conditions that military divorce presents regarding the division of benefits, child custody, visitation and other important issues.