title: The Well-Being of Australian Service Mothers.
abstract: In recent years servicewomen with dependent children have for the first time in history been deployed into conflict zones in support of Australian Defence Force operations. This represents a significant social change, and the implications of deployment on the health of these service mothers are not fully understood. Data from women who participated in the Middle East Area of Operations Census study were analyzed to compare the psychological and physical symptoms reported by service mothers with service women who had no dependent children at the time of deploying to Afghanistan and/or Iraq. Of the 921 women who were included in this analysis, 235 had dependent children and 686 had no dependent children (comparison group). Service mothers were significantly older and were more likely to have served in the Air Force than women in the comparison group. Findings demonstrate that serving mothers were not at any significantly higher risk of psychological distress, post-traumatic stress symptoms, alcohol misuse, or reporting of somatic symptoms, than women who had no dependent children. A number of possible explanations for these findings are discussed, including the healthy soldier/mother effect, support from partners and extended family members, and collegial networks.
authors.affiliation: a South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute , Adelaide , South Australia , Australia.|b Centre for Traumatic Stress Studies , University of Adelaide , Adelaide , South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Carol P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Davy
authors.affiliation: c Data Management and Analysis Centre , University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lorimer
authors.affiliation: b Centre for Traumatic Stress Studies , University of Adelaide , Adelaide , South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: McFarlane
authors.affiliation: d Department of Veterans' Affairs, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory , Australia.
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hodson
authors.affiliation: e College of Medicine, Biology and Environment , Australian National University, Canberra, Australia Capital Territory , Australia.
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Crompvoets
authors.affiliation: b Centre for Traumatic Stress Studies , University of Adelaide , Adelaide , South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Ellie
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lawrence-Wood
authors.affiliation: b Centre for Traumatic Stress Studies , University of Adelaide , Adelaide , South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Susan J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Neuhaus
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D055826:Afghan Campaign 2001-; D001315:Australia; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D054542:Iraq War, 2003-2011; D016015:Logistic Models; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000523:psychology*; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012944:Social Support; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: military health; mothers; psychological well-being; somatic symptoms