When my now husband and I started dating, he told me upfront that he had recently signed a contract with the Navy and would be moving to Charleston, South Carolina in a little under a year. I didn’t think much of it at the time, as I had no intentions in diving into a serious relationship, but over time, he gave me no choice but to fall for him.
In just a few months, he started sending me job posts in Charleston and articles on the top sights to see in the city.
By this point, I was in love, but I kept telling myself, and my friends, “I’ll never marry someone in the military.”
As the months flew by, and his date to leave for bootcamp creeped in, I realized that I couldn’t see my life without him in it. He wanted me to come with him, and as much as I hated the idea of leaving behind my friends and the opportunities where I was, I knew I didn’t want to lose him.
I made a commitment to move with him as soon as he graduated. Shortly after, I began researching what life as a service member’s significant other would be like, and how to cope with my fears of adjusting to the military lifestyle.
For many military significant others, the same questions I had pop up:
What should I expect?
How will I meet friends?
How do I know if they’re committed?
While I’m only one person, and am now a spouse myself, I remember what it’s like to be the girlfriend of a soon-to-be-service-member, and have some tips on what to expect as a S.O.
