#WCW: Female Veterans

This week we are reminded of the sacrifices that veterans make for our country. Being married to a veteran of the Air Force, I am reminded daily of the sacrifices my husband made for our freedom and security. Let’s all close our eyes for a moment, though, and picture an image of a veteran. Most of us will picture a man, decorated with medals and old age, standing proudly in a salute while we civilians applaud appreciatively. This picture isn’t wrong. It’s a frequent image that we see every year and also one that we should be grateful for every day. But often our images of these American heroes don’t include those of our female veterans. Those strong women who have served our country are often overlooked or underserved when they come home from their deployments. While still in the military, female military personnel have to straddle an awkward fence of being feminine enough to assimilate into societal expectations of them and masculine enough to be respected by their colleagues and successful in their assignments (source). In addition to hurdles they face while they are in the military, post-service female veterans are less likely than their male counterparts to seek the appropriate help for physical and mental conditions (source). A lot needs to be changed in our society to ensure that our veterans (both male and female) get access to the support they need when they come home and today we should not think any differently.

So this #wcw, let’s take an extra moment to appreciate the sisters, mothers, daughters, friends and fellow patriots who serve our country - because lest we forget….

xx, Courtney