The Disadvantages of Being Related to a Member of the U.S. Coast Guard

The U.S. Coast Guard has fewer active duty members within its military armed force than other supporting branches. As a result, they often are unrecognized or left to find their own resources. Coastguardsmen and their dependents often have to fight to get their entitlements within the military services. Active duty Coast Guard members have duties that can call them out to fulfill on a moments notice. Many learn that disadvantages come with the Coast Guard territory as like any other career, but these disadvantages are worthy to note to anyone who might be considering U.S. Coast Guard enlistment.

The U.S. Coast Guard is the fifth military branch. There are currently more than 46,000 members enlisted. They usually don't have their own base for dependents usage. They often have to rely on another military branch for housing, medical and shopping. This isn't always a bad situation, but sometimes it can be depending on the location and/or family preference. I personally have been turned down for some military services due to not being apart of the same branch of military giving the service. Later to find I was denied my right for these services unjustly.

At times the Coast Guard base is a distance from other supporting bases of the other branches of military. This can cause a lengthy commute for Coast Guard members and their dependents.

If Coast Guard housing is unavailable then they will often miss Coast Guard activities, events and other important information. This information is easier to disburse to communities of Coast Guard families. Such information is often word of mouth or delivered by flyer.

Since the Coast Guard is often overlooked, it's hard to find Coast Guard mentioned as a military service on the news, papers or by word of mouth. I don't blame people for not knowing more about the Coast Guard, I too didn't know prior to my husband's enlistment that the Coast Guard was a military branch of service.

Service members that are attached to a boat are known to be underway more often. This brings strain to families. Some Coast Guard boats don't only have scheduled times of deployment, but are also performing search and rescue missions. If their pager sounds they have to quickly be ready to get underway. If the boat is in an area where severe weather occurs, they will often have to move the boat out of the storms way to prevent costly damages while leaving their family behind to fend for themselves.

The list of disadvantages is short, but could be a weighing factor to someone considering signing up with U.S. Coast Guard. My family loves this branch and feels that the advantages of being a Coast Guard family outweighs the small list of disadvantages. We will most likely remain a Coast Guard family beyond retirement.