Stressed? Need Help? HA!

So, I just finished posting a review of Sittercity on Mamanista, and before I went to bed I figured I would check my e-mail. Only the usual scary e-mail from Baby Center about all the horrible things that will happen if I do/don't do x, y, or z.

Of course, I always click. Just because I know what they are doing, that doesn't mean it does not work. Then I saw this title, which caught my attention for obvious reasons:

Moms in U.S. military stressed, need help

No, really? You don't say? I thought the timing was interesting and also thought I would share this info with you.

Narcissist that I am, I originally assumed it was going to be about MilSpouses. Nope, even worse! It is about the women who are actually IN the armed services. I have often wondered how these women do it...they truly do deserve our support. I wish I had some call to action to go with this post--write your congressmen or hug a female soldier (wait, don't do that, you might get seriously hurt if you aren't a friend)...lemme think about it for a while. And if you have any ideas or know of any programs, please fill me in.

Here's some information from the article:

WASHINGTON, May 11 (Reuters) - Mothers in the U.S. military are stressed, poorly paid and need more help caring for their children, according to a report issued by Congress on Friday.

Nearly half of all women in the active-duty military have been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, and 24,475 women are there now, the report by the Joint Economic Committee said.

Moreover, women get only 6 weeks of leave after the birth of a child, it found.

"Making sure military mothers have the quality child care, generous family leave, and access to mental health services they need is key to their family well-being and our national security," New York Democratic Rep. Carolyn Maloney said in a statement.

[The Joint Economic Committee] said that women represent one in seven U.S. military personnel in Iraq, and that most are in the lowest-paid ranks.

However, military mothers are much more likely to be single or divorced, or married to other members of the military who also face deployment.

The report, available on the Internet at http://www.jec.senate.gov, said the military may be stretched to recruit and retain women if it does not provide better services.