Stress and You: A Recipe for Success

  • Published
  • By Brian P. Smith
  • TriWest Healthcare Alliance
GRAND FORKS AIR FORCE BASE, N.D. --  Books of recipes fill row upon row in book stores and libraries across the country. No matter what you might be cooking, there is no shortage of ingredients to try and instructions to follow.

Just like each chef works hard to build a recipe for the best sauce, cake or steak, each family can work at developing a unique recipe for dealing with all kinds of stress.

Deployments = Missing Ingredients
You gather your ingredients and start following the steps. What happens when a loved one, a key ingredient of your family, isn't there? From the deployment to the welcome home--and every step along the way--the military family has no shortage of challenges and stresses.

Like a soufflé, your family's emotional balance is delicate. Everyday stress and change can be very powerful forces, affecting family members and straining relationships.

Don't Let it Simmer - Get Help
Feeling overwhelmed? There is an entire behavioral health resource library filled with coping techniques and self-assessments. At TriWest.com/BH, these resources are available to you online, whenever you need. From parenting issues to relationships to anxiety and depression, you can learn more about what can cause these feelings and what you can do in these situations.

What if one-to-one help was available online, 24 hours a day? What if it were available to service members and their families at no cost?

You can at TriWest.com/OnlineCare. When eligible, the TRICARE Assistance Program (TRIAP) is an online videoconference option for help with problems associated with day-to-day living. TRIAP video counseling is:
· private
· non-reportable
· available in the U.S.

If you find yourself in a crisis situation and need to speak with someone immediately, you can call the Behavioral Health Crisis Line at 1-866-284-3743.

Deployments, lengthy separations and the stresses of everyday life can affect how you feel. Use your resources; with the right ingredients of family communication alongside medical and emotional care under your TRICARE coverage, you can help serve up a well-balanced family.