When a parent goes to war, military kids grow up fast

Teenagers whose parents are in the military feel the need to step up and fill the space as their mom or dad to help raise their brothers and/or sisters. They feel that they need to get a job to help bring the extra money in to help support their family."According to the Department of Defense, over 30,000 teenagers between the ages of 12 and 18 have at least one parent in the military."A lot of the teenagers really don't have a choice but to step up and take care of their younger siblings because the kids need someone there to comfort them and to help them with the day to day activities.The families of the military soldiers expected them to help with "domestic disasters" instead of being at war for so long.With the parent getting deployed for long perids of time, the National Guard is not exactly sure of the effect it is having on their children. Some studies have proven that the absense of a military parent "can cause a child to become upset, angry and the feeling of wanting to be alone."

http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/08/20/military.teens.grow.up/index.html

Older siblings feel that they have a responsibility to take care of their younger brothers or sisters. It's not just with military families that this happens, it's with families across the United States whenever a parent is not around. The younger sibling, out of instinct, looks up to their big brother or sister for help, always.