As a military spouse, receiving a fresh set of hard copy permanent change of station (PCS) orders immediately chains the gate and lowers the lap bar on my own personal roller coaster of emotions. Of course, I am nervous about the obvious things: Will I have affordable childcare and somewhere to stash this territorial dog while the packers and movers invade? What will be broken, assuming all of our boxes even make it to our next home port? Where are we going to live, and go to school, and, and, and…?

It’s already a lot, but for some military families, it can be even more.

When our son, Mac, was 5 years old, he was diagnosed with anxiety, speech and sleep disorders, and severe ADHD after some behavioral issues began to surface in his pre-K class. Years later, he was reassessed and we added a math disability and moderate autism to the list. In addition to the everyday challenges, each PCS further drives home just how many services and specialists we need, now that it’s time to find them all over again.

The Prep Work

Once we get a handle on where, exactly, it is that we are moving, the extra research begins:

• Can’t be added to the orders until we see if our son’s Exceptional Family Member Program (EFMP) status disqualifies us from the duty station.
• If it doesn’t, then we can’t get on a housing list until I reach out to the local spouses’ groups and ask approximately 2,000 questions about other families’ IEP and Special Education (Sped) experiences at the elementary schools each neighborhood is zoned for.
• Can’t sign up for those schools without a school physical and DOE medical forms, anyway, so I’ll need to figure out which doctor will be our best advocate and might be willing to refer my sweet guy to all the specialists he sees.

Over the past 5 years, 4 moves, and 6 Individualized Education Plans (IEPs), we have started to figure out what extra steps we can take to make PCSing easier with a special needs child.

Doing Your Due Diligence: Resources To Help

Thank goodness for the internet! This Millennial mama can’t imagine how rough the military families who came before us had it, trying to access the right information and resources to help give their children a leg up. Here are a few resources that modern special needs families can utilize to help us work smarter, not harder, toward that next move:

• EFMP & Me is an online tool that can be customized to provide checklists and resources for major life events (like a PCS move) and the day-to-day questions that can affect your special needs family member.
• The Military Education Directory for Children with Special Needs features two sections– one for birth to age 3 and a second for school-aged children up to age 21.
• Military Family Special Needs Consultants are also here to answer your questions and suggest programs and resources to help you on your EFMP journey.\
• Contact the Military School Liaison at your new duty station. Their entire purpose is to help military kids overcome the educational peaks and valleys that come with switching schools an average of 6-9 times before high school graduation.

The Continuity of Care Adventure

Even with the wide net of providers that Tricare and Tricare ECHO afford us, one of the biggest hurdles of relocation will always be a lack of continuity of care. At any given time, my son has regular visits scheduled with not only his pediatrician and dentist, but also with a psychiatrist for medication management, occupational and ABA autism therapists for help with socialization, food aversions, and sensory issues, and mental health professional, who assists him with anxiety and coping mechanisms for his ADHD.

Think about the last time you needed to see a specialist– remember how hard it was to find someone taking new patients, accepting your insurance, and without a three-month waitlist? Remember how hard it was to convince your PCM that you even needed the referral to begin with? That same anxiety-inducing path is the one we have to follow for every single appointment he needs, made even tougher by the fact that he is only 10 years old and too young to be accepted as a patient by many providers.

Pre-move, we try to have our son’s current pediatrician and psychiatrist put in as many long-distance referrals as they are able (depending on state laws) and make sure to get paper prescriptions when possible. Nationwide shortages coupled with the controlled substance laws surrounding many ADHD/Autism/Mental Health drugs often make this step the most nerve-wracking of all. We also try to get on as many new providers’ waitlists as possible in advance of our move.

Pro Tip: Consider utilizing the Special Care Organization Record (SCOR) to keep track of your child’s record of special needs education, medical care, and medication history. SCOR is an online tool created to help families organize applicable information for loved ones with special needs.

School Daze

In addition to all of the medical providers listed above, Mac also has a whole group of wonderful people who help him at school. Whereas many children learn primarily from a classroom teacher and teacher’s assistant, in any given school year, Mac works with at least two special education professionals on a daily basis, participates in speech therapy weekly, and sees the school counselor and behavioral therapist multiple times per week, as well.

For better or worse, we also find ourselves quickly developing a rapport with principals, vice principals, health aides, and front desk staff due to Mac’s additional needs. We have IEP meetings multiple times a year and strategy meeting

s most months, if not every few weeks.

Things to Consider

But seriously, y’all– why are there always so many things to consider? The below list is by no means all-encompassing, but it is a good jumping-offpoint for some of the “little extras” that EFMP families will want to think about when moving and choosing a new school.

• Does your neighborhood school have the resources to support your child and their IEP/504 Plan/Sped needs?
• If it cannot, or if you are opting for private education for other reasons, is there an applicable state, local, or school program that might offer tuition assistance under Fair and Equal education guidelines?
• Will your new school allow outside therapists and/or Aides on school grounds, if needed? If it doesn’t. do school hours allow time to pursue those things after classes end for the day?
• Are you moving to a state that participates in Advance School Enrollment? You may be able to get your child registered for their new school before your move!

If you’re not prepared, switching schools can be a logistical nightmare for a special needs kid!

A New Village with ASYMCA

For military families in near-constant transition, the Armed Services YMCA (ASYMCA) serves as the village they need, when the village they had was left behind due to the last PCS.

One especially helpful program offered by ASYMCA is called Operation Hero. Once children are referred to the program by their gaining school, they work within a team to navigate through a 10-week after school course that focuses on getting military kids in grades 2-5 back on track in their new school and at home. Trained leaders who specialize in military kids oversee the sessions, leading discussions about who kids are and how they fit in, and how to manage feelings, friendships, and conflict. There is even homework help!

Connect with a Support Network

Special needs families have so much on their plates already when going through a change of station. Find your local ASYMCA branch to connect with a support system that understands your unique challenges and provides the resources and support you need to help your family thrive wherever you are planted next.

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