Military Spouses Struggling with Solitude and Anxiety: Recent Research Investigates Their Emotional Well-being at Night
The holistic wellness framework for military and veteran spouses recently gained attention in a 2025 survey conducted by researchers from The University of Texas at Austin’s Institute for Military and Veteran Family Wellness (IMVFW) and the nonprofit InDependent. This survey is notable as it is the first to apply a comprehensive wellness framework specifically to military and veteran spouses, moving beyond traditional measures of satisfaction to consider a positive state of well-being across eight interconnected domains: emotional, physical, intellectual, social, occupational, financial, spiritual, and environmental (including home and neighborhood quality).
Key findings revealed that military and veteran spouses experience depression and anxiety at rates two to three times higher than the general population, alongside significant challenges in accessing community support, peer networks, and suitable employment.
The survey, conducted between September 2024 and January 2025, had 1,150 complete responses, split about evenly between veteran and military spouses. Most respondents were women, White, and living within the United States. About 65% of respondents showed moderate or high levels of loneliness, and over half reported some level of anxiety or depression. Moreover, about 62% of respondents indicated sub-threshold clinical insomnia.
However, many respondents demonstrated resilience and positive behaviors, such as moderate-to-high engagement in intellectual and spiritual wellness practices. Most respondents also reported moderate to strong spiritual wellness, and about 81 percent of respondents scored highly on a perceived neighborhood quality scale. Respondents reported moderate overall wellness satisfaction, with an average rating of 6.58 out of 10.
### Policy Recommendations Emerging from the Framework
The survey's findings have led to several policy recommendations aimed at enhancing the well-being of military and veteran spouses:
1. Enhanced Mental Health Support: Given the high incidence of depression and anxiety, policies should prioritize accessible, tailored mental health services for spouses. 2. Community and Peer Support Networks: Strengthening social connections via organized peer support and community-building initiatives to combat isolation and loneliness. 3. Employment Opportunities: Creating or improving programs that facilitate meaningful employment that accommodates the unique challenges of military life and frequent relocations. 4. Comprehensive Wellness Programs: Integrating care approaches that address all eight wellness dimensions, including physical health, spiritual support, and environmental factors. 5. Data-Driven Future Surveys: Ongoing collection of data using this holistic wellness model to monitor trends and the effectiveness of interventions.
### Future Surveys
The new survey sets a precedent for future wellness assessments by emphasizing a broad, multidimensional approach rather than focusing solely on specific issues like satisfaction or mental illness. Future surveys could:
- Include longitudinal tracking to assess how wellness changes over time, especially through military relocations or changes in service member status. - Incorporate qualitative data to understand personal narratives and nuanced challenges. - Evaluate the impact of new or ongoing policy changes on spouse wellness. - Extend focus to suicide prevention strategies by linking with integrative whole health approaches, similar to those being adopted by the VA for veterans themselves.
In summary, the holistic wellness framework for military and veteran spouses recommends adopting a wide-ranging approach to policy and wellness support, touching on emotional, social, occupational, and environmental factors. This can lead to more effective supports that recognize the backbone role these spouses play behind service members, ultimately improving overall family outcomes and wellbeing.
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The authors hope to conduct future surveys every two years, if not annually. The survey's authors encouraged community leaders and military officials to address gaps in support, particularly in areas such as mental health, employment, and social connection. Only 32 percent of respondents felt they could call on a neighbor for help if needed.
For more detailed policy suggestions or examples of successful programs implementing this framework, further information can be provided based on current military spouse wellness initiatives.
- The space force, in collaboration with the air force within the military, could consider implementing holistic wellness programs that address mental health, especially as military spouses experience depression and anxiety at rates two to three times higher than the general population.
- A potential approach to improve the physical health of military and veteran spouses could involve fitness-and-exercise programs as a part of the overall wellness framework, alongside nutrition education to promote health-and-wellness.
- In the realm of science, further study could be conducted to research and address sleep issues like sub-threshold clinical insomnia, which was indicated by 62% of respondents, to enhance overall health and well-being.
- Given the challenges in accessing community support and peer networks for military and veteran spouses, it would be beneficial to facilitate mental-health and wellness support groups, fostering a sense of connection and reducing feelings of loneliness.
- Recognizing the importance of spiritual well-being and its positive impact on overall wellness, as highlighted in the survey, military and veteran spouses could be provided with resources and opportunities for intellectual and spiritual growth within their communities, adding another dimension to comprehensive wellness programs.
