How did you deal with your first deployment?

Like a Boss!

Edit: Ok that really didn't answer anything. Basically I was scared crapless and reacted to save my buddies and my life. I just wanted to get back home in one piece. Just listen to your NCO's, keep an eye out for everyone and everything, and DON'T TOUCH THINGS ON THE GROUND UNLESS YOU PUT IT THERE! Oh, and don't eat every meal at the DFAC. You get fat like that....One Tubby Tubby....Two Tubby Tubby! Hope that helps.

My first deployment was Desert Shield in August of 1990, there wasn't much to do during downtime except read, play chess, and of course...play cards.

Well, I was excited, cuz we were getting in the game we were training for! Then, the deployments are long, and got longer in my time (80-13), and could be boring at times. Then in no time they can jump to exciting, adrenaline pumping, horrifying, and depressing; all in one day. I dealt with it/them, by staying busy. When I was not busy, I was getting ready, and when I was not getting ready, I was reading or writing; this was long before the internet and social media. SSG VNicia Young Air Assault!

There was a time when I (we) was first on line when missions (deployments) came up, then over time, while I never avoid any deployments (I say that because too many did avoid them), I was no longer racing to get to the head of the line, but I got on line.

In 33 years, and I spent over 30 months deployed in combat, and also many other months on the other operational and training missions. Not huge to some, I know, but still significant.

I only regret the impacts it had on my family, who were left waiting and worrying. When deployed, you are busy, the time flies by... For my wife and family back home, life goes on, time drags on, while they fear daily that someone in uniform will knock on the door one day.... I don't how they did it/do it. My part was clearly the easy part.