Carrying the Load Twice — Military Teen Caregivers

A Youth Caregiver. — Military Youth Caregiver

When we talk about military service, we often picture the soldier in uniform. But behind that uniform are families who also serve, and among them are teenagers quietly carrying a second kind of duty. These are the military teen caregivers: young people who balance the everyday challenges of growing up with the extraordinary responsibility of caring for loved ones.

The Scope of the Issue

Research shows that caregiving is not limited to adults in military households. In fact:

39% of children in military or veteran families provide some form of caregiving.
Over 3 million youth live with a disabled veteran parent and may help with daily care.
Frequent relocations often one in three military families move every year disrupt not just schooling and friendships, but also the stability of caregiving routines.

These teens aren’t just helping occasionally. They are stepping in to support siblings with special needs, assist parents recovering from injuries or illness, or hold the family together during deployments and transitions.

Youth Discussing About Caregiving — Teens Talking About Caregiving

The Invisible Strain

Military-connected caregiving youth face challenges that extend beyond their peers in civilian communities:

Only 8% report high mental well-being, while 35% struggle with low well-being.
Nearly 45% report engaging in self-harm behaviors in the past six months.
54% report food insecurity, more than triple the national average for children.

For a teen already balancing school, friendships, and their own dreams, these added responsibilities create invisible weight weight they carry with quiet resilience but rarely recognition.

A Missing Framework

Unlike their counterparts in the UK and Australia, U.S. military teen caregivers remain outside any formal recognition or policy system. Their caregiving does not count toward graduation service hours. They are rarely included in school-based supports. And in most public conversations, their role goes entirely unmentioned.

This lack of visibility reinforces the sense of isolation many military teens already feel due to constant moves and the unique pressures of service life.

The Double Legacy of Service

For 250 years, wherever there has been military service, there have been caregivers. Military teen caregivers are part of this legacy children and adolescents who step up when their families need them most. They carry the load twice: once in the sacrifices that come with military life, and again in the caregiving roles they assume at home.

Recognizing their contributions is not an act of charity. It is an act of justice. These young people deserve to have their work acknowledged, their hours counted, and their resilience celebrated.

Looking Ahead

The Torch of Care Community Service Hours (TCCSH) program is designed to meet this need by turning caregiving into community service credit, ensuring that military teen caregivers are no longer invisible but honored on a national stage.

In our next blog, we’ll explore the cost and the gift of caregiving: how it shapes teens with empathy and leadership, but also places them at risk without proper recognition and support.