*** A question for DUers with someone in Iraq ***

[BattyDem]

When your loved one was first deployed to Iraq, how long was it before they were able to contact you?

My niece's boyfriend was supposed to arrive in Iraq this week and she hasn't heard from him yet. Needless to say, she's upset. :-( Does anyone have any idea when he'll be able to make some kind of contact? Any info would be appreciated. Thanks. :-)

On edit: I understand that every case is different, I'm just trying to get a some general information.

[Poiuyt]

1. I don't think that's too unusual

My nephew has been to Iraq and his communications to my sister were spotty at best. He often had difficulty getting over to the area where they had the email computers setup. Then again, he was never one to be overly talkative. You have to consider that new people coming into Iraq are going to have a lot on their plate getting oriented and learning what is going on.

[Monkeyman]

2. Same with my nephew no one like talking when someone

is hearing them every call and email are watched.

[Erika]

3. It depends on where in Iraq they are serving.

If it's at a remote base, it could take up to three weeks.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

4. My friend actually spent about a month in Kuwait before going into Iraq

even though he was officially being deployed to Iraq. He had a really hard time contacting home while in Kuwait. Once he made it into Iraq, he was able to get in touch with the US easily. Hell, I talk to him on AIM all the time.

However, he's also an intel guy who works on a computer most of the time. I'm sure it'd be much different if he had frequent patrols to go on.

[BattyDem]

8. He was also in Kuwait first ...

and when he arrived there, he was able to contact my niece right away. Now that he's in Iraq, it's obviously not going to be as easy for him to make contact. I just wanted to reassure my niece that it's not unusual for the "new guys" to be out of touch because right now, she's probably imagining the worst possible scenario.

[BattyDem]

5. Thanks for the responses

:hi:

I figured it would take a while ... but like I said, my niece is upset, so I wanted to get some info from people who have actually been through it. Hopefully, when she learns it's not unusual, she'll feel a little better. She's so worried. :-(

[Poiuyt]

6. Have your niece look check and see if there is a family support group in

her area. A lot of communities have groups of families with members serving in Iraq. They would be able to give her advice and comfort.

[BattyDem]

9. That's a good idea.

I'm going to see her tomorrow ... I'll mention that. :-)

[Qanisqineq]

7. when my husband served in Iraq

It was about 3 months before I heard from him after he got there. That was back in 2003 and things have gotten better but it isn't unusual for it to be weeks at a time. Once they were settled in, then I got to hear from him every month and by the time they were getting ready to leave in 2004, I could talk to him daily on instant messenger.

[BattyDem]

10. Damn... three months?

I don't think I'll mention that to her right now. If a few weeks go by and she still hasn't heard anything, then I'll tell her that a couple of months is not unusual ... but I don't want to hit her with that right now. She'll freak! :-(

[Chuletas]

11. most

FOB's have internet cafe's and some of the "guys" have actually put in for satellite internet. Which they share. depends where they are. Sometimes they're just trying to figure the place out. If they're special ops they may have sat phones, but most "regular" troops at this point do not. Again it depends where they are.

Sometimes kids are just kids especially when they get absorbed by something so huge as this. War that is. And a lot of these soldiers are kids.