To qualify for a deferment you must meet specific circumstances established by the federal government. You need to check with the current holder of your loan to see if you meet any of these qualifications. If you don’t, ask your lender for a forbearance. If granted (and it is granted at the discretion of the holder of the loan) it will allow you to postpone payments on the loan for a certain amount of time (although interest will still accrue). As long as you’ve had a good working relationship with the holder (i.e. made payments on time) this shouldn’t be a problem. If granted, try to at least make the interest payments so the loan doesn’t keep growing.

as long as you are in school, you can get a deferment. Once you are out of school you can get a forbearance based on financial obligations. Best thing to do is be proactive and don’t allow the payments to get behind.

I have deferred my loans several times, although I know there is a limit. I’m sure you would be able to defer yours a second time.