Am I Eligible to Join?

[Killik]

I was in a psych ward for a week when I was 17. My father assaulted me in the worst possible way. They said it was for my safety...to keep him away from me.

I grew up in a very abusive household. I took Ritalin from 1988 to 1990...and haven't taken it since. I was diagnosed with ADD in 1986....which I suspect was made worse because my home life was so screwed up.

I have since moved away from them. I haven't had any problems with my ADD since the late 90's. I stopped eating junky food, which helped me a lot. I am vegan now...and my life is much better than it was when I was 17.

Am I eligible to join?? I am not mentally ill...just need to lose weight

[cspafford]

Having a psychiatric history may negate anything requiring a security clearance, but if you are not currently under the care of a mental health professional, that may help. I know most doctors like to prescribe Ridilin very quickly with kids these days, and even more a few years ago.

Drop me an e-mail at cspafford@marylandguard.net or give me a call at 1-800-464-1580 to discuss your situation further. I will do everything I can to help you enlist into the National Guard. I'm out of town at the moment, but I'll be back in my office on the 8th.


-- PV1 Chuck Spafford

[andrew.tischner]

Well i am sorry to hear about your bad experiences in your life, but i think i can definatly help you out. Now there are some certain questions i have to ask you that i feel is inappropriate to ask on here so if you could call me on my cell phone at your earliest convienance at 908 240 6636 and i would be glad to talk to you.

[Killik]

I saw a counselor VERY briefly. I stopped going because I felt no benefit from it. I was accused of being crazy and unbalanced...which I wasn't. I had a hard life...and thanks to me father, I ended up in the psych ward for a week. I never took any medication.

The only thing that's keeping me out of the Guard...is my weight: 260 lbs:eek:.

[*B*medic]

You'ld have to get a waiver which may take time so instead of calling everyone else- why don't you open your phone book to the local ARNG recruiting center.... they are the only ones who know the latest enlistment info.

[andrew.tischner]

Well i am a local recruiter thats why i told her to call me B medic, and also any recruiter be it in alaska or florida knows the latest enlistment info.

[AbnMtn]

No one in this forum would be able to provide you with a definite answer on whether or not you may be able to join. The best way to find out is to get in contact with a local recruiter so he can request a pre-eval for which you will have to supply your counseling and medical records for evaluation. The only people that can make a determination on cases like yours are the medical personnel at MEPS and they do it strictly by using your medical history and evaluating your current condition. If there are any markers showing that your childhood experiences affected you considerably, they'll disqualify you. If you show no apparent psychiatric condition or effects from your experiences and there are no trait markers of instability, you may be considered for service.

Since the chances of sending you to a stressful and traumatic environment are likely considering our current operations, they need to be 100% sure that you can withstand it. Any doubts raised by either your medical history or your current condition would be sufficient grounds to disqualify you.