Military Questions Asked and Answered

[Doc Randy]

Hi Bendis Boarders!

Inspired by BriRedfern's cool health care industry thread , I thought I would follow suit in an area I know something about. (There are so many cool people with cool jobs on this forum, I'd love to see more of these.)

As many of you know, a few years ago, I left the awesome job of being an editor at a comic book company to pursue a career in the military. I am currently in the Oregon National Guard, but have served on active duty and in the Army Reserve. My official job title is 68W Healthcare Specialist aka Combat Medic. Which is kind of goofy because I still haven't been deployed or seen combat. Why not? Good question. I have been volunteering for deployment since the beginning of 2011, but no luck. For whatever reason, I keep getting assigned to non-deploying units. Who knew it would be so difficult to go to war? This isn't so bad because the Army has paid for me to be a full-time student for the last year and I am hopefully starting a Masters program this fall to become a Physician Assistant (FYI - Physician Assistants have one of the coolest jobs in the world with one of the shittiest titles.) My career in military medicine is still in the early years.

Here are some fun facts about the military:

• It is filled with lots and lots of homoerotic behavior. Seriously... the Army is a gay dude's wet dream in green.
• Nobody really cares if anybody is gay. All people care about is whether or not you do your job well.
• The pay and benefits are surprisingly good.
• Almost every time I had to fly in uniform, I got bumped up to 1st class for free. I had never flown 1st class before this.
• Even though the military spends so much money on so much stupid shit, it seams really frugal in day to day life.
• We just got new lead-free environmentally friendly bullets. Seriously.

So, does anyone have any questions about the military?

If you have a question that you think might be relevant, let me know and I will find an answer for you with references and hopefully discuss the issue with you a bit as well.

I know we have a handful of people on this board or who used to post who were in the service or were vets.

Thanks, and I hope a few people are interested!

[WillieLee]

Why are you sitting around playing grabass?

[Doc Randy]

Why are you sitting around playing grabass?

We're a kinder gentler Army.

[BriRedfern]

My 20 yo brother in law is deployed in Afghanistan right now through the Reserves. He is a diesel tech in the motor pool. He has been over there for about a month, and his job and location seems to be keeping him on base, which is great.

He is not a really strong person emotionally. Not very mature. Very ADD-ish. He is a really nice guy, maybe to a fault at times. I spoke to him yesterday and he seems very anxious, very stressed, and paranoid. I encouraged him to find out about councilors on base and make sure he was talking to people about how he was feeling.

How readily available are those types of services and is there a stigma attached to taking advantage of them? I worry about him.

[Kirblar]

It is filled with lots and lots of homoerotic behavior. Seriously... the Army is a gay dude's wet dream in green.

So, what's the closest thing you have to a Keith P. story?

[Doc Randy]

...

How readily available are those types of services and is there a stigma attached to taking advantage of them? I worry about him.

There are several people usually assigned that can help. I'd always recommend seeing a Chaplain. They serve as advocates for people dealing with tough emotional issues. They won't send you home or anything, but they have the power to get you referred to people that can help. There are mental health specialists available, but the ease of seeing one will depend on how big his base is. If he is out in a small FOB, not as much luck. If he is at a big base, there will be more resources to help him. The Army can prescribe lots of drugs to help people deal with issues like paranoia and anxiety. You would be surprised at how many soldiers are on Ambien at any one time.

The biggest hurdle to seeking help, apart from the peer pressure to not seem weak, is the need to be away from you job to get help. If you keep going to sick call, it looks bad and your chain of command can get annoyed. It is hard to achieve your mission requirements when you have no warm bodies. But if you get real help, there isn't much they can say about it. Like I said, the Chaplain Corps and mental health professionals are your advocates.

[BriRedfern]

He did see his chaplain, so I am glad that seems to be the right order. He is in one of the large German/US/some other country bases in the north. It is huge so should have what he needs. I do not think he is a favorite of his commanding officers and I think that dynamic is really adding to his problems. He has trouble getting out of his own way at times.

In your experience is paranoia fairly common with deployed troops?

Thanks for your input man.

[Doc Randy]

So, what's the closest thing you have to a Keith P. story?

I've seen a bunch of fit naked guys wrestling in showers... all the while they're saying stuff like, "no homo." The funny thing was their attitude was like, "We're not gay. Just cause we got all lathered up and wrestled in the shower doesn't mean anything." Yep. nothing homoerotic about it at all.

I've seen penises that were downright scary. Very big very scary penises that I can never unsee.

Nothing in my life could ever compare to a Keith P. story, but I can picture him having a field day with some of it.

[Doc Randy]

...
In your experience is paranoia fairly common with deployed troops?

Since I have never deployed, I tend to work with them when they come back. Yes. Paranoia is pretty common. You see it in lots of PTSD cases. And just about everyone that deploys comes back with some mental issues.
The good thing is that it is much more out in the open than it used to be. There is help available.

[Magnum V.I.]

Why do you kill Babies and hate our freedom?