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I've met guys like this in the Army, especially in basic training. They get in and then do anything try to get a medical discharge. They are a dime a dozen. People don't think about it until they are facing that dishonorable discharge and the prospect of having to list it on future job applications. Many people crack under mental pressure in the military from combat and that's fine, we need to take care of those guys. We shouldn't give an inch to people trying to milk the system.
Every suicidal type person I have known about, was booted pretty quickly.
Wondering what religion this guy has, one that allows him to be part of the support for war/armed conflict, killing and injuring people, yet not take a medication, lol.
I also seen more than a few people playing the BS game, hating ship life, so they want to game the system and get put on shore duty due to mental health issues.
So I decided to actually read the whole thing, scrw this guy. They offered him some options, part of the escalation of treatment, but all of them have him still on board, which seems he has one goal, shore duty, lol. He did not even entertain the options, engage in any of them, because the poor baby would still have to be on board the ship. He just does not want to be on the ship, anything that has him on it, he will be against, including his BS religion excuse for the meds.
Kick his ass out please.
His mother's first name is "Farrah." This should be a clue.
Every suicidal type person I have known about, was booted pretty quickly.
Wondering what religion this guy has, one that allows him to be part of the support for war/armed conflict, killing and injuring people, yet not take a medication, lol.
I also seen more than a few people playing the BS game, hating ship life, so they want to game the system and get put on shore duty due to mental health issues.
So I decided to actually read the whole thing, scrw this guy. They offered him some options, part of the escalation of treatment, but all of them have him still on board, which seems he has one goal, shore duty, lol. He did not even entertain the options, engage in any of them, because the poor baby would still have to be on board the ship. He just does not want to be on the ship, anything that has him on it, he will be against, including his BS religion excuse for the meds.
Kick his ass out please.
Depends on the time we were, I suppose.
I had one, in the late Cold War, who tried suicide but we didn't boot said person for that. We booted them on an OTH because they told the Captain, despite him being willing to give them another chance, that they just wanted out.
Quote:
Originally Posted by LO28SWM
Not in the military but as with any job, and particularly one as important as the military, if you cant do your job then you should be relinquished of the job.
A sailor who cant go on a boat? Not fit to serve and should be separated. A sailor who is not happy with the myriad of options being given to him the requesting a medical discharge to collect benefits as opposed to a honorable discharge? Definitely separated and no benefits.
If his issue is with the boat then he can live the rest of his life never stepping foot on a boat. Problem solved.
PLEASE, let us make the correction where others have erred.....it is a SHIP in this case!
His mother's first name is "Farrah." This should be a clue.
What's that supposed to mean? She's a blonde woman from Seattle, and Farrah is an unusual, but non-ethnic/religious name. Like Farrah Fawcett. Remember her? There are any number of religions that discourage taking medication for mental issues.
PLEASE, let us make the correction where others have erred.....it is a SHIP in this case!
Thank you.
In the article, mom quoted her sailor as saying “mom, I almost jumped off the boat”. That was one detail that stuck out to me. A well trained sailor would know it is a ship... subs are boats.
What's that supposed to mean? She's a blonde woman from Seattle, and Farrah is an unusual, but non-ethnic/religious name. Like Farrah Fawcett. Remember her? There are any number of religions that discourage taking medication for mental issues.
Considering the age of the son, the mom was very likely named for Farrah Fawcett, whose career would have been active about the time the mom was born.
As a retiree who struggles with mental health issues, and never got any treatment on active duty beyond a few docs tossing me bottles of antidepressants, I'm going to sympathize with the young man up to the point of him refusing medications, allegedly for religious reasons. That's B.S., because medications are the only thing capable of controlling the really bad stuff like bipolar disorder. You can't talk therapy your way out of bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or even PTSD. If it were true of the latter, the VA budget would suddenly shoot into the black.
"Even before the pandemic, the number of Americans affected by mental illness was at a new high. One in five adults was experiencing depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, post-traumatic stress or some other malady, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. The rates were significantly higher for adolescents (about 50 percent) and young adults (about 30 percent)."
"Care early in life is crucial because half of all lifetime mental illnesses present themselves by age 15 and 75 percent by age 24, said Dr. Susan Swick, Ohana’s physician in chief."
So based on the sentences above, who should be blamed? The young man? Or was it poor screening by the MEPS and active duty docs at the entry level?
Craziest thing I've seen so far is I ran into a troubled young former veteran with schizophrenia. Half of his mental anguish was that basic training put him in the psych ward for 9 months and then the VA gave him a 100% disability rating for life. Poor guy was even more mentally ill from the guilt of getting that $3,300 a month (tax free) without ever having really served. Again, who's fault was that?
The VA is well-aware that troubled young men seek out the military. Recruiters? Not so much. Like the famous Upton Sinclair quote from The Jungle, their job security and career success depends on ignoring such problems. The military takes advantage of the troubled and economically disadvantaged to make their numbers. It's been that way forever, so don't be so shocked about the occasional financial fallout from their actions. It's the cost of doing business like they do.
One time a sailor working under me was in that situation. I admit that I fell in line with the Chain of Command directions to 'ride him hard' and to make his life miserable. After he was finally discharged I met him on the street on day, and I learned that once he was finally a civilian again, he had gone to a civilian doctor, he was properly diagnosed and given medical treatment. I apologized to him, and that event had a lasting effect on me.
The Navy is terrible when it comes to treating sailors with mental issues.
A person with a conscious and a willingness to admit they wrong is exactly what this thread needed.
Very disturbing read. If things went down like this (and acknowledging that we only have one side of the story), this would be very troubling. That said, while I don't have reason to doubt the story provided here, I'll just add that ASAN Gregg's treatment is vastly different from what I've seen happen with my Sailors. I have had suicidal Sailors in my unit and they were hospitalized for well over 6 days (one in particular was hospitalized for three weeks) and then reassigned elsewhere en route to out-processing, which is not a simple process (and shouldn't be as the Navy wants to make sure that you're medically cleared to even be separated).
That said, I can't discount the offer by the Navy to medicate ASAN Gregg . . . curious to know what the religious reasons against medication were
A quote from the article: "Despite the alarm of the psychologists’ notes, the Greggs were told separation from the Navy is a lengthy, time-consuming process that would consist of baby steps."
For those of you who served during DADT: How long would it have taken him to be discharged by the Navy for being gay?
I saw an Army sergeant get ordered to be discharged within 48-hours for that crime.
... For those of you who served during DADT: How long would it have taken him to be discharged by the Navy for being gay?
I saw an Army sergeant get ordered to be discharged within 48-hours for that crime.
In 20 years of service, I have served alongside many homosexual sailors.
If a servicemember wanted out simply for being homosexual, the idea was that it would be a risk to their security clearance. Once the security clearance was removed, then they can no longer go to work. So the Navy would grind along for a few months and eventually move the paperwork to discharge the individual.
Being 'homosexual' was never a violation of the UCMJ. The violation was to perform a sodomy act. I have seen sailors who were homosexuals who decided that they wanted out, so they would perform a sodomy act in a manner where they would be caught 'in the act'. Once they had violated the UCMJ, then the COC could charge them with the crime and use that as ammunition to process them out faster.
Come to think of it. I have known sailors who were not homosexual, but who wanted out quick. So they would perform sodomy on the boat, in a manner guaranteed to get them caught. So they would be kicked out.
If the homosexual sailor wanted to stay in, they could do so for as long as they wanted. Just avoid having sex at sea. Go home and do whatever they want in the privacy of their home.
Nearly every military base has at least one homosexual bar near the base, so homosexual service members can go to meet up with others of their flavor.
btw, my father's name is 'gay', and my name is 'gay', so I do not use that term in respect to homosexuals.
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