Expert: Stan McElya - 3/16/2009

Question
My son is currently in SEAL division boot camp Great Lakes.  He has tested for anemia after the second week of boot camp and he has been living under a daily threat of being discharged from the Navy.  A few days ago he was able to call to tell me that he lost his SEAL contract resulting from anemia.  Now the problem is that all the preferential jobs are gone, and the Navy is trying to stick him on some crappy detail to fill a quota.  My son scored 94 on his ASVAB and past the SEAL pst with ease.  He has done extremely well in boot camp so far.  Due to no fault of his own now he faces a demoralizing job which he was not prepared for.  He doesn't want to leave the Navy, but he's afraid he might slip through the cracks, as a result of his condition.  
ANY advise will be most appreciated.  My son is supposed to get a liberty call tomorrow and he is slated to graduate March 20.
Thank you,
Sean McAleer

Answer
Hello Sir;
  I understand your sons problem, you must understand, I left the Navy almost 30 years ago, and some things have changed. I feel bad for him. But tell him to hang in there and try to get a SEAL source rating. With a little luck, maybe all is not lost. It could be possible for him to still go to
seal team once his problem is taken care of. I am no doctor, but isn't that an iron deficiency? It should be treatable. Please get back to me and let me know how this turns out. Maybe a Waiver is possible.
                        Fair seas and following winds
                                Snake