Careers: Military--Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines, Coast Guard/Medical Discharge or Not?

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Expert: Rod Powers - 3/7/2007


Question
My friend and I both signed up for the USAF and I was wondering if Social Phobia would get him discharged?...He got threw BMT and just wants to get help but he doesnt want to get help if he will get discharged. Also, we have seen help about it. It can be cured.

Answer
Hi Tyler,

I seriously doubt it would result in a discharge. Medical discharges are generally granted (or imposed) when a member has a medical conditon which significantly interferes with his/her performance of his/her military duties.

As this member made it through AFBMT, it would be hard to show that the conditon was such that it interfered with the performance of his/her duties.

I would say that he/she can seek help/counseling from the Mental Health section of the installation medical facility without much worry of a discharge.

Hope this helps!

Rod Powers
http://usmilitary.about.com

Careers: Military--Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines, Coast Guard

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Rod Powers

Expertise

Rod Powers is considered one of the premire experts about U.S. Military career information on the planet. He has more than 30,000 articles about U.S. Military career information on the About.com U.S. Military Careers Information website at: http://usmilitary.about.com. Additionally, he is the author of "ASVAB for Dummies," "ASVAB AFQT for Dummies," (available in Dec 2009), and "Veteran Benefits for Dummies," all published by Wiley Publishing. He is also the author of "Barrons' Guide to Officer Candidate School Tests," published by Barron's Educational Series.

Experience

Rod Powers is a retired Air Force first sergeant, with 23 years of active duty service, 11 of those years as an Air Force First Sergeant. He has helped thousands of military members, recruits, and military applicants since he took over the About.com U.S Military Careers Information site in 1999. He has a reputation for "telling it like it is," so questions may not be answered based on "what you want to hear," but will be answered based of the bast available information, concerning the service/situation.

Education/Credentials
Rod is a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Noncommissioned Officers Academy, the Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy, and the Air Force First Sergeant Academy. He also holds an Associates Degree in Personnel Administration from the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF).

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