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The Doctor is in! Ask a Flight Surgeon!

exNavyOffRec said:
Yes, what will happen is they will have to sign a release and the records will then be sent to the reviewing doctor and then should be included in the records that are on hand for that person.

It will required to be disclosed as the person will need to sign a paper saying they have not had any other medical issues since their initial medical review or whatever terminology they use.

Failure to disclose prior to OCS could result in a variety of actions down the road which could be a small delay while being cleared up, to being sent home from OCS, the faster the issue is disclosed the quicker it can be resolved.

I have been through this with an applicant, not specifically psych doc, and it resulted in the OCS date being cancelled just a few weeks prior to shipping, the issue was resolved in a few weeks then had to get a new OCS date which took another 6 weeks I believe. If he had disclosed when it happened he would have kept his original date.
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So what is the process between disclosure and OCS. And who decides the fate? will they let me go to ocs after disclosing the information for further review at their own medical?
 
PanthersFan1 said:
So what is the process between disclosure and OCS. And who decides the fate? will they let me go to ocs after disclosing the information for further review at their own medical?
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Your records will be sent to NRC's medical arm for review, you could be just cleared, or they could ask for a consult, in which case after that those records are sent up, it is possible your OCS date could be moved depending on how long it takes so you want to move quickly. If they determine it was really not good they could DQ you. If it is bad enough to be DQ better to do it now than sit around waiting at OCS for weeks or months.
 
PanthersFan1 said:
So what is the process between disclosure and OCS. And who decides the fate? will they let me go to ocs after disclosing the information for further review at their own medical?
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Your recruiter should have communicated expectations early on in the process but it’s always good practice to communicate early, especially if things happen to get worse. It doesn’t paint a good picture that an issue has been ongoing for a while and you failed to disclose that to your recruiter early on.

Part of the whole Navy Core Values of “Honor, courage, and commitment”
 
Long story short but I've been struggling with anxiety and depression through flight school. I've finally hit a breaking point where i can't keep suffering. I talked to flight doc and going to behavioral health to see about meds. I know this is likely going to end my aviation career but i can't keep putting this job over my well being. Anyone have any experience on what the process looks like? I want to stay in the navy just don't know if i can take this career over my mental health anymore. Thanks
 
Below average SNA said:
Long story short but I've been struggling with anxiety and depression through flight school. I've finally hit a breaking point where i can't keep suffering. I talked to flight doc and going to behavioral health to see about meds. I know this is likely going to end my aviation career but i can't keep putting this job over my well being. Anyone have any experience on what the process looks like? I want to stay in the navy just don't know if i can take this career over my mental health anymore. Thanks
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Right now, respectfully, I think your only priority is to been seen and be treated by a MH Specialist. Everything else, including next steps in your career should be on hold until you are on a treatment plan.
 
Below average SNA said:
Anyone have any experience on what the process looks like?
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First off, I’m sorry. Flight school is an exhausting gauntlet of stress and you should be proud of yourself for seeking help.

I know several people who sought out talk therapy, including myself, while in flight school and never faced any medical repercussions.

As for medications, I had a peer mid flight school voluntarily DOR after beginning SSRIs. Another was a winged pilot who started taking SSRIs end of their fleet tour. They were offered to fly again once they cleared the NAMI waiver guide’s requirements. They opted to stay on meds /out of the cockpit and finish their rest of the contract as a General Aviation Officer (permanent ground job).

I was briefly placed on an SNRI for pain management during my long med down time, not for mental health. It never came up during my waiver process despite the drug’s typical use for depression/anxiety.

In short, BH is a range. Depending on what you need/where you are in the pipeline/NAMI requirements will determine if you’ll be retained in flight status. For better or for worse, it’s not black and white. Work with the flight doc.

Ive talked about it around the forum, but I was almost med-sepped in the HTs and I’ve seen a lot of peers drop/forced out of aviation early in my career. There’s more to life than aviation, and I hope you get the help you need.
 
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