Going into the Army

[McGoddess09]

Whaaaat? I had to be a goof. You know you love me.

[trailerparkmedic]

Bad, bad way to lose weight the night before your physical: Epsom Salt is a powerful laxative. If you're only a few pounds off, your recruiter may have some equally bad suggestions. I wouldn't do any of them.

Better way to make weight--start running and lifting weights. That will help cut inches, which will help you pass the tape test. 9 weeks sounds like a long time for basic, but it's not. Make sure you are at least close to passing the PT test before you leave for basic.

If you want to be a medic, you need a high ASVAB score. I'd check out some of the books with practice tests to get an idea of what you'll be facing.

You will go over your contract at MEPS after passing your physical. Make sure it has your MOS of choice in it. Ask questions before you sign. Don't be afraid to be pushy.

[Amina516]

Actually, if you go beyond basic medic training and go to M6 training (LVN school), part of school is taking and passing the Texas LVN boards. The Army school even shows up on the state NCLEX list. I have no idea what states will accept the license, but I imagine you could retake the boards in your home state at the very least.

Good to know.



You can lose 12 lbs RHPG. Get them shorts on and sweat to the oldies! ;p

[Der Cute]

Keep it up RHPG.

Many many moons ago my dad was a recruiter. Wayyyy back in the Bronze age, when it was all typewriters, carbon paper, #2 pencils and a slidey kind of rolodex.

More veggies, more water, more walking.

Hell, I took my son out for a walk after work today. I got to stretch my legs, he got to see the world and we enjoyed the field trip. Bet you could out run me even now!

[SengaKitty]

Medic, a friend of mine told me to take a laxative the night before the physical, but I don't think I can do it. I'd rather just lose the weight. Got out and ran 4/5ths of a mile today in 10 minutes. I gotta get that down! Looks like I'll be running *everyday*. Like I said, though, I'll be doing PT with the recruiters on Thursdays. I'm making sure to drink a lot of water, and when I'm just sitting on the computer, I'll turn on some music and do sit ups. I'm gonna get the weight off.

As for asvab scores, that's really not the issue for me. I always test high. It's always been the weight.

[Kheldarson]

I wish you lots of luck; I was looking into Army at the beginning of the year.

But that being said...and not to rain on your parade...I know you were going through some tough patches the past few years and I can't remember if you were taking any anti-depressants/mood affecting medications at that time. If you're looking at officer (or even enlisted) that can get you temporarily disqualified. So can having used an inhaler at any point in your life. Just a heads up.

[SengaKitty]

Kheldarson, I was never on anti-depressants or any other type of drug like that. The only pills I've been on in the past year were antibiotics. But thanks for the heads up

[Sliceanddice]

RHPG i dont know how you decided to join the army i just wanted to share something funny.

Since ive been thinking about joining the navy for a long time, and have been moving closer and closer to doing so i did what my personality told me to.

Read my runes.

not to go into detail it was very positive.

[SengaKitty]

I've been reading my tarot cards and they seem to have a positive outlook with the change. So I'm off today to get my hair cut, get my neoprene shorts, and go do PT with the recruiters. I have a feeling they're gonna make me cry, cause I'm already *so* sore from working out the past two days. But it doesn't matter. One of my military friends gave me some of the best advice. "Even if it hurts, even if you fall behind, just keep running." So that's what I'm gonna do.

[trailerparkmedic]

One of my military friends gave me some of the best advice. "Even if it hurts, even if you fall behind, just keep running." So that's what I'm gonna do.

Good mentality. Just learn the difference between "Ow, I'm sore and not in as good shape as I want to be" and "Ow, that doesn't feel right." Don't ever push yourself through injury. See if you can take a multivitamin or calcium supplement throughout basic and AIT. I know so many people (myself included) that had bone issues, including stress fractures, and calcium will help with that.

[Gawdzillers]

actually i was thinking if i had a goal like 'I want to get to this weight so i look more desirable for the navy' i would actually try to lose weight.

Okay, then do Navy exercises: pushups, running (at least a mile a day), swimming, etc. It helps if you listen to cadence (and they're catchy, too!): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SIyCdZlBoKQ

[SengaKitty]

Medic, I take prenatal vitamins, which are great for women of child bearing age, even if they're not pregnant or planning to get pregnant.

[SengaKitty]

Hmmm got measured at the recruiter's office yesterday. Apparently I am *not* in fact 5'7" as I originally believed. It seems I've shrunk 2in. So I now have to lose 13lbs. But I cut about 1.5lbs off my head before PT yesterday, so just gotta keep goin.

[Amethyst Hunter]

Good luck with your new path! (Have a brother in the Army myself)

That said, here's a couple of things I'd like to offer in the hopes they will be useful to you if you ever should need them:

1) Beware of religious proselytising. The military has had increasing problems in recent years - in all branches, but particularly in the AF/Army - with certain religionists trying to recruit people and punishing/ostracizing them if they reject the advances. It's gotten bad enough that reports of higher-ups overstepping or misusing their authority in regards to religious matters are occasionally leaking out to the mainstream media (which is a good thing as people need to know about this stuff). If you get pressured on this front, go to whomever you can to make it stop and/or bring it to the attention of people who can stop it and will have your back.

2) Be cautious in dealing with the VA. Some folks have had decent luck in dealing with them; a lot of veterans have not. One friend of mine who was in the Guard Reserve is *still* trying to get them to properly address her PTSD (which has expanded to include severe agoraphobia, insomnia and high blood pressure due to the resulting stress of the first two) over 5 years after she served in Iraq. (Her "doctors" have a fondness for lobbing drugs at her that actually make her symptoms worse!)

3) If you can get it, go for the tuition they offer. I don't know what the AF offers for goodies, but I know my brother and SIL both qualify for student loans of up to at least 20K because my brother's enlisted. You can get some good educational experience in just about any field you want, and it will probably run less for debts than typical university enrollment.

4) Be aware that despite our advances, women in the military are still sometimes treated differently (i.e., not so good) to some degree. As Cutenoob mentioned, there is a latent good 'ol boys mentality throughout the armed forces and depending on your situation, you may from time to time encounter this. Don't take anybody's shit. Granted, there are times when you probably do have to walk a fine line (such as when higher-ups bark orders at new recruits), but there is NO reason you should ever have to face harassment and/or physical threats/harm to your person.

(Last year when I visited my brother at Fort Knox, I encountered a female vet who was visiting her spouse there as well. While she and my SIL talked about life in the military, I overheard her discuss her own experiences, and one of the things that really stood out for me was when my SIL asked her whether she'd ever faced any sort of bad treatment for being a female in the army. She got real quiet then and her eyes sort of teared up, and all she said was "Yeah." I had the very distinct impression she'd gone through some Really Bad Shit that was probably too painful for her to talk about. )

to you and all our hardworking servicemembers! Best of luck.