Aspergers in the military. Anyone?

Page 3 of 3 [ 43 posts ] Go to page Previous 1, 2, 3

Previous topic | Next topic

broombie
Raven
Raven

Joined: 29 Feb 2016
Age: 33
Gender: Female
Posts: 107

25 Mar 2016, 10:20 am

You seem to know more than I do.

auntblabby
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 12 Feb 2010
Gender: Male
Posts: 114,555
Location: the island of defective toy santas

25 Mar 2016, 2:14 pm

^^^^thank you but I don't really know more than you, I just know some different stuff from having been in.

Swiper
Pileated woodpecker

Joined: 8 Sep 2014
Age: 51
Gender: Male
Posts: 192

25 Mar 2016, 2:59 pm

JohnConnor wrote:

I served in the Ohio Army National Guard from 1999 up until 2006. Almost the entire time I went undiagnosed and suffered greatly while in just like high school, only worse. Anybody else?

I joined the Army (Active Duty) in 1999. Deployed to both Afghanistan (2004-05, 10 months) and Iraq (2008-09, 14 months). Diagnosed with ASD in 2014. Still in the Army, but being medically retired this year.

_________________
Autism Spectrum Disorder, Level 1 (with language impairment) and Other Specified Anxiety Disorder
Aspie Score: 140 of 200, NT Score: 63 of 200
You are very likely neurodiverse (Aspie)

auntblabby
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 12 Feb 2010
Gender: Male
Posts: 114,555
Location: the island of defective toy santas

25 Mar 2016, 3:08 pm

Swiper wrote:

JohnConnor wrote:

I served in the Ohio Army National Guard from 1999 up until 2006. Almost the entire time I went undiagnosed and suffered greatly while in just like high school, only worse. Anybody else?

hope you don't mind me asking, but does a medical retirement under these circumstances give you the same benefits as other retirees [pension and health care]?

redrobin62
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 2 Apr 2012
Age: 62
Gender: Male
Posts: 13,009
Location: Seattle, WA

25 Mar 2016, 3:29 pm

"Commoner the Vagabond" is a composite character, pretty much using the traits I've observed over the years of homeless people.

In Trinidad there was a man called Commoner who, like the character in my book, walked around with his shirt stuffed with books, and I mean protruding at, like, two feet in front of him! There was also another homeless man in Trinidad who used to stop, kneel down and kiss the street with every 10 steps he took.

The book is essentially a road movie so most of the scenes involved places I'm been to before, like Colorado, Minnesota, Montana, Texas, California, Arizona, and of course, Seattle.

_________________
One Day At A Time.
His first book: http://www.amazon.com/Wetland-Other-Sto ... B00E0NVTL2
His second book: https://www.amazon.com/COMMONER-VAGABON ... oks&sr=1-2
His blog: http://seattlewordsmith.wordpress.com/

Swiper
Pileated woodpecker

Joined: 8 Sep 2014
Age: 51
Gender: Male
Posts: 192

25 Mar 2016, 4:29 pm

auntblabby wrote:

hope you don't mind me asking, but does a medical retirement under these circumstances give you the same benefits as other retirees [pension and health care]?

ASD is a non-rateable condition. You can't get discharged from the military for being on the Spectrum, but on the other hand it doesn't give you any percentage toward retirement or disability. It's kind of funny that you can't join the military if you are autistic, but they can't make you leave once you are in.

If you have co-morbid conditions, such as Anxiety, Depression, etc, then you can be discharged from the military if your conditions have a negative impact on your duty performance. Whether or not you get the same benefits as other retirees depends on the severity of your conditions and if they were aggravated by your military service.

Last edited by Swiper on 25 Mar 2016, 4:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.

auntblabby
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 12 Feb 2010
Gender: Male
Posts: 114,555
Location: the island of defective toy santas

25 Mar 2016, 4:30 pm

^^^thank you Swiper and RR, the Commoner movie sounds very cinematic.

broombie
Raven
Raven

Joined: 29 Feb 2016
Age: 33
Gender: Female
Posts: 107

25 Mar 2016, 8:56 pm

Swiper, do you have to be treated for these conditions while serving in active duty?

JohnConnor
Deinonychus

Joined: 31 May 2010
Age: 44
Gender: Male
Posts: 358
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio

27 Mar 2016, 9:02 pm

Scout02 wrote:

I was medically retired from the army from the diagnoses of Aspergers. Now keep in mind I did not join to be patriotic since I always thought the iraq war was a complete waste of resources. When I was younger like 9 I developed a weird obsession with military history. I do not know why. I think it started with a book about the gulf war I found in 4th grade and had some photos in there that made a mark in my brain of the kurds being gassed. I did read the whole thing I checked it out of the library all year. Took me a while. By junior year I wanted to join the army and serve my time. My family said I was not capable ,which is awesome t hear from your family. So after dropping out of college working dead end jobs I thought screw em I can do it. But let me tell you. It was my personal hell. People hated me from the get go at my duty station. I was hazed like a mofo which almost ended with me stabbing a guy with a pen to make it stop. I was stopped by 8 guys but yeah that is not normal. I also let my NCO 3 weeks before hand that it was really getting to me. Each week I told him that the problem was never addressed. The army is a lot like high school. If you are different or off a bit your wrong. If you do not fit in your screwed. Dont forget about the fact your buddys will screw you over to get out of trouble. I was scared to be deployed with those guys oh my god! But I wasn't only one. Higher ups will screw the man down to climb the ladder. I mean the army today is so back stabbing. I always wondered why there was so many murders and shootings in the military. Now I know. Surprising the only person I feel that had some respect for me was my Drill Sargent. I mean I wasn't even deployed and it left me kinda twisted theirs a lot more to this story and I can go on and on but that is not appropriate lol.

Picking on anybody who stands out even a little: Based on my experience that is a trait of the proletariat. Which is why I don't care for the working class all that much.

Swiper
Pileated woodpecker

Joined: 8 Sep 2014
Age: 51
Gender: Male
Posts: 192

28 Mar 2016, 4:49 pm

broombie wrote:

Swiper, do you have to be treated for these conditions while serving in active duty?

Only after my diagnosis in the fall of 2014. I ended up having a mental breakdown after I was moved to a small office that was very sensory unfriendly. It has an excessive number of florescent lights and the air ventilation duct to the server room went right above my head when I was sitting at my desk. The lights was causing my eyes to feel like they were on fire and the noise from the air ventilation was drilling itself into my brain. After seven months, I was a complete wreak from constant sensory overload. I was overwhelmed by anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts. All my energy went to trying to survive being inside that office room and in the end I broke.

broombie
Raven
Raven

Joined: 29 Feb 2016
Age: 33
Gender: Female
Posts: 107

28 Mar 2016, 7:33 pm

I'm sorry you went through so much. I hope you are feeling better now.

Page 3 of 3 [ 43 posts ] Go to page Previous 1, 2, 3

Jump to:

Aspergers in the military. Anyone? Post Reply New Topic

Aspergers in the military. Anyone?