hiding scars for military physical?

[monkeybutt17]

i have the same problem,i live in the U.S as well.. self inflicted scars is a PDQ.
i told my recruiter about the cutting and she told me to use scar cover up. i asked if the MEPS doctor would be touch my arms to feel the cover up and she said no, they just look.i havent gone through meps but i am going to go to a dermatologist to see if they can do anything about it, and if not im gonna try to use Dermablend.. i heard it works really good.

[FabulousMike]

Be honest and get ready to be shipped out of the army, Sorry.

[xlaurenx]

Zombie thread

[lord of luck]

This is a really old thread and im going to bring it back to life... new thoughts on scars and military? honestly just working thru my options and there's extensive stuff i cant hide. are there parts of the military i could join despite? i'm in the us btw.

[Snow White.]

Are you able to perhaps contact them and ask on some sort of enquiry line? They'd be the most expert on these things I think.

[Lone Star]

Quote:

Originally Posted by lord of luck

This is a really old thread and im going to bring it back to life... new thoughts on scars and military? honestly just working thru my options and there's extensive stuff i cant hide. are there parts of the military i could join despite? i'm in the us btw.

The thing with the American military is that they won't take anyone who may have mental health issues. Sadly SH is considered a MH issue.

I think your best option is to call in a recruitment center for what branch you want to join and ask them the policy on scars. If they're not fresh you can get away with blaming them on your secondary school years. Say that you were bullied and didn't know better or something like that. In today's world bullying has gotten to the point where you can't escape it thanks to social networks. So it would be very plausible (especially on the extensive stuff) that you were young and didn't know how to cope due to the extreme nature of the harassment.

I want to say that you could still be a reserve or join coast guard or national guard but I'm not too sure on that

[sherlock holmes]

Seriously- do not lie when it comes to the army. They have rules for a reason, and you can't get around them. If you lie they WILL find out eventually and it'll be worse because they'll just send you home.

To join the military you need to be in top physical and mental condition. Your squadron will trust you with their lives and any little thing that could go wrong can jeopardise the safety of everyone. The military can't risk sending someone with a mental health issue out to a war zone in case something happens.

Be honest with them and see if there's a job suitable for you. But if not then it's for the best really. As I said, rules exist for the safety of everyone.

[Charmed]

I'm not sure what the military is like in the US, but I can't imagine it's all that different from the UK. In the UK you cannot join the military if you have any past history of mental health issues currently or in the past. I tried to join the army reserve this year and was rejected based on my medical records, before a physical was even done.

I definitely would not recommend lying, they will find out and it is against the law to lie on an official document or application, which includes a military application. If they find out you're lying it can have serious consequences. I don't mean to be harsh, but it is quite a serious thing. As others have said, the rules are there for a reason. I know that I would never in a million years be able to handle the military and would be a danger to others (it was during an MH episode that I applied in the first place...) so personally I am glad that they are so strict on their rules.

I would definitely recommend ringing the recruitment center so you can anonymously ask about self harm and how this would affect your application. if you are honest with them in the beginning and your really want this they can do their best to help you. Good luck!