AvPD and in the US Military

So, I've had this condition since i came to the US from Poland at the age of 8. Within two years i had not made any friends and as i learned the language i came to see that i was constantly being teased for just about anything i did, wore, or said.

Fast forward to 2009, I was 23, never had a real relationship with a girlfriend, only a few select friends in high school that have now gone off their own seperate ways, and spent the majority of my time at home PC gaming/lifting weights at the gym if i wasnt at work.

My life was going no where as i worked full time in a Produce Department of a supermarket chain. The pay kept the bills paid in full since it was a union job, but it was a dead end. I was alone and falling into a depression. My girlfriend of the time had broken up with me when she found someone better to be with. I was stuck

I walked into a Marine Corps recruiting office, took the practice ASVAB test chose a job, and decided to start the process to enlist, and get out.

half a year later i arrived in Parris Island, NC recruit training depot. My life has completely changed. They broke me down and built me back up. You're forced into social interactions on a daily basis, you learn to work with people, you learn to make life long friends, and the experiences you have allow you to flourish in life. You get confidence, direction.

I've been in for 6 years now, attained the 5th rank of Sergeant. I got to make the best friends of my life, i got to travel the world, and after one of my deployments i went back to Poland for 30 days of leave where i met my now wife... someone who was my best friend since i was 3 until the age of 8 when i came to the US. She now lives here with me in the San Diego area.

If you're of age, and stuck with this disorder, if you're not in college or going anywhere in life, trust me, this is one good option for you. The pay is not bad either.

do i still have the disorder? Yea a little bit. Does it ever really leave you? No, but you can learn to cope with it and throw yourself at life's opportunities.

I tried to join the military but they wouldn't let me in because of my history of mental illness and medications.

ultracaustic wrote:I tried to join the military but they wouldn't let me in because of my history of mental illness and medications.

This will mostly apply to those who have not had any treatment. Any documented ssri usage makes you illegible to join.

On a side note.. I have a oral presentation tomorrow and i'd rather crawl under a rock and die, but i'll push through it, as always.

Yeah, I kind of regret not doing that a bit but it was the eighties and you couldn't really get away with saying that you were doing it for your country because that definetly made you a nazi in those days.

My first thought when I read this subject title was "What a f___ing nightmare!" I think it could either make you or completely break you, depending on how much AVPD affects you, not to mention the matter of having to see some actual battles.

However, I congratulate you for finding a solution and thank you for coming here to share. Good luck to you in whatever you do in the future.

-- Fri Feb 19, 2016 7:41 pm --

My first thought when I read this subject title was "What a f___ing nightmare!" I think it could either make you or completely break you, depending on how much AVPD affects you, not to mention the matter of having to see some actual battles.

However, I congratulate you for finding a solution and thank you for coming here to share. Good luck to you in whatever you do in the future.

Thanks for your replys

I got a 93 on my peer teach oral evaluation today. I popped a 5 hr energy, and volounteered to go 2nd when no one wanted to go up and do theirs Apparently i seemed confident and knowledgable.

If you guys ever have a presentation to do, always volounteer to go first. Everyone is at least a little nervous, but if you sit there waiting for your turn it's going to be torture with avpd. Get it over with and relax after.

Cool. I would quite like to teach and I like getting into discussions and contributing but I tend to start having an anxiety attack in these public speaking situations even if I'm not afraid to speak up.