Question about a medical problem?

Markedshot

5-Year Member
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Jan 25, 2014
Messages
13
Hi,

I had a seizure about 4 years ago and I have been on medication ever since. That was the only seizure I had in my lifetime and never happened again. I was just wondering what would be the best way to approach this situation, I have no idea what to do. I will probably be off medications this year but it will take another 5 to be eligible, can i make a plan with ROTC? Even though I am dq Can I still do full 4 year of ROTC and commission at a later state and while those years can they find open or unused waivers that can fill up my situation?
 
Hi,

I had a seizure about 4 years ago and I have been on medication ever since. That was the only seizure I had in my lifetime and never happened again. I was just wondering what would be the best way to approach this situation, I have no idea what to do. I will probably be off medications this year but it will take another 5 to be eligible, can i make a plan with ROTC? Even though I am dq Can I still do full 4 year of ROTC and commission at a later state and while those years can they find open or unused waivers that can fill up my situation?

You cannot contract with ROTC until you are medically qualified. You are free to take ROTC as an elective for MS I and II. If you are not medically qualified, you cannot progress to MS III and IV.
 
I will attempt and maybe talk to ROTC department if there are any other ways to overcome this situation.
 
The only way to know what will happen is to apply.

Now, in my humble opinion you are going to have an uphill battle due to the fact that you had a seizure and were placed on medication which indicates to me you likely have an underlying neurologic condition.

IF you can prove that this was an isolated incident that is not indicative of an underlying disorder then you may have a chance at getting a waiver after showing a period of time off medication. Now, where does that leave you right now, well you're kind of out of luck for the time being.

You basically need to start the application and go through the medical reviews in order to figure out if a waiver will be given or not. If they say no, you need X number of years off medication and seizure free then you will simply have to wait that long. You can always complete college and come in through OCS or other officer accession programs. If you are starting college this year you are probably not going to be able to do ROTC at all; however, doing the first two years as electives may show in the future your desire to be in the military.

Anyway, good luck, you have an uphill battle so definitely have a very good back-up plan that you are okay with as it will likely fall back to that.
 
Thank you for the reply, i know your right due to economic situations, waiver shortages and basically unreachable for those who have a disability. But for DODMerb standards how long would you have to wait if a patient had a seizure? Is it same as meps? Will a statement from a neurologist saying that I am fine going to help as well?
 
Last edited:
DQ

D212.00 History of seizure disorder

What did your doctor attribute the one-time seizure episode to? If it was truly one time, why are you still on meds? Seems like taking the meds suggests a history or possible chance of reoccurence -- maybe talk to your doctor and find out what's been written in your records.
 
What do you mean attribute? It was one time, they kept me on meds to prevent it from happening because they don't really have a known cause for my situation. But they will get me off soon.
 
Meaning...did your doctor say he couldn't find the cause of the seizure even after running multiple tests (like an EEG), or did he say it may have been caused by X, or ....? Has he run tests since it first happened? I'm not a doctor, so I don't know much about seizures, but if you are on meds they must have run some tests and thought it could happen again. The underlying cause of the seizure and the fact that you've been on meds for several years are going to be the red flags for DoDMERB.

As an example, my oldest DS had an episode of syncope (fainting/passing out) attributed to dehydration, marching in the heat & humidity and probably locking his knees (he was in Young Marines at the time). After multiple tests, it was determined that it was a one-time thing and not ongoing.

Good luck! Make sure you follow the advice above.
 
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