Hello.
Our cadet is about to enter into MSIII year. She is highly ranked in the Battalion, with top half PFT and top 10% in GPA. She has a lot of friends at school and seems to be popular in her social group.
We were having lunch today and she explained how she wasn't excited about going back to school. We asked why, and she explained that she is always anxious about change, and that she is actually always anxious about everything! And she says she is mildly depressed a lot of the time, whether at school, at home, or anywhere really. We knew she worried more than most people, but hadn't really understood she is always, at all times, anxious.
OK, so I know enough based on family history of mild anxiety and mild depression that Prozac/Zoloft/Wellbutrin/ a couple of others are good for both mild anxiety and mild depression. The problem is, I tsuspect that it is not allowed for a cadet to continue in ROTC if they are prescribed a psychiatric medication like Prozac. Am I wrong about that? I am assuming the diagnosis would be "mild anxiety", or "mild depression", or both.
She can
1) "soldier on" (this is her current plan) and just live with being mildly anxious and depressed (and therefore mildly unhappy) a lot of the time. She says she will soldier on, but would love to be able to stay in ROTC and take Prozac, etc., or
2) go see a Psychiastrist and get a diagnosis of mild anxiety and mild depression, and get medication fo this. If she does this, does she get kicked out of ROTC?, or
3) procure some Prozac without a prescription (which is really easy from off-shore pharmacies), and self medicate.
The problem with 1) is that I don't think a person should have to just soldier on through a brain chemistry deficit when there is medication taken by literally tens of millions of Americans that mostly corrects for this brain chemistry ideficit (excessive Seratonin re-uptake).
There may be no problem with 2), but I cannot advise her to do this, when she would need to report this medical change to her cadre, and when she is willing to "soldier on" if there is a good chance it would lead to separation from ROTC and a huge payback in scholarship money
The problem with 3) is that at some point she will take a DOD physical again, and she will need to truthfully answer that she has "taken a drug not prescribed by a physician", or whatever the exact wording is to see if you've taken illegal drugs... and a legal medical drug is illegal when not prescribed by a physician. I don't know if that would DQ her as an MSIV getting ready to commission.
So, that's why it is very important for me, as one of her advisors in life, to find out if option #2 above would allow her to continue on in ROTC, then into her chosen Military Intelligence, which requires certain Top Secret Security Clearances. I'd also need to know , since she is interested in CIA or State Dept. as a possible career if and when she leaves active duty, whether an employee in the CIA or State Dept is even allowed to be taking a psychiatric drug like Prozac?
Well, that's a handful, and I appreciate any information about ROTC in particular, and then CIA or State Dept. as a possible post-Army career, while taking Prozac.
Thanks for your responses.
Our cadet is about to enter into MSIII year. She is highly ranked in the Battalion, with top half PFT and top 10% in GPA. She has a lot of friends at school and seems to be popular in her social group.
We were having lunch today and she explained how she wasn't excited about going back to school. We asked why, and she explained that she is always anxious about change, and that she is actually always anxious about everything! And she says she is mildly depressed a lot of the time, whether at school, at home, or anywhere really. We knew she worried more than most people, but hadn't really understood she is always, at all times, anxious.
OK, so I know enough based on family history of mild anxiety and mild depression that Prozac/Zoloft/Wellbutrin/ a couple of others are good for both mild anxiety and mild depression. The problem is, I tsuspect that it is not allowed for a cadet to continue in ROTC if they are prescribed a psychiatric medication like Prozac. Am I wrong about that? I am assuming the diagnosis would be "mild anxiety", or "mild depression", or both.
She can
1) "soldier on" (this is her current plan) and just live with being mildly anxious and depressed (and therefore mildly unhappy) a lot of the time. She says she will soldier on, but would love to be able to stay in ROTC and take Prozac, etc., or
2) go see a Psychiastrist and get a diagnosis of mild anxiety and mild depression, and get medication fo this. If she does this, does she get kicked out of ROTC?, or
3) procure some Prozac without a prescription (which is really easy from off-shore pharmacies), and self medicate.
The problem with 1) is that I don't think a person should have to just soldier on through a brain chemistry deficit when there is medication taken by literally tens of millions of Americans that mostly corrects for this brain chemistry ideficit (excessive Seratonin re-uptake).
There may be no problem with 2), but I cannot advise her to do this, when she would need to report this medical change to her cadre, and when she is willing to "soldier on" if there is a good chance it would lead to separation from ROTC and a huge payback in scholarship money
The problem with 3) is that at some point she will take a DOD physical again, and she will need to truthfully answer that she has "taken a drug not prescribed by a physician", or whatever the exact wording is to see if you've taken illegal drugs... and a legal medical drug is illegal when not prescribed by a physician. I don't know if that would DQ her as an MSIV getting ready to commission.
So, that's why it is very important for me, as one of her advisors in life, to find out if option #2 above would allow her to continue on in ROTC, then into her chosen Military Intelligence, which requires certain Top Secret Security Clearances. I'd also need to know , since she is interested in CIA or State Dept. as a possible career if and when she leaves active duty, whether an employee in the CIA or State Dept is even allowed to be taking a psychiatric drug like Prozac?
Well, that's a handful, and I appreciate any information about ROTC in particular, and then CIA or State Dept. as a possible post-Army career, while taking Prozac.
Thanks for your responses.