Getting out.
Since I post here and most of the readers here are ex-military that this would seem the best place for this.
I will not be re-enlisting and will be ETSing to Texas in April 2013. It was something that my wife and myself have talked about and both agreed on is the best course of action. We have a good plan and support from both of our families that should help with getting established. If all goes well we should have house by the end of 2014 if not sooner.
So with that being said, I was hoping to ask for advice and suggestions from those who have left the military service. Any comment would be welcomed.
Oh and I am tracking the Texas Hazlewood Act.
Also does it seem that the Retention guys make it seem like there is no way one could survive outside the military?
Category: Pointless blather
and lastly, I doubt any of the guys on here have already said this so make sure you keep doing PT.. Try to workout at least 3 to 4 days a week and give yourself an APFT every 2 weeks.. Its not that hard to stay in decent shape but it’s even easier to turn into a barrel ass like alot of our colleagues have done.
I am a personal trainer so if you need any ideas let me know.
I have not read all the comments. So if I have missed this never mind.
Get a copy of your medical records, ALL OF IT, including the Eye and Teeth records.
Go through all medical records and record all problems you had while in the service. Do you have snoring, tripped and fell over tie downs, twisted your ankles while at work or other places. have them check for diabetes, anything with your hearing, high blood pressure, being over weight, your eyes, hit your head on anything. Standing at attention and your feet, legs and back fall asleep or have pain and burding if you stand for any more then 30 minutes and problems with them after the inspections.
Take all this down to the local VA rep for him to service connect you to all these problems. Have him or you fill out all the paper work and send it in to the the VA for judgement on what they will approve or not approve. If no approval, ask for a redo on all not approved items, push till it breaks. This is the only way to get any compensation from the gumment for all the problems you have acquired over the service to your country. Because these problems will only get worse over time. Any skin infections, rashes so forth also put into the system these tings might come back later in life. Ask your wife and children about any problems you might have forgotten over the years and not gone to sic bay for. Get all the compensation you are owed for you service do not short change yourself.
Just to add to the bit about records: Get more than one copy of everything. ANYTHING at all that you have to send to the school for whatever reason, ship them copies and send them certified mail with signature required if not FedEx. And then when you get to school and they try arguing that they never received anything from you, show them the proof it was signed for and smack them on the head with another copy.
One thing that is good about the medical records is that I work in a clinic were my records are storied. So getting a copy should not be a problem.
Spork,
Looks like you’re getting all the advice you need. I did this 20 years ago so I’m sure I don’t have anything relevant to offer except my best wishes. Best of luck to you!
Adam
Sporkmaster: Sounds like you’ve thought this through and have a good plan. Best of luck.
A couple of bits of advice. Unsolicited, so feel free to regard them as worth precisely what you paid for them. (smile)
(1) I’d second cacmakli’s advice. The IRR is worth consideration. You might well want to return to Reserve/Active service one day. Being in the IRR will make that it a lot easier, especially on the USAR side (might or might not be of much help in getting an RA commission down the road, but couldn’t hurt). And getting a few qualifying years via correspondence isn’t that hard these days if you’re good with the online ed systems.
(2) The IRR would also entitle you to continued use of the commissary and at least some other on-post facilities. The commissary will save you 25% on your grocery bill.
(3) Not sure how good a deal Reserve TRICARE/Dental are these days – you might be able to do better as a univ student. But the option might be nice to have. help
(4) The IRR might also allow you to do periodic training with a local MC reserve unit. Should be a number of those in the SATX area. Could help with networking, $$$, keeping a hand in the game, etc . . . .
Went IRR for close to 2 yrs after I left AD the first time while getting my civ career started/stable. In retrospect, I’m damn glad I did.
Again, best of luck. Please keep us posted on how it’s going.
My advice would have been to stay with the service, but I understand how hard it can be to stay once you’ve grabbed the idea of leaving.
Good luck buddy. And thank you for your service.
One caveat on the above: should have made it clear that the IRR gives you comissary/exchange access only if you have qualifying years, so you’d need to manage that. Not that hard, though.
Just to backboard of what some others have said.
– If you’ve got any kind of medical issues (knees, feet, anything at all) then get that stuff documented now. Don’t wait until you’re processing out of the military to get that stuff in your records.
– Make copies of everything you have. Service record, medical records, dental records, etc. It’ll be much easier to have that stuff up front rather than having to request it from NPRC.
– Network. Starting looking for contacts now. Even if you’re not looking for a job right now, it can only help you if you start finding people with similar interests. It will pay off dividends. Start joining groups on LinkedIn and other sites.
– Start working on your resume now and don’t fill it with a bunch of military acronyms. There should be on base services to help with writing a “civilan” resume.
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