Why is wanting to deploy and do my MOS seen as bad?

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 19:48:24 -0400

Why is the army like this? They see people laze around and sham all day but do nothing. God forbid you want to deploy and actually do your MOS for once. Why was I sent to behavioral health for wanting to deploy. That is stupid people make up fake profiles or get pregnant to avoid deployment but hey this specialist wants to deploy he must be crazy?

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 24 at 2019 7:54 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 19:54:58 -0400

Depends on how you worded your statement. Wanting to deploy and do your job isn’t a bad thing, it’s what we all signed up to do. A lot of people say things like “I just wanna go kill some people already” or “I wanna get into the shit” and that’s just silly and immature sounding. I’m not saying you did that! Some people take offense to people wanting to deploy as they themselves have been and likely had rough experiences or lost friends. You wanting to serve and do your job isn’t something to be concerned about in my opinion.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 24 at 2019 8:07 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 20:07:21 -0400

Unfortunately there are far to many in uniform that don't get that. Don't sweat it. You're fine.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 24 at 2019 9:30 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 21:30:41 -0400

I'm a 19D Cav Scout. When I was a private, my Platoon Sergeant said, "Anyone who wants to go to war is a fool". 20 years and 6 deployments later, I've lost many brothers. Even one of my buddy's wife was KIA...his wife!! Deploying to war is no joke.
Don't worry about them. Focus on yourself. Set yourself up apart from your peers. Take many schools as you can. That part in your ERB where it says "military education" and "awards and decorations", fill that up!! Earn the next rank! Get Distinguished honor grad. Go to Soldier of the Month and NCO of the Month Boards. Sergeant Audie Murphy boards. Put some bling on your ASU's and make yourself shine! You'll eventually deploy and you're going to see that it was not as what you expected to be. Trust me.

Response by WO1 Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 24 at 2019 9:34 PM

WO1 Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 21:34:46 -0400

I feel as if there is probably more to the story than what you are telling us.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 24 at 2019 9:52 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 21:52:08 -0400

Nothing wrong with wanting to deploy. I checked the box on the HRC website.
Is there other issues going on for them to warrant a referral? If not, just roll with the punches. You will PCS soon and be in a completely different place.

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 25 at 2019 1:37 AM

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 01:37:51 -0400

If you're a medic (sonce your MOS isn't stated in your thumbnail), as the topic you tagged, then I can kind of understand the reticence and concern by your leadership.

I was an EMT prior to the Army. I joined the Infantry, simply because Medic slots were full when I enlisted and I was ready to go. Let me tell you, just on the civilian side of that job, it is NOT a light hearted thing. Seeing your friends bloodied up and broken, in some cases worse, is not something to WANT to do. Dont get me wrong, I understand where you're coming from. I had the same mindset not so long ago. It's that desire you did what you've bled, sweated and cried over. The desire to do the job that you've trained so hard to be good at. But look at it from a Leader's standpoint:

As a medic, your job is to patch up other soldiers and civilians who have been broken, injured and ailed by combat and it's tertiary effects. To be the best, when everyone else is at their worst. To see the true horrors of war on a level that, not only do so few see, but that even fewer will ever understand. On top of this, the responsibility of repairing that damage falls on your shoulders, as their Doc. You're still young, at least by army standards. This is not a responsibility any sane person should be so willing to accept, let alone seek out. Yet, here you are, begging for a chance to view and patch the rent and wrecked bodies of those affected by this conflict. Can you see now why their concern is understandable, if not justified? I know if you were my soldier, I would recommend a Behavioral Health consult, if for no other reason than to make sure you were able to handle the kind of pressure that job puts on you, given your extreme willingness to do so. Not to call you crazy or to blackball you from deployment, but to ensure that you're volunteering for the right reason. Because as a Leader, my frost priority is you, and any other soldier in my charge.

Don't take it to heart. They may simply want to make sure that you're ancy for it for the right reasons, and the only way to do that is to have the head doctor look at you.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 25 at 2019 8:25 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 08:25:04 -0400

It is not seen as bad at all. However not being trained before going would make senior ranking personnel think you don't have an understanding of what you would be getting into. I was in a rush when I was a newer Soldier. My senior leader sat me down and told me "don't be in a rush to go somewhere without being ready to do it. You will get yourself and others killed." I took his meaning as it will happen, get prepared before you go rushing into something you don't know about. I am glad I didn't deploy when I was pushing so hard to transfer to do it. I wouldn't have that leader to shape me into a better Soldier or help me figure out where my place is in the Army. I ended up reacting very quickly to what needed to be done in tense situations. Chase training, be ready, it will come, let it. Airborne!

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 25 at 2019 9:27 AM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 09:27:35 -0400

Keep in your mind your eagerness to deploy can be interpreted in multiple ways. When you you say you want to deploy, your leadership may not interpret that as wanting to do your job but rather as being naive about the horrors of war. Let's say your leadership has completed a few deployments. During those deployments they've saw some really disturbing stuff, lost some battle buddies, and maybe some of them suffer from PTSD. Deployments for them isn't so much about doing their job but being in a dangerous environment in which not everyone may come home and those that do may have long-lasting physical/mental trauma.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 25 at 2019 11:25 AM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 11:25:20 -0400

Most of my deployment was spent doing other jobs than my own. That's just part of the Army unfortunately at times. Especially for lower enlisted. Try not to stress over it.

Response by SGT Charles Bartell made Apr 25 at 2019 5:06 PM

SGT Charles Bartell — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 17:06:02 -0400

It may be the way you went about it. Sometimes they think you want to get killed or something like that.
Just tell them that you joined the ARMY to Be a combat Medic not a clinic medic.
Someone might get it.
I had almost the same problem. When O.E.F.1 The unit that I Was leaving was three week out to go to O.E.F. 1 , And I Was headed to Korea. The people that cut my orders told me that I was trying to get out of being deployed.
Some people are just stupid.
It took me five more years to get deployed to O.E.F. VII. Go figure.

Response by MSgt Michael Smith made Apr 26 at 2019 9:31 AM

MSgt Michael Smith — Fri, 26 Apr 2019 09:31:28 -0400

Sounds like you were most likely sent to behavioral health because you can't deal with authority. Ever heard the phrase "Shut up and color." Your job is wherever the Army puts you. Do that job. Children like you whine and cry all the time about how they want to deploy and be war heroes... But in most cases they are just unhappy with their day-to-day routine Army duties and deploying is a escape fantasy. Get away from all that routine BS and fight. I got news for you. About 99% of a deployment is boring, routine Army duties. You need to concentrate on doing your job, following orders, and preparing --because you will deploy I promise.

Response by CPL Henry Bradford made Apr 29 at 2019 6:51 AM

CPL Henry Bradford — Mon, 29 Apr 2019 06:51:34 -0400

my deployment was the best time i had in the army. the bs get cut by 2/3rds and if your good at your job people generally leave you alone to do it. there is nothing wrong with wanting to deploy. so either you said the wrong thing around the wrong person, or this isnt the whole story, or your command is nuking futs

Response by SFC Casey O'Mally made Apr 29 at 2019 8:28 AM

SFC Casey O'Mally — Mon, 29 Apr 2019 08:28:15 -0400

It's not. Wanting to do your job is good. But wanting your job to be necessary is bad.

Example: You tagged 68W - are you a 68W? Saying "I just want to deploy so I have a chance to work in some mangled bodies" will make that trip to NY understandable.

If not 68w, then things like "I'm not scared of IEDs," or "I just want to blow some shit up," or "I can't wait to kill my first Hajji" can all be seen as a sign of mental instability.

I highly doubt you to your CoC in a calm, cool collected voice, "I would like the opportunity to deploy, such that I might utilize the skills for which the Army has trained me," and they lost their shit and sent you off for eval.