I really wanna join the military but i doubt if they wold accept me since i am an insulin dependent. I was rejected to work in a cruise ship because of that, i'm afraid the military would reject me too :(
Short answer, yes. I tried and was denied. However, there are exceptions to that rule. I was told that if I stopped taking insulin, lied, passed a physical and made it to basic training they would take me- what a joke! In other words, if you find out once you are already in you can stay, but if you already have it it’s not worth their time.
Unfortunately you would never get through basic training, They would surely find that pump :)
You can't be a police officer or a firefighter, or a paramedic either,
It is obvious why, If you were separated from your unit for even a few days, you would likely die. Any job where you would have to drive, they just don't want the added risks.
I was a paramedic when I was diagnosed. I was offered a desk job. I moved into laboratory science instead.
Now Tim I must disagree with you in the aspect of the firefighter, paramedic part. I have been a paramedic for the last 14 years and am still riding the gut bus 3 days a week. Maybe in some areas they will not accept you for the job but it seems that it would be against the law. Just saying!!!
Jastine,
Yes they will denie you into the military!! It sucks but they are way better jobs out there. Trust me, I spent 6 years in the military, I loved what I did but i found that civi life has more to offer. No theres not a lot of glory in EMS but its a great job and you can go so far with it. And this is a job they can never do without. Dont give up hope on jobs or following your dreams.
I'm sorry, you won't be allowed to enlist and it is not just T1, any form of diabetes means you can't enlist, be appointed or be inducted. The current standards of medical fitness list all of this in excruciating detail. And there is a whole bunch of other stuff that you have to pass, much of it seems arbitrary. But, it is about making sure that the soldiers who go through training and get deployed into combat situations meet a high physical standard. A physical standard that is higher than many people can meet, diabetes or not.
If you get diabetes once you have entered service, the answer is different. If you control your condition you are closely examined and monitored and you are not automatically thrown out. You can read about those standards in section 3 which says when you are refered to a medical evaluation board.
Even though you cannot join the military service as a soldier, there are lots of positions that contribute to national security in important ways that are civilian positions. There are far more people involved in the entire defense "enterprise" than just soldier. If your heart is truly into serving your country, there are really important things you can do as a civilian.
Back in the sixties, during the Vietnam era, I was required to register for service. They rated me as 1-Y. I was told that basically, that meant that if I was ever called to duty, I would be fighting from my front porch.
You must have lived in a rough neighborhood.
But seriously, this originally meant:
Registrant available for military service, but qualified only in case of war or national emergency. Usually given to registrants with medical conditions that were limiting but not disabling (examples: high blood pressure, mild muscular or skeletal injuries or disorders, skin disorders, severe allergies, etc.). Class was discontinued in December, 1971 and its members were reclassified as 4-F.
4-F now means "Registrant not acceptable for military service."
I'm still going to be careful walking around your front porch.
I can only go by experience. I live in southern California and they were very clear about it. This was 25 years ago, but I would supprised if the policy has changed.
Why would you want to join the military? You're lucky your diabetes will keep you from making such a terrible mistake. Veterans have much worse health than non-veterans. That's probably because of all the trauma involved in military training and wars. I wrote about this at http://dissidentvoice.org/2010/06/veterans%E2%80%99-horrible-health/
OK much older now than I was back when I wanted to join the Navy but this is what I was told then. (Things have probably changed since then there probably are exceptions now) I was told that I couldn't join b/c what would I do when being fired upon if I had to take time out to give myself a shot. Back then there was't a pump or pens u had to get a vial and a syringe to pull up ur insulin.
I have had this question too, and yes, unfortunately we can't join. It feels unfair, but that's the way life is. It also serves as a reminder that we are, or at least are considered, inferior in a number of ways by general society. Makes me think about basic survival skills...I'm a hiker and I love the outdoors, but realize that if I'm out in the world without my diabetes supplies for more than a day, it's over pretty much.
If we ever do find a cure (sooner rather than later hopefully) enlisting is something I would think about.
I agree, David, there's got to be a more meaningful way to spend your time on this earth than killing "the enemy du jour".
I am a full time paramedic and type 1, it has never been a problem, and legally they can not even ask.
bad! i really wanted to join in. it happened to me a month ago, im suppose to be at the cruise on april 25th and when all my papers are done, they have found out that i have my insulins with me, so they stopped me. i told them at first i am a type 1 diabetic, they should have told me earlier when all my papers are not done yet
:( any job in the military would be great. i am a chef by profession, would that be acceptable if i apply as a kitchen staff?
thank you, Todd. that is very encouraging :)
any ob fro the military would be great, i can be in the office or at the kitchen, i am a chef by profession, would that be acceptable?
No, you still have to go through boot. It would be nice if they made exceptions but not these days. Now I know from my experience there were those who later became diabetic and the military kept them.
Do you work for Fire/EMS or other EMS agency?