Yes, you can be discharged from the military for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) if the condition significantly impairs your ability to perform duties, but a diagnosis doesn't automatically mean separation, especially if it's effectively treated and managed, with the military often encouraging help to maintain readiness. Outcomes depend on severity, treatment response, and impact on duty, with severe, untreatable, or duty-disrupting PTSD potentially leading to a medical board and discharge, while seeking help is often viewed positively.
A PTSD diagnosis will not cause you to lose your security clearance. Some service members feel reluctant to admit that they have PTSD or get help for their symptoms. They may worry that they will be forced to leave the military or that they will face a stigma if they stay in the armed forces.
All branches of the military consider you to have a strong case for a discharge upgrade if you can show your discharge was connected to any of these categories: Mental health conditions, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
Psychiatric and Personality Disorders
Veterans with signs of PTSD may also find it difficult to sleep or relax, be prone to anger or irritability, startle easily, act recklessly or abuse drugs or alcohol as a coping mechanism.
Having a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder isn't likely enough to end your military career. But in the absence of treatment, you may develop behavioral problems that can in turn hinder your career advancement. Seeking treatment for PTSD is often a good way to help protect your service record.
PTSD is a mental health condition that can occur after a person experiences or witnesses a traumatic event or series of events. The symptoms of PTSD can affect a person's mental, physical, social, and spiritual well-being. In certain cases, PTSD symptoms may be severe enough to be considered a disability.
Un-united fractures, history of instability of a major joint, certain retained orthopedic fixation devices, severe scoliosis, or any condition that could interfere with daily participation in rigorous physical training or athletic programs, wearing of military equipment, or detract from military bearing and appearance ...
Untreated mental illness can, however, damage your career. If the symptoms are severe, your commanding officer may require duty limitations or recommend separation from the military for medical reasons.
Both the medications and the diagnosis of PTSD are considered disqualifying and will require a waiver.
The Department of Defense (DoD) authorizes six characterizations of service for military service members to receive on discharge: (1) Honorable; (2) Under Honorable Conditions (General); (3) Under Other than Honorable Conditions; (4) Bad Conduct; (5) Dishonorable, and (6) Uncharacterized.
If you develop anxiety or depression while serving in the military, it may be grounds for a medical discharge or retirement. The outcome depends on factors including the severity of your symptoms and how they respond to treatment.
Similarly, the course of the condition can vary. Some people recover within six months, while others have symptoms that last much longer. In some people, the condition becomes chronic. The earlier treatment is offered, the less likely PTSD will become a chronic condition.
Symptoms vary, but they usually include reliving the trauma through flashbacks or nightmares, and avoiding reminders of the event. Emotional numbness and heightened arousal like irritability or insomnia are also common.
They typically subside over time (Hackmann, 2011), however, approximately 70% of people with PTSD will experience frequent and persistent nightmares which remain even after treatment, suggesting they are of substantial clinical relevance (Barrett, 2001).
Certain medical conditions — such as asthma, diabetes, severe allergies, certain types of mental health disorders and heart problems — can disqualify individuals from joining the military due to the physical and mental demands of service.
Any individual with current or a history of psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia, paranoid disorder, or other unspecified psychosis, is disqualified. Current mood disorders, such as major depression, bipolar disorder, or depressive disorder not otherwise specified, are disqualifying.
Exemptions
The Deadliest Mental Disorder — Anorexia Nervosa. Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder characterized by a relentless pursuit of thinness, difficulty maintaining an appropriate body weight, and a distorted body image.
Emotional Health: Quiet BPD is characterized by intense loneliness, shame, and self-criticism. This constant internal struggle can lead to other mental health conditions, adding to the complexity of their emotional wellbeing.
According to psychology, there are specific personality types that are notoriously difficult to live with. These can include the passive-aggressive communicator, the relentless critic, or the energy-draining pessimist. However, recognizing these traits is the first step toward managing the stress they cause.
A 100% disability rating for PTSD from the VA represents total disability, indicating that the veteran is entirely unable to engage in any gainful employment due to their condition. This rating is granted when PTSD symptoms are so severe that they totally impair a veteran's ability to function in a work environment.
TBI creates a physical injury in the brain. PTSD develops from the psychological trauma of the event. So, many events that lead to PTSD do not involve a head injury. And an event that includes a TBI does not mean you will also develop PTSD.
PTSD flashbacks are often triggered by things that remind the person of the traumatic event they experienced. These triggers can be external, such as sights, sounds, smells, or locations that are associated with the trauma.