Mild asthma, bad asthma, or severe asthma......which will get you DQed.

[davis109]

I waqs wondering how much asthma you can have before you are Dqed for bud/s. I have mild asthma so i only use my inhaler whenever i really need it. It only bothers me when i do activities. but ive been working on controlling it, like taking deeper breathes when running, and trying really hard to pace my breathing. It seems to be working cause i used to only be able to run for about a mile before my longs started to hurt. Now i can run about a 1.5 to 2 mile run before it starts to act up. The weird thing is that it only effects me when i run. I can do a a whole obstacle course as fast as i can and it wont effect me. i dunno. its weird. any help would be great. thanx.

[Brigham]

umm, srry to tell u but any asthma after the age of 13 is disqualifying.



-Brigham

[davis109]

[QUOTED]
umm, srry to tell u but any asthma after the age of 13 is disqualifying.
Are you %100 sure, becuase my mom went into the air force and made a 97 on her asvab and she had mild asthma and they told her that she wasnt supposed to have it but still let her in. I know that the air force is a little different but i just want to make sure. And do they check your medical records for it or do they just ask you if you've ever had it.

[V_DeSan]

Are you %100 sure, becuase my mom went into the air force and made a 97 on her asvab and she had mild asthma and they told her that she wasnt supposed to have it but still let her in


The military twenty to thirty years ago and the military now are very different. I thought they said at MEPS that some mild asthma is waiverable, I may be wrong. You need to talk to a recruiter. This is just for the basic Navy, BUD/s is a different story.



And do they check your medical records for it or do they just ask you if you've ever had it


Dude, don't lie about it. This could mean your life.

[socomchat]

i really feel sorry for you that would suck to have your dreams crushed by asthama GOOD LUCK

[davis109]

The military twenty to thirty years ago and the military now are very different. I thought they said at MEPS that some mild asthma is waiverable, I may be wrong. You need to talk to a recruiter. This is just for the basic Navy, BUD/s is a different story.


Thats what i figured. I only want to go into the navy to go to bud/s. That was the only reason i wanted to go to the navy. If i had to pick a different branch i think i would go with the Marines. I hope since i have little asthma i could get a waiver for it but man this just sucks. It is a treatable condition.

[Brigham]

They told me any asthma was disqualifying but dont take my word for it, ask them and find out all the details. and good luck as well. God bless.


-Brigham

[1NVYMOM]

And do they check your medical records for it or do they just ask you if you've ever had it.


My son will soon graduate from SQT. The navy checked his medical record from an accident that occurred when he was 6 YEARS-OLD! Asthma is a serious condition that could affect breathing - both in running and underwater. If it is a disqualifying condition, perhaps there is a reason..........

[A62]

If it is a disqualifying condition, perhaps there is a reason..........


It is conceivable that you could be a Marine Grunt with some asthma. But BUD's is out of the question. Too many problems with sub-surface evolutions. Also, when you are running etc, you can't stop to take a hit of epinephrine.

A62 out

[katalepsis]

I'm in the same situation you are in. I'm asthmatic and really wanted to join the military as well. I pretty much spammed most american military forces letters asking if I could join being slightly asthmatic (for about 5 years...). The answer is no, why? The army explained if there is a biological attack you would have to wear gear which you would not be able to take off (same with scuba gear etc), hence you wouldn't be allowed to take your inhaler. You would have people relying on you and they can't risk you dying. The funny thing is, imo you wouldn't have asthma wearing a gas mask as it's specific proteins (I believe) in the air that cause asthma. When I run with a mask on in the winter I rarely wheeze at all. Running with a backpack and sprinting are both great for the lungs yet you cannot get rid of asthma, just make your condition better. I have tried various medicines to help asthma, including homeopathic citric acid shots (I forget the real name), all types of inhalers and there is a specific type of ephedra I can get from germany I haven't tried yet. What I do at the moment is I take a dose of my inhaler when I wake up in the morning, then I'm fine all day (don't wait till after you start running, prevention is best). I just recently found out that I can join the french military police who have a special unit which deals with riots etc. Maybe you could find such a thing which would still be of interest to you, yet asthma would not be a handicap. Keep training and enjoy it, I don't see asthma as a handicap, just another obstacle on the course of life. If it was too easy it wouldn't be fun anyway. Don't give up and have fun.
best luck (if you read all that...badly written but I'm slightly tired)
katalepsis

[DrHeckler]

They told me any asthma was disqualifying


I'll throw some input in here because I also have asthma but I have heard more encouraging words than those being expressed here so far. To those who have asthma, depending on the severity, you DO have a chance in the military...I'll give you 2 examples.

1) I know for a fact you CAN go into the Marines with the proper waiver. To get this waiver, you have to take what I believe is called the Pulmonary Function Test. This tests the lungs capacity in a variety of different ways and can determine how affected your lungs are by asthma. To be clear, this isn't just for the "grunt" marines either...I was inquiring into Marine OCS and the recruiter told me that's how they screen people with asthma. If you pass the test, get the waiver, you proceed. This being said, you cannot have a severe case because you won't pass the test, but mild cases can definetly serve as hope for entering the military.

2) This is illegal, and depending upon your moral values, a horrible disservice to this country of USA, but this is true. I do not endorse this, I just wanted to pass this along. I am a civilian in the Army. While getting the mandatory hearing and vision test at the Army base health clinic this past Tuesday, I decided to inquire as to whether the "screening" lady knew anything of this Pulmonary Function Test for those with asthma hoping to enter the military. Turns out, the lady had just got off active duty in the Army and has asthma herself. Go figure. She stated she knew what the PFT was, but did not know anything about taking it in order to gain enlistment eligibility. I asked her how she enlisted, and she said she just made no mention of it on any documents. She even took her inhaler with her, was never caught, and successfully completed training, etc. So the moral of the story is...there is an unwritten rule for many people with potential disqualifying medical backgrounds to gain entry into the military. This was not the first case I had heard of this happening either. Once again, I do not endorse this, and it is illegal to lie to get into the service. This was just an example relevant to the discussion.

Take the first example as inspiration to succeed in serving your country. Good luck.

[DrHeckler]

Adding to my previous message.........

I think I was being a little too naive about the situation. After some extensive "research", I have found that the chances of serving in the military with a history of asthma are extremely slim - to none. While I cannot comment on the Navy policy, I can comment word for word what the Army policy is. They cannot be too different I would think. Taken from the Army "Standards of Medical Fitness" - paragraph 2-23 entitled "Lungs, chest wall, pleura, and mediastinum" states....

"d. Asthma (493), including reactive airway disease, exercise-induced bronchospasm or asthmatic bronchitis, reliably diagnosed and symptomatic after the 13th birthday, is disqualifying. Reliable diagnostic criteria may include any of the following elements: substantiated history of cough, wheeze, chest tightness, and/or dyspnea that persists or recurs over a prolonged period of time, generally more than 12 months."

This was taken straight from the text. I don't know how I would have found this otherwise, but since I have access to the Army intranet, I searched and found that document.

To determine "reliable diagnostic criteria" they can do a number of different tests, which include the PFT as mentioned earlier, or a Methacholine Challenge Test (MCT). Depending on the results of the test, you can THEN apply for a medical waiver. NOTHING is guaranteed though, and both tests have to be funded YOURSELF.

From what I have gathered after looking through numerous forums for all the branches, most seem to agree that it is extremely difficult to convince them to give you a waiver for asthma. Unfortunately, it is too much of a risk in a combat situation. They don't care that you have run a marathon or played sports your whole life or whatever, it just doesn't cut it.

Whether this helped anyone...I don't know, but I do know that I am extremely dissapointed.

[turcotte09]

First time poster and hopefully a future SEAL here. When I was very young (I think two years old was my last episode) I had asthma. Is that waiverable? I literaly cannot remember the last time I've used an inhaler and I do not even own one. Just to get an idea I was previously an accomplished soccer and hockey player and often ran the fastest mile times out of all players tested at our school in both sports. What are the odds that can be waivered?

[dive doc]

Dear all,

just a quick note on this topic. I am not a military surgeon so i cannot speak specifically for application. However, in relation to asthma and particularly to extreme environments where special operators will/may be required to function, asthma could be a seriously debilitaing pathology to have. There are many good reasons that it is a DQ factor in application unfortunately. Childhood asthma can often resolve itself as somebody gets older, however if a person continues into teenage years and continues to have symptoms, ESPECIALLY if they have to be medically controlled, it poses a very difficult situation. Asthma can be triggered by a number of common triggers including cold, water (spray, humidified air etc), pollen, exercise and a number of other factors, the list goes on. If you suffer the symptoms of asthma and require (even occassionally) medication to control it, it can greatly limit your ability to optimally perform but also place you and your team at risk if you do not have access to your meds. It goes without saying that this could occur in a a bad place at the wrong time and place you and your team in jeopardy.

DD