My friend wants to join military: Should I talk him out of it?

[bobobo]

Two questions:

a. Is he ready to be killed?

b. Is he ready to kill?

That's what armies do.

 

[evanrick]

so some updates, hes on track to go into training after one more step, which he is happy about.

but hes told me hes been having flashbacks, his anxiety is getting worse, that he cant sleep, and his girlfriend doesnt really listen to him.

asked him if hes been to a doctor, he said...'like a psychiatrist'...and i said no a family doctor..i told him he has insurance and hes pretty much been coping by drinking alcohol and using drugs.

so yeah i saw the pain in his eyes like he was gonna cry when i dug deeper. not sure what to do now but i guess its a start, i think i may try and help him get into seeing a doctor, but he is thinking that once he joins the military things will take care of themselves. but im not gonna try to talk him out of it, knowing that would be a mistake, but i want to see him get help.

i feel really bad cuz hes a lot younger than i when i started having the same problems.

 

[Ninja108]

I don't see him passing the psych evals.
More to the point,if he's using booze and drugs to deal with his issues, there is no way that is going to be kept a secret for long when he joins.

 

[evanrick]

what can i do for him? what should i do?

 

[fetaby]

what can i do for him? what should i do?

Be honest.

The more you post about it, the more it seems this whole idea is nothing more than a house of cards.

How high is it going to get before it comes crashing down?