Getting discharged after outing myself need some advice

[Guest michelestark]

Hello I am currently in the national guard and i outed myself due to moral reasons and i know im getting an administrative discharge and i would like to see if there are others who went through this process and got an honorable discharge as im kinda thinking mine isnt being handled properly.

[Charlize]

First of all welcome to Laura's. You might want to post an introduction.

As to your discharge i wish i could offer more than my hope that it will work out well for you. There should be a military attorney available to you. I would think that you may have to make a request to be represented but it might help.

Perhaps others in our veterans forum can help out as well.

Best of luck and glad you found us.

Hugs,

Charlize

[Ravin]

Transgender is a medical status issue. You should be getting a medical discharge, which is an honorable discharge. It also sets you up to be able to more easily get access to VA benefits for the medical reason for discharge. I suggest talking to your command's medical officer and the JAG about it.

The rules might be a bit different if you're reserve than active duty, that's my understanding of how it's supposed to work for active duty.

[Guest michelestark]

Unfortunately it is not listed as a medical condition it is labeled as a mental condition which is an administrative discharge. They are giving me a general discharge and I think that after 8 years with a spotless record and a deployment to Iraq I should receive an honorable. I have known people who have had dirty ua's and get an honorable discharge

[Ravin]

My kid sister had a general discharge for a mental health issue. The important thing there is that it's "under honorable conditions." If it's under honorable conditions, your access to VA stuff will not be impaired.

This article looks to be pretty accurate and thorough on the subject. This is the type of discharge you should be getting because being transgender is a disqualifying medical/mental health condition.. "Administrative" isn't an official category of discharge:

http://girightshotline.org/en/military-knowledge-base/topic/other-designated-physical-and-mental-conditions-discharge

[Guest michelestark]

They are giving it to me with under honorable conditions although they have asked that I provide a letter from my therapist my doctor and myself which is the problem I'm having I don't like disclosing that much information about myself.

[Guest michelestark]

My doctor has dealt with a few different soldiers that got discharged in my state and she said I'm the first that ever had the request for a letter.

[Guest Carla_Davis]

Hi, michelestark

First, Thank you for your service to our Country

I would recommend that you contact this organization for legal advice.

Outserve-SLDN

http://www.outserve-sldn.org/

They also have a Free Legal Defense Hotline 1-800-538-7418

Please read Carefully this Link:

Transgender Service

http://www.sldn.org/pages/transgender-service

“being transgender is considered a medically disqualifying condition, and sex reassignment surgery and/or other medical procedures will become known by the military during the service member’s regularly scheduled physical exam. Because the military classifies sex reassignment surgery under “major abnormalities and defects of the genitalia,” once this condition is known by the military, the service member will likely be discharged. Furthermore, even if the candidate has not had surgery but identifies as transgender, the military considers this to be a disqualifying psychiatric condition, labeling “transsexualism” and “transvestism” as “psychosexual conditions.”

I hope that this information is of some assistance to you.

I wish you Success and happiness in your Journey, and with your Discharge

Hugs,

Carla

[Ravin]

Wanting some documentation from a medical professional is pretty standard. Look at it this way, it's a lot less invasive of your privacy than if they put you through a psych eval themselves. The letters don't have to say much, just that you've been diagnosed with X and are being treated by Y (therapist) or Z (doctor) for that condition. You don't have to give them your life story.

[Guest michelestark]

They had me take a psych evaluation lol but I'm going to fight to have my general upgraded to an honorable. I think I deserve it. :-) and thanks for the info as well it will most likely be of great help.

[Guest michelestark]

Just as an update I have had my final drill this weekend my discharge date is Jan 30th and I will be receiving an honorable discharge.... I'm super happy but also quite sad because I honestly do love being in the military.

[Ravin]

Just as an update I have had my final drill this weekend my discharge date is Jan 30th and I will be receiving an honorable discharge.... I'm super happy but also quite sad because I honestly do love being in the military.

Thanks for the update. And I know what you mean about being both happy and sad. There were so many things I loved about the service, but when it was time to get out, it just was. For me it was at the end of my planned enlistment, and I was years from figuring out the trans, but DADT was really chafing in a way it didn't when I first signed up. I felt invisible and like I was letting myself be invisible and that wasn't acceptable any more.

I actually had a counselor in the military tell me that if I felt I needed to put my own mental/emotional well-being and my family first, I didn't belong in the military any longer. I understood what he meant, kind of.

[Carolyn Marie]

I'm glad you got the Honorable discharge, Michele. You earned it. Thank you for your service to our country.

HUGS

Carolyn Marie

[Guest Emily604]

I was kicked out for being trans myself and it ended being an honorable discharge with the reason being "personality disorder". That was 15 years ago. I've only ever needed the DD214 for one thing and that was a mortgage, so it hasn't bitten me yet. It does concern me that it says personality disorder though. It hasn't hurt my job prospects either. In fact I am now a contractor to the same service that kicked me out lol.

[Guest Gina9223]

:/ wow, I am terribly sorry to get to this post so late. However, I am using my New GI bill for all its worth and I'm in college full time. My best advice is to find out if you have access to the New GI bill and if you do, grab it and run. I started school last summer and it will be a few years before I graduate. Good Luck!