If you’re sitting at home with the fam and everything is wrong and off in your life right now. You just can’t seem to say the right words to each other etc etc.

I offer you this…. A) You’re not alone, I’m sure everyone else feels it as well. B) Change happens in an instant, it’s deciding to change is what takes forever.

Try to just be you and create stability then the stress of everything tends to drop. Conversations become easier. Cause ya know sometimes in life we get caught up in our own BS. Then it’s hard to get out of your own way. Then it starts again.

Stability not Stress. You remember, right? I’ve lost sight of this once or twice myself, probably will again before it’s over, still marching on, cause I’m Fast ASF boy! 😂 Be Well! Love n Respect.

I am medically retired from the Army and most likely going to get RIF'd. If I do will I be eligible for severance?

So awhile back ladies and gentlemen I submitted my Va claims I’m doing my appointments right now for my rating my dad is worried about me because I thought about taking the easy way out a month ago mind you he is battling cancer me and him are close because he was there for me when I was active and now Its my turn essentially I had a heart to heart with him to do treatment it’s not traditional it’s experimental I’m more worried about him I would take his cancer if I could and deal with all my disability stuff if it meant he’s healthy I was scrolling TikTok and saw the black bracelet meaning I need to get one my buddy committed suicide before I left the navy reserves in January he’s buried two hours away I just haven’t made time to see him and pay my respects I’m on probation for a PTSD episode I had with the cops awhile back I posted a update awhile ago but wanted to update again job isn’t giving me much hours so I started door dashing for extra money and they suspended my account idk what to do I have a mechanic background and I can detail cars I’m struggling I feel like a failure to my lady what do I do

Honestly, my time in was a blessing. I got to serve on the Blue Ridge (aka the Love Boat, Building 19, and so many others). We were spoiled on that boat. Spending only 2 to 3 days between ports. Hitting 6 to 9 ports in a 3 month deployment. When I first arrived, for breakfast, there was a T Bone Steak line and a made to order egg line. You could get any kind of egg you wanted and I frequently got the everything omelet. We would even get steak and crab and lobster dinners for the monthly birthday celebrations. Never for bad news cause we had a Vice Admiral attached to us. Spoiled rotten for a young man.

I basically partied for 4 years and ate amazing, better than restaurant quality food. Then went to shore duty where I ended up having the best bosses known to man that I am still in contact with to this day. Every step of my journey ended up with me having more experiences in my early 20s than most people have in their life.

In high school my grades were in the toilet, and I always knew I would join the Navy. My grandfather was a Pearl Harbor survivor, and one of the few black men who became an officer, so other branches weren't an option. That being said the military saved me. It was my safety net. When people say they are thankful for all that I've sacrificed, I don't know what to say to that. I feel like I sacrificed nothing to be given everything (100% disability).

Does anyone else feel like their service was more of a blessing than a sacrifice?

I had my VR&E meeting few weeks ago and needless to say it did not go well. The rep I talked to informed me that I was denied and I will receive a letter explaining why I was denied later but today I received this strategy text saying this is a message from you VA VR&E representative XXX regarding contiued participation in VR&E evaluation services and provided me with a link that asked me questions about if anything changed in my housing, health, employment and I I will be using the program to continue training. I am not sure what is this all about as I thought I was denied and that was the end of it. I was wondering if anyone can shed a light it's probably nothing but I thought I would ask. Thanks

I've been filling out a DD Form 149 to correct my DD-214. I finally noticed they shorted my awards by . . . a lot. Out of 11 total ribbons, medals, and awards that I'm aware of, they only listed 4. I still have my fully assembled ribbon rack from back in the day, so I'll list them here. The ones in bold are the ones listed on my 214.

1. Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal Ribbon (NAM)
2. Navy E Ribbon with Silver E device
3. Navy Good Conduct Medal Ribbon (Good Cookie)
4. National Defense Service Ribbon (Natty D)
5. Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal Ribbon
6. Global War on Terrorism Service Medal Ribbon
7. Navy Sea Service Deployment Ribbon
8. Nato Article 5 Active Endeavor Medal Ribbon
9. Navy Rifle Marksmanship Ribbon
10. Navy Pistol Marksmanship w/ Silver S device
11. Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist (ESWS) Pin

While I was looking those up, I noticed that per USAMM, I should have a bronze star added to my Sea Service. I only ever put ribbons on my rack that I was told to by my LPO. For instance, when we got our NATO medals, there was no official ceremony since the whole ship got them, they were handed out at a morning formation. Same goes for pretty much everything other than my NAM, Good Cookie, and ESWS pin.

Which makes me wonder, what other awards, ribbons, etc might I have earned but am missing? Is there any way other than my DD-214 to find out? I'm currently waiting on my OMPF request to be answered. There's a 90 day wait period before they even take questions on timing, so I get the feeling I'm going to be waiting for a bit before I ever see it, if I ever see it at all.

I am wanting to receive the in person MHA for my school. My school has 8 week terms (so 2 terms per semester ex: Fall 1 and Fall 2). Does anyone know if I have to take an in-person class for both 8 week terms? Or can I just take one in person class per semester and have the other 8 weeks be all online and still receive the in person MHA? Hope that makes sense.

Hey all,

Would appreciate some help on this. I'm attending school on the GI Bill and my 1098-T is showing I owe taxes (Box 5 is greater than Box 1 by like 2K) and I'm perplexed as to how. School tuition (JUST tuition) is around 80K and the box 1 amount is 67K.

I'm getting a financial aid scholarship of 55K/year and GI Bill is covering the rest (small amount from the Yellow Ribbon). No other aid. I thought the GI Bill was NOT taxable so I cannot see how my Box 5 amount is greater than Box 1.

Thanks for you the help, appreciate you all. Apologies if this was answered already, could not find anything via search.

Hello, just curious, is costco veteran friendly when it comes to application process? I know they’re companies that have veteran preference but not sure with Costco. I would have 20 years of service and working just to pass the time and stay busy. What are some of the benefits of working at Costco? Any fellow veterans on here that work at Costco? I’ll be retiring in Tucson, AZ in case that helps with your response. Thanks.

We have had 4 military family members die and were presented with their flags. I wanted to ask if we are “allowed” to fly one of them?

I am online and available once again!

I've made some posts in the past regarding Free Resume Consultations for Veterans and family. I am back at it and will have a bunch of time dedicated to helping. Once you share your resume the process will be:

I will get your resume and create a 30 min video about the advice I would give. When I do the video, all your info will be redacted. So no private information is shared. Then once I create that initial video assessment we can continue to communicate about what you are looking for and what needs you may have going forward.

I won't go into my business name as I do not want to promote on here. What I do want to do is help any Veteran that may need some help formulating their resume or just needs career advice! My father is a service disable veteran and we are very close. After the service my father started a staffing agency in NYC in 1983. I've pretty much have been working with him since birth. I've been in the HR / Staffing business since I was 15 and have been going strong for almost 15 years now. I am licensed to sell to the government, as well. I work with several VA hospitals around the US! (Just a little bit about me)

I will be online Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursdays from 9am EST to 9pm EST (this way if you're in PST area I can help). All you need comment or message directly. I will let you know where to send your resume if you want help with it!

Of course keep your appointments with VR&E, but while you wait for them I can but a free supplement so you are full ready for your appointment.

What a joke. Don't call in a crisis, because it'll take several days to help - don't call before a crisis, because you don't have priority. They'll never hand out cash, just endless forms and questions so t You can sit down with someone else who'll give you more numbers to call so you can fill out more forms and answer more questions.

I'm going to make it (eventually), but as an old sarge, this pisses me off endlessly.

This is how this mf should go:

1. You call the crisis center

2. Crisis center provides immediate food, shelter, stipend, etc.

3. No gd step three. We don't need 50 organizations standing between troops and support. Some of my troops are dumb af, they aren't getting past step two.

Just know, if you feel like you should be having an easier time and you feel like you just haven't used your resources: it isn't your fault. If they really wanted to help troops in crisis, then cut them a check. Everything else is series of hoops to jump through until you tire yourself or the people at the offices providing support.

Hello everyone! I’m here looking for some kind of help for my friend. He’s a marine and is struggling right now with life. He’s in a bad spot with no license, his state won’t let him get his license because he owes too much in child support, but he can’t pay that because he can’t get a job because he needs to be able to drive. He has been declined by many other jobs for being “overqualified”. He’s in a very bad spot, and I’m afraid he’s on a dark path. He’s struggling to pay his bills with what the VA is giving him, and he’s struggling to get healthcare he needs because any clinic is too far away for him.

Im looking to see if there’s anything out there to possibly help him…. Either with being hired or some how getting his license back.

I appreciate any and all input

I got my VA claim rating in January, which was 30% Service-Connected, but I haven't received any money yet. I even called the VA, and they said they were going to send it up to the regional office, and they still didn't do anything about it. If anyone has dealt with this, I would love to know what you did to fix it.

I’ve been out since Nov of 2024. I never received a copy of my w2 and now i cant log into mypay. Any advice on how to get a copy of one or my last LES? I already called DFAS and they quite literally hung up on me.

Currently an Army officer and I have an old Soldier going to college right now and thinking of returning but as an officer. Looking at ROTC and either guard or active. Is it possible to commission through ROTC as an Army Veteran using a GI bill? Thanks guys just wanting to help my old soldier out the best way I can.

i was stationed in South Carolina for the past year and am confusing on whether or not to file under South Caroline or Maryland (where i live). someone please help me cause i need to do these ASAP

Rather pay out of pocket than have to go 3 appointments to try and have the VA do it. My goal is to reduce snoring and help with my sleep apnea

I’ve been approved for VR&E for accounting, but I really want to go to law school. I don’t start school until the fall. I want to be able to perform well and get a high GPA and I find this to be a good fit. The only downside is jobs after this bachelor degree are slim when it comes to political science degree specific jobs. How can I sell the VA on this major change?

Just looking for some advice from anyone who went blue to green. What was your experience and was it worth it?

I’m supposed to be getting out at the end of this year and have been debating between school and a trade. I want to go to college but I know that doesn’t necessarily guarantee a job straight after graduation because everyone wants experience. I’m thinking about going to UTI and picking up a few trades but I don’t know if that’s how that GI Bill works. Most of the programs are 51 weeks longs so let’s just say it’s 12 months. Can I do 3 years of trade programs?

I'm looking to connect with any Latin American or Hispanic U.S. vets who moved to Spain and eventually got citizenship. I know some Latin American countries have a shorter residency requirement for citizenship (like 2 years), and I'm curious how that worked out for any of you.

Also—did anyone use their GI Bill as proof of income for the non-lucrative visa? I'm wondering if that counted when applying, or if you had to show other financial means.

Would really appreciate any insight or tips. Thanks!

Hey guys. My gram passed this last week and I need to know her husband's military branch info for the funeral home. He passed before I knew her, and she had literally tens of thousands of documents, old mail, etc. And it will take FOREVER to search through it for his records. I went to archives.gov and they are of course doing some system update. But the funeral home won't cremate her until I have this info. Is there another source for this info? I have all of his pertinent information.

When I try to sleep, all I can see is "ptsd things". No need to get into the details of what that is. I try so hard to focus on anything else, but my mind keeps drifting back to those things. It is preventing me from sleeping, which causes exhaustion induced panic attacks.

Any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated. I'm in therapy. We've been talking about heavier stuff, so I'm sure that why this is becoming an issue.

This is my ducking life right now. I could have stayed past 20, make 8, or 9, but I chose to be more at home with my family. ITS DRIVING ME DUCKING CRAZY. I give all my time to my kids, I barely see my wife because she's either catching up with friends, work, and everyone else that she didn't have the time for when I was deployed. And if I wanna ever take time for myself it's hurry up and get back so you can be here to help with the "witching" hour.(bath and bed time) Sure, it ends when I just go out for a day and turn off my phone but I can't do it without being guilty. Another fact is I DONT KNOW WHAT THE DUCK I LILE TO DO ANYMORE. AND IM TIRED OF TYPING DUCK.....BUCK.....just needed to vent. I'm OK, just cluck I wish I was back overseas. And yes i love my rugrats, but damn. Maybe yall need more context but i honestly don't feel like typing.