Looking for diretional advice

[McMat]

Hello Marines,

So, I'm a Poolee who is set to ship over summer. I've been aspiring to be a Marine since I was ten, and have modeled much of my life for that path with things like the Young Marines, Marine Cadets, martial arts, etc. Best experience I've had thus far is taking the oath of enlistment, and look forward to many more to come.

That was the case, at least, up until these last few days.

With my ship date getting close, I'm suddenly experiencing those anxious feelings I thought were for less moto poolees. I was sure I was above the feeling of not wanting to go. And now I'm here, posting at the guidance of my recruiter due to my doubts. I've basically lost my motivation at our weekly PT, and I'm feeling that sense of anxiety/doubt that has always seemed so foreign to me.

I think that right now, my biggest adversary is the fact that I'm not so sure I want to truly leave my home town. I've realized after a lot of thinking that I'm comfortable here, and like the life I've built for myself, and I'm not so happy to "finally get out". I still want to be a Marine without a doubt, but I was really considering that maybe going reservist is the path for me.

So there's my qualm; do I want to continue on my path towards active duty, or should I talk to my recruiter about changing my path towards reserves?

Any comments, opinions, advice, etc. are greatly appreciated on the topic. Thank you.

[Phantom Blooper]

No one on this site or a recruiter can give you an answer on what you should...or should not do.

Motivation is from within.....if you lost your motivation....then reach down deep and find it again!

I've realized after a lot of thinking that I'm comfortable here, and like the life I've built for myself, and I'm not so happy to "finally get out".

It all depends on what you want to do in life as far as your choose of active or reserves.

Realizing that that reserves can be a "comfort zone" is not really true....since the start of the Iraq/Afghanistan war.....many reserve units have been activated....leaving behind families,homes,jobs,school,friends and that "comfort zone."

Coming back to find out...it is not so comfortable after all.

You need to read ALL the advice here and listen to the advice from your recruiters and pick and choose what best fits your lifestyle.

If your "comfort zone" at present is based on your friends from school.....those friends more than likely will be going their own way after school is over.

If it is because of missing family and the routine of life....life eventually changes and it will be different once you are "on your own" and considered an adult....regardless of what path you choose in the Marine Corps.


Heart will get you through more than just Boot Camp. A Marine is more than a title...it's a call to duty. One that sometimes, more often than not comes at a time when you are going to wish it didn't. Heart will relieve you from that thought and that struggle of making it through a PT session, a test, an azz chewing,a 15-25 mile hump or anything the Marine Corps or life can throw at you!


YOU and only YOU can make your decision....don't base a decision on what others have to say.....because if you don't take that "right" path you will only have yourself to look in the mirror and ask why?

Fear is temporary. Regret is forever.

Choose.

[redman1]

Don't know what to say.
I think that since you took the oath and everyone knows your suppose to ship out if you don't you will be embarrassed and always regret it.
Once you hit the Yellow Foot Prints at PI you will be to busy to think about it. But after you graduate you will always be proud to be a U.S. Marine and be a part of a brotherhood that everybody can't do.
Suck it up and become a man
I owe the Marine Corps everything, My training has helped me all through life even after I got discharged from Active Duty.
Being in the Reserves to me would be hard trying to make the transition from Marine to civilian. To me I have to give 100% to what ever I do and some reservist I know have spent allot of time overseas.
Suck it Up and be a Man
Semper Fi Redman

[Bdchi1]

McMat: I would go as far as to say that most of us had some reservation prior to getting to boot camp or just after getting there. For me, it was at the airport while waiting on the buses to the Island.

As Redman1 stated, you will be so busy once you get there that you won't have time to focus on home. Moreover, I can tell you from experience that home will be there waiting for you when you return.

Remember, once you sign--you have to do the time. Stay strong and focused. Don't worry about the next day, week or month.

Bdchi1

[redman1]

McMat think about this once you come home after boot camp and you have earned you Eagle Globe and Anchor you will never again Stand Tall In the eyes of everyone in your hometown as when you become a Marine because there is no other branch of the service that everyone respects more than a U. S. Marine. All branches of service respect Marines
Even the Marines that have served on active duty and served there time in the Corps when they got out and joined other branches, everyone gives them respect because of what they did.
Good Luck and make the best of it.
Semper Fi Redman

[tdrt]

It's only natural to be scared to leave the comforts of home. You are about to embark on a major, life changing event -- something that will forever change your life for the better. If you change anything now, you will regret it later.

You'll be fine. Stay the course. Reach deep and find that motivation. It's there. Don't let your fears get in the way. The more you stress and look for fear, the more you will find it.

[MicMarine]

McMat,

Anyone who says they didn't have reservations before going to Recruit Training if a liar. It may hit some months before, weeks before, days before, or in my case 3 days after being there. I remember sitting and waiting for medical and the hats running around. I thought to myself "What did I get myself into?" After getting stress fractures in both femurs and spending 6 month on the depot I was proud that I came, then earned the title.

This is what I tell my Marines that are getting off active duty (EASing) and thinking about the reserves: As a "recovering reservist", let me ask you why you want to leave active duty for the reserves?

I would not have been able to do the things I have done in the reserves. The monotonous of the reserves drove me crazy. Getting promoted is harder regardless of what people tell you. Zero benefits. Try managing two lives. You have to manage your civilian life (family, job, house and bills) and the the Marine life (MOS proficiency, physical fitness, the Marines underneath you and good luck finding uniform items near you that are correct).

The butterflies will leave, and you wish you had gone active. Friends and your home town will be there when you get back. You do get leave to see everyone. If I were you I would stay on the course you and your recruiter have planned out. Good luck.

[Hanzo]

As others have said, everyone gets cold feet.

I've also told civilian friends that its like riding your first roller coaster. You see it and you want to ride it, so you go get in line. You're thinking how great its going to be. As you get closer and closer to the front of the line, those butterflies start acting up. As your standing on the platform getting ready for the next car to come, you're very nervous and you're thinking that maybe you shouldn't have done this, but the crowd behind you is pushing and you don't want to puss out. Then you sit in the car and those butterflies are REALLY going now. You're nervous, shaking a little, excited and terrified all at once. Then, that roll bar comes down and you're locked in. Like it or not, you're riding this b!tch. Then you've got that slow *CLANK, CLANK, CLANK* up the hill towards the top and at this point, you know damned well that you should NOT have done this, but there's no way to get off now, so hold on, shut up and try to live through it. As you go flying down that first hill, you're screaming and you're pretty sure you're going to die, but theres nothing you can do about it. Then, as the ride progresses, you start to think that this isn't so bad. Its intense! You come to the end and you're thinking "wow, that was a hell of a ride!" and all you want to do is run back to the beginning and do it all over again.

Trust me, you will never in your life see a more dramatic change in attitudes as when comparing poolees/recruits as they get on the bus till when the bus stops in front of the receiving barracks. It get REAL during that bus trip, and everybody who thought they were a bada$$ is humbled very quickly. Once you step foot on that bus is like strapping that roll bar down on the roller coaster. You ARE going to go on this ride, and thats exactly what it is, cause there ain't no getting off. And you will be terrified, and in the beginning you WILL want to get off. Thankfully for you and all those who have gone before you, you don't get to leave. I say thankfully because if given the option, I know a lot fewer of us would've have stayed to earn the title.

What you're feeling is normal, thats all I can tell you. Whether you should become a Marine or not, only you can answer that. And as for feeling like you can keep the comfort of home as a reservist, forget it. You'll be gone for 13 weeks to bootcamp, which will then become your home. Then you'll have MCT or ITB plus any MOS school, then you'll probably deploy at some point. And that's just the normal part. I had a guy in rehabilitation with me who go hurt at MCT. He was a reservist and hadn't been home in over a year. If you want to stay home, tell your recruiter that you're out. If you want to try to become a Marine, ask your recruiter if he's got a straw you can borrow so that you can suck it the f**k up. I know you're nervous, f**k it, drive on and accomplish your mission.

[Lisa 23]

All I can say is that I never got cold feet, nor did I ever say..."what did I get myself into" before, during or after boot camp. Was I nervous...yes. Was I anxious...yes. Did I miss home, my family and friends...yes.
Marine Corps boot camp was something that I looked forward to for quite a while, and when it was all done and over with, it was the PROUDEST moment in my life, and it was the best decision I ever made with no regrets!