RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:                       DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2007-00052
                                             INDEX CODE:  110.00
      XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX                COUNSEL:  NONE

                                             HEARING DESIRED:  YES


MANDATORY CASE COMPLETION DATE:  8 July 2008


________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His Reentry Code (RE) of “2C” be changed to allow him to  re-enter  military
service.

________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

The factors that influenced his conduct  and  his  commander’s  decision  to
separate him were situational and have been  resolved;  thus,  his  re-entry
code is unjust in that it permanently bars him from military service.

His relationship with his family  was  strained  after  he  joined  the  Air
Force, and his being stationed at Shaw AFB, SC, about an hour away from  his
family, just added more problems to an already  strained  relationship.   He
turned his mother away after she began an extra-marital affair, and  she  in
turn made up stories to other family members to ruin his  relationship  with
them.  Since this incident, he has had no  communication  with  his  mother,
and very little with his grandmother and aunt.

He got married a few months prior to his arrival at  Shaw  AFB  and  thought
everything was going great until he received a call from another airman  who
informed him that his wife  of  seven  months  was  having  an  affair  with
another military member while she was finishing her  Phase  II  training  at
Lackland AFB.  He was completely crushed, fell into a depressed  state,  and
did not care what happened to him.  He made three cuts on his  arm,  and  to
this day does not know why he did so.   He  approached  his  supervisor  the
next day and, after telling him what was  going  on,  was  referred  to  his
first sergeant and later to Life Skills.  He had hoped that  his  supervisor
or someone would step in and put a stop to his wife’s affair since  the  man
she was seeing was also in the military, but all that happened was  that  he
got himself discharged for making three little cuts on the back of his arm.

These two situations were the main factors that affected his  behavior,  and
he feels that his commander was doing what he thought was best for  the  Air
Force and for himself at the time, and does not think that  he  made  a  bad
decision.  His being discharged allowed him to get his  life  in  order  and
save his marriage.  He knows that what he did was wrong and  he  would  take
it back if he could.  The biggest reason he cut himself that night was  that
he was completely alone and could not think of any other  way  to  vent  his
state of mind.  He did not know that he could call his supervisor  or  first
sergeant about personal issues in the middle of the night, was  new  to  the
base, was living in an apartment, and had no friends he could talk to.

Since his discharge, he has been living with his wife  who  is  assigned  to
Ellsworth AFB, SD.  They have attended marriage counseling with  a  Chaplain
at Ellsworth AFB and have gotten along great ever since.   He  is  currently
working as a Certified Nurse’s Assistant at a Christian-based  nursing  home
in New Underwood, SD, which has taught him a lot about patience  and  stress
management.  He feels that if he can handle working there, he  could  handle
the stress that comes with military life.

If permitted the opportunity to re-enlist in the Air Force, he is  going  to
make a career of it.  His biggest goal,  if  allowed  to  re-enlist,  is  to
become a first sergeant, so that he can share his experiences  with  younger
airmen who are having the same problems he had.   He  would  also  like  the
chance to become a better airman than  his  wife,  who  thus  far  has  been
awarded Wing Airman of the Quarter and Group Airman of the Year.

In support of his appeal, he has provided  copies  of  an  undated  personal
statement, and four character references.

Applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A.

________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

Applicant entered the Regular Air Force on 3 August 2004  and  served  as  a
dental laboratory apprentice until his separation.

On 6 February 2006, he was notified of his commander's intent  to  recommend
his discharge from the Air Force for a mental disorder,  with  an  honorable
discharge.  The Notification Memorandum stated that on 3 November  2004,  he
was seen by Life  Skills  at  Fairchild  AFB,  WA,  due  to  his  persistent
suicidal  ideations  and  a  recent  episode  of  homicidal  ideation.   His
diagnosis at that time was Adjustment Disorder  with  mixed  disturbance  of
emotions and conduct, but he declined  the  recommended  treatment  and  his
case was closed.  In January 2005, he attended  a  coping  skills  class  at
Sheppard AFB, TX, and his provider noted that  he  had  difficulty  managing
his anger and stress.  On 1 February 2005, he  was  seen  for  an  emergency
appointment as he was  experiencing  problems  resulting  from  memories  of
abuse by his  stepfather  as  a  child,  and  a  history  of  self-injurious
behavior, specifically cutting himself, was documented at that time.  On  11
February 2005, he was placed on the high-risk log, and on 18 February  2005,
he  again  declined  further  treatment   and   did   not   attend   further
appointments.   On  25 February  2005,  he  underwent  a  Command   Directed
Evaluation at Sheppard AFB, and, although his commander believed  he  was  a
“loaded gun” waiting to be triggered, the provider determined  that  he  did
not have an adjustment disorder so serve as to warrant  discharge  from  the
service.  Shortly after assignment to  Shaw  AFB,  he  began  e-mailing  his
former first sergeant and stated that he thought he would feel  better  once
outside of the training environment, but was finding  this  not  to  be  the
case.  He informed his current  first  sergeant  of  his  feelings  and  was
referred to the Life Skills Center.  On 8 November 2005, he  disclosed  that
the night before, he had engaged in self-injurious behavior by  cutting  his
right arm.  He was hospitalized and released on  10  November  2005  with  a
diagnosis  of  Adjustment  Disorder.   Through  November  and  December,  he
continued to disregard medical advice by not  taking  prescribed  medication
and engaged in high-risk situations threatening his safety  and  the  safety
of others.  During a treatment session on 5 January 2006, he  described  the
possibility of committing acts of violence against a person  engaged  in  an
affair with his mother, and his first sergeant  ordered  him  to  stay  away
from town to prevent this.  In later discussions, he admitted that he  might
have broken this order if the situation called for  it.   Since  12  January
2006, he had expressed his dissatisfaction with continued treatment at  Life
Skills,  his  willingness  and  motivation  to  comply  with  treatment  was
dwindling, and he continued to place himself in unsafe conditions.   Due  to
his diagnosis  of  Borderline  Personality  Disorder,  repetitive  high-risk
behavior,  history  of  suicidal  and  homicidal  ideations,  self-injurious
behavior, and lack of willingness to participate in treatment, the  clinical
psychologist at Life Skills recommended he  be  administratively  discharged
from the Air Force, and he was  deemed  unsuitable  for  continued  military
service based on the severity of his personality disorder.

The commander advised the applicant of his right to consult  legal  counsel,
submit statements in his own behalf, and that his failure  to  do  so  would
constitute a waiver of his right to do so.

On  9  February  2006,  the  applicant  consulted  counsel   and   submitted
statements in his own behalf.

A legal review was conducted on 10 February 2006, in which the  staff  judge
advocate found the case file to be legally sufficient to support  separation
for mental disorder with an honorable discharge.

Since applicant had less than 20 months of total  active  military  service,
he did not  receive  an  Enlisted  Performance  Report.   His  DD  Form  214
indicates he is entitled to wear the National  Defense  Service  Medal  with
one Oak Leaf Cluster, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, and  Air  Force
Training Ribbon.

Applicant was discharged on 16 February 2006 in the grade  of  Airman  First
Class (E-3), with an honorable discharge, in accordance  with  AFI  36-3208,
Chapter 5, Section B, paragraph 5.11.9:   Mental  Disorder.   The  Narrative
Reason for Separation was “Personality Disorder”, and he  was  given  an  RE
Code of 2C,  “Involuntarily  separated  with  an  honorable  discharge…”,  a
condition barring immediate reenlistment  He served a  total  of  1 year,  6
months, and 14 days net active service.

________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The AFBCMR Medical Consultant advises that  no  change  in  his  records  is
warranted.

Personality disorders are not disease states, but are enduring  patterns  of
perception,  coping,  emotions,  and  behavior   that   deviate   from   the
expectations of  the  individual’s  culture  (including  occupational),  and
leads to distress or impairment.  Due to pervasive and inflexible  features,
personality disorders significantly predispose  individuals  to  development
of depression, or anxiety and other  difficulties.   Often,  the  nature  of
military duty places greater pressures on the individual than  on  civilians
in similar duties, and these disorders frequently become more manifest.

Adjustment Disorder and Personality Disorder are conditions that,  alone  or
together, may render an  individual  unsuitable  for  military  service  and
subject to an administrative  discharge.   During  periods  of  stress,  the
manifestations  of  Personality  and  Adjustment  Disorders,  including  the
maladaptive coping mechanisms, typically become more apparent and thus  more
readily identified by mental health  professionals.   Personality  Disorders
are not medically disqualifying or unfitting but may render  the  individual
unsuitable for further military service and may be cause for  administrative
action by the individual’s unit  commander.   Manifestations  (symptoms  and
behavior) of personality and adjustment disorders wax and  wane  over  time,
depending on the nature and degree of stressors present at any  given  time.
The fact that he may be functioning well at this  time  is  consistent  with
the diagnosis of Adjustment Disorder; however it does not  predict  that  he
will respond well to the stresses of  military  operations,  deployment,  or
combat when he  is  separated  from  his  familiar  surroundings  and  usual
support system of family and friends, or is  assigned  duties  that  do  not
suit him.  His past experience, manifested by the  inability  to  cope  with
military service with outside stressors, is predictive  of  an  unacceptable
risk of recurrence of Personality Disorder if re-exposed to  the  rigors  of
military training and service.  A history  of  Personality  Disorder  severe
enough  to   warrant   administrative   discharge   is   disqualifying   for
reenlistment into the military.

The BCMR Medical Consultant  further  advises  that,  in  his  opinion,  the
applicant’s mental  health  problems  were  not  the  result  of  a  single,
isolated incident as he contends, but rather part of a lifelong  pattern  of
anger and self-injurious behavior. The  preponderance  of  evidence  of  the
record shows that the applicant’s condition posed  a  continued  significant
risk of recurrence and should be disqualifying for reenlistment  Action  and
disposition in this case are proper  and  equitable,  reflecting  compliance
with Air Force directives that implement the law.

The AFBCMR Medical Consultant’s evaluation is at Exhibit C.

________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

A complete copy of the evaluation was  forwarded  to  the  applicant  on  28
August 2007, for review and comment, within 30 days.  However,  as  of  this
date, no response has been received by this office.

________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

1.  The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided  by  existing  law  or
regulations.

2.  The application was timely filed.

3.  Insufficient relevant evidence has been  presented  to  demonstrate  the
existence of error or injustice to warrant changing his RE  Code.   We  took
notice of the applicant's complete submission in judging the merits  of  the
case; however, we agree with the opinion  and  recommendation  of  the  BCMR
Medical Consultant and adopt his rationale as the basis for  our  conclusion
that the applicant has not been the victim of an  error  or  injustice.   In
this respect, we note the applicant’s discharge appears to be in  compliance
with the governing Air Force Instruction  in  effect  at  the  time  of  his
separation, and that he was afforded all the rights to which entitled.   The
BCMR  Medical  Advisor  notes  that  personality  disorders  are  frequently
exacerbated  by  stress  and  may  not  cause  significant  problems   until
stressful circumstances result  in  occupational  or  social  problems.   He
further notes that  the  applicant’s  past  experience,  manifested  by  the
inability  to  cope  with  military  service  with  outside  stressors,   is
predictive of an unacceptable risk of recurrence of Personality Disorder  if
re-exposed to the rigors of military training  and  service,  and  the  fact
that the applicant may be functioning well at this time is  consistent  with
the diagnosis of Personality Disorder; however it does not predict  that  he
will respond well to the stresses of  military  operations,  deployment,  or
combat when he  is  separated  from  his  familiar  surroundings  and  usual
support system of family and friends, or is  assigned  duties  that  do  not
suit him.    In view of the foregoing, and in the  absence  of  evidence  to
the contrary, we find no compelling basis to  upgrade  his  RE  Code  to  an
eligible code for enlistment.

4.  The applicant's case is adequately documented and it has not been  shown
that a personal appearance with or without counsel will  materially  add  to
our understanding of the issue(s) involved.  Therefore, the  request  for  a
hearing is not favorably considered.

________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:

The applicant be notified that the evidence presented  did  not  demonstrate
the existence of material error  or  injustice;  that  the  application  was
denied without a personal appearance; and that the application will only  be
reconsidered upon the submission of newly discovered relevant  evidence  not
considered with this application.

________________________________________________________________

The following members of the Board considered  Docket  Number  BC-2007-00052
in Executive Session on 17 October 2007, under the  provisions  of  AFI  36-
2603:

                       Mr. Michael J. Novel, Panel Chair
                       Mr. Reginald P. Howard, Member
                       Ms. Teri G. Spoutz, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered:

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 3 Jan 07, w/atchs.
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, BCMR Medical Consultant, dated 2 Aug 07.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, AFBCMR, dated 28 Aug 07.




                                   MICHAEL J. NOVEL
                                   Panel Chair