Advice and Opinions Needed about Army Reserves!

I can only post here in the Introductions as I'm a new member. I've been a follower of this site for years, but just decided to join so I could give my 2 cents here and there.
Anyway, I've been debating for MONTHS about joining the Army Reserves. I'm a woman, single mother. I have a really successful business that I run, but I'm at a huge cross roads. I need something I can rely on. I want to get into nursing. Start off with an LPN, then get my RN. THEN hopefully move on to be a neonatal nurse.
I've checked into nursing schools. Applied at a few. It's going to take me 4+ years to complete. And I just don't have that much time. I'll be well into my 30's by then. Not that age is an issue, I just need to do something NOW. This may be me being impatient. I'll probably end up going to nursing school anyway. But have any of you joined the Reserves? Anyone actively in the Reserves or know people who are? What is it like? Can you get real jobs later on? Or do you have to stick with the Reserves to work in the field you are interested in?

my advice would be to avoid serving the fascist state by any means necessary, but my advice isnt always the most practical...and if we keep sending our soldiers to more and more countries, eventually they wont have anyone left to send but the reserves...

I'm currently in the military and I know some info about this. You will only have to serve what you are obligated by your contract and most is a 4 year plan that is active and another 4 years which is inactive. But if you get to choose the feild that you want they will send you to their school for your qualifications. Those will stay with you no matter what. You will have to finish your reserve time but you also risk the chance of getting activated and sent somewhere during your time. And since you are a single parent you will have to provide a parenting plan about where your child will taken care of when your gone. There have been people that have gotten in trouble and pushed out because they couldn't provide that. But I think it would be a good choice for you and it will help you get started on your nursing job that you want. Plus most companies work with reservist so you not be penelized for being absent from work when you participate in your duties. I hope this helps you out.

I worked with a guy that was in the national guard. Two tours in Iraq and being blown up by a IDE in the humvee he was in the guy was definatly not all there. What was his reward? Sent to Afganistan. When he left he said his VA therapist was trying to get him discharged for mental instabillity.

If you have someone you can trust to take care of your kid, maybe permanently, then go ahead...

reply to post by Denco



Please don't join the Army. Or anything related to Army including the guard/reserve. The Army is full of honorable people but it is a very hard life, what it promises is not always given - and they have absolutely bar none the worst record of any branch when it comes to fixing or taking care of what is broken. (Injured or ill service members)

I know this because I served beside them overseas (I was Air Force and ended up deep in the sheet in a combat zone and my life is forever changed and not in a good way as a result.) and I also served on an injured servicemembers commission when I got home. The Army does NOT take care of its sick and injured members. It just does not. They also have it the worst as far as quality of life.

I wouldn't recommed the service and I am retired from such. I really, REALLY - really would NOT NOT NOT recommend it to a single mother. No way - NO HOW. I had my son at 38, after most of my career was served.

If you want an idea what it is like to be a woman in the armed forces I recommend you read:
I Love my Rifle more then you and Invisable soliders. Yes the medical personnel have it slightly different then the standard troop. But still . . . . Girl - if I was with you . . . . we would be having a really long, long talk.

I cannot recommend the service to any young single mother - I don't care how good the benefits might look to you, I am sorry sister but I just can't in good faith recommend you join. I do not know a single, and let me restate that single female in uniform that has not been sexually assaulted. I mean it. I served for 21 years.
I just cannot, cannot recommend you join. You will be seperated from your child, put in situations where your life could be lost in a blink of an eye, is it worth it to put your life and health on the line? You have a child to raise. Don't fall for recruitment monies thinking it will answer your problems, I know of cases where well intentioned young people joined got blown up a couple of times by IEDs and then got diagnosed with personality disorders and had to PAY BACK their bonuses. Read that again, blown up during war, and responsible for paying the Army back. Don't do it sister.

Joining the military as a way to make ends meet is going to leave you sorely disappointed. You'll be forced to give up too much time to continue running a business as you are now, and the extra income from the Army won't come close to making that up. Plus, you're a single MOM, that just compounds the difficulties you'll have, arranging for long-term day care, weekends away, boot camp, and god forbid, a tour of duty in Iraq/Afghanistan/Pakistan.

As you say you have a successful business, I think you'd be much better at finding a way to expand that to give you the income you want.

P.S.: recruiters will lie through their teeth to get their quota, just be forewarned.

I almost went down the military path, but after reviewing the events of 9/11 it really makes you question what is worth fighting for.

Thank you for the advice everyone. I was only considering it because the recruiter made it sound like a dream come true. Few weeks out of the year, a weekend out of the month. Sounds do-able! But after researching, I WOULD HAVE TO GO TO BASIC TRAINING! They never mentioned that. There is no way I could be separated from my child for that long. I might die from that alone! lol
So that idea died! Ah well. Back to square one!