Would having mental health history cause any problems in being a pilot?

A

Aviation_fan

Filing Flight Plan
Joined
Sep 27, 2019
Messages
6
Display Name
Display name:
Aviation_fan
Will it not be possible to get a private pilot license (and commercial pilot license down the road) with mental health history?

I’ve always been intrigued with aviation, but thought that my stutter would stop me from achieving that dream. But recently I met a pilot that also stuttered and meeting him reignited that dream of mine.

Throughout life my stutter affected me in a negative way and people would treat me horribly. Due to that, I always felt sort of depressed/sad. I felt alone and felt like my dreams were unreachable because of my speech impediment. But an year ago, I started meeting other people who also stutter, started speech therapy, and also psychotherapy because I had a lot of baggage that I needed to “unpack” and I didn’t have anyone else to talk to. I also struggled with being gay and since I was brought up in a homophobic household (and all of my friends are homophobic as well), I have been forced to be in the closet and it proved to be a very depressing experience. Talking to this psychotherapist was my only option because he was the only “unconditional fatherely love” giving man that I could ever have in my life. After about 1-2 days of therapy with him, he suggested/talked me in to seeing a psychiatrist so he could prescribe me antidepressants and anxiety pills. I took the pills for about a week or less but stopped it because I was feeling great after just talk therapy. All I wanted was just talk therapy, but it felt like they wanted to try out the medication(s) on me to “treat” me faster. I continued seeing the psychotherapist for a few months and I felt great about everything in my life. Then I started dating this older man and come to find out that he was playing with my feelings and “ghosted” me. He was my first love and it seemed like everything was falling apart. Afterwards to deal with that pain I took extra amounts of the anxiety pills. I was then taken to the ER and psychiatric hospital and was released in few hours because they determined I wasn’t trying to kill myself (which I wasn’t), but on my medical records it says it was a suicide gesture event.
Would this stop me from being a pilot?
 
Aviation_fan said:
Will it not be possible to get a private pilot license (and commercial pilot license down the road) with mental health history?

I’ve always been intrigued with aviation, but thought that my stutter would stop me from achieving that dream. But recently I met a pilot that also stuttered and meeting him reignited that dream of mine.

Throughout life my stutter affected me in a negative way and people would treat me horribly. Due to that, I always felt sort of depressed/sad. I felt alone and felt like my dreams were unreachable because of my speech impediment. But an year ago, I started meeting other people who also stutter, started speech therapy, and also psychotherapy because I had a lot of baggage that I needed to “unpack” and I didn’t have anyone else to talk to. I also struggled with being gay and since I was brought up in a homophobic household (and all of my friends are homophobic as well), I have been forced to be in the closet and it proved to be a very depressing experience. Talking to this psychotherapist was my only option because he was the only “unconditional fatherely love” giving man that I could ever have in my life. After about 1-2 days of therapy with him, he suggested/talked me in to seeing a psychiatrist so he could prescribe me antidepressants and anxiety pills. I took the pills for about a week or less but stopped it because I was feeling great after just talk therapy. All I wanted was just talk therapy, but it felt like they wanted to try out the medication(s) on me to “treat” me faster. I continued seeing the psychotherapist for a few months and I felt great about everything in my life. Then I started dating this older man and come to find out that he was playing with my feelings and “ghosted” me. He was my first love and it seemed like everything was falling apart. Afterwards to deal with that pain I took extra amounts of the anxiety pills. I was then taken to the ER and psychiatric hospital and was released in few hours because they determined I wasn’t trying to kill myself (which I wasn’t), but on my medical records it says it was a suicide gesture event.
Would this stop me from being a pilot?
Click to expand...
Would you be comfortable flying in a plane with 200 other people if the pilot had the issues you just described?
 
I worked with a controller in the Marines who was a stutterer. His PARs sucked.
 
Velocity173 said:
I worked with a controller in the Marines who was a stutterer. His PARs sucked.
Click to expand...


The stuttering pales in comparison to the mental/emotional issues and possible suicidal tendencies.

OP, would you settle for becoming a drone pilot?
 
Aviation_fan said:
Will it not be possible to get a private pilot license (and commercial pilot license down the road) with mental health history?

I’ve always been intrigued with aviation, but thought that my stutter would stop me from achieving that dream. But recently I met a pilot that also stuttered and meeting him reignited that dream of mine.

Throughout life my stutter affected me in a negative way and people would treat me horribly. Due to that, I always felt sort of depressed/sad. I felt alone and felt like my dreams were unreachable because of my speech impediment. But an year ago, I started meeting other people who also stutter, started speech therapy, and also psychotherapy because I had a lot of baggage that I needed to “unpack” and I didn’t have anyone else to talk to. I also struggled with being gay and since I was brought up in a homophobic household (and all of my friends are homophobic as well), I have been forced to be in the closet and it proved to be a very depressing experience. Talking to this psychotherapist was my only option because he was the only “unconditional fatherely love” giving man that I could ever have in my life. After about 1-2 days of therapy with him, he suggested/talked me in to seeing a psychiatrist so he could prescribe me antidepressants and anxiety pills. I took the pills for about a week or less but stopped it because I was feeling great after just talk therapy. All I wanted was just talk therapy, but it felt like they wanted to try out the medication(s) on me to “treat” me faster. I continued seeing the psychotherapist for a few months and I felt great about everything in my life. Then I started dating this older man and come to find out that he was playing with my feelings and “ghosted” me. He was my first love and it seemed like everything was falling apart. Afterwards to deal with that pain I took extra amounts of the anxiety pills. I was then taken to the ER and psychiatric hospital and was released in few hours because they determined I wasn’t trying to kill myself (which I wasn’t), but on my medical records it says it was a suicide gesture event.
Would this stop me from being a pilot?
Click to expand...
A stutter alone will not keep you out. There are pilots with stutters working at my airline.
 
Aviation_fan said:
to deal with that pain I took extra amounts of the anxiety pills. I was then taken to the ER and psychiatric hospital and was released in few hours because they determined I wasn’t trying to kill myself (which I wasn’t), but on my medical records it says it was a suicide gesture event.
Would this stop me from being a pilot?
Click to expand...

This part of the history will be a very serious impediment to obtaining a medical. If you want to check into it, contact an expert senior HIMS AME who deals with this type of case and do NOT apply unless they tell you it will work as a special issuance.

If it can work, it will be about $5-7k for the various testing and a year of supervised treatment and then waiting.

Several such AME’s frequent this forum - Drs. Chien and Fowler.

In the meantime, I would suggest looking into learning to fly gliders. You can get a private doing that without a medical (provided you are not having current medical issues and can self certify) and do a power add-on later if a medical is obtainable. Sport pilot and light sport airplanes are also possible at this point (if you can self certify).
 
Yes OP, your medical history is problematic. You have a history of depression and an attempted suicide, which are grounding conditions.

If you are determined, it will take somewhere between $5,000 to $10,000 for the testing to convince the FAA that you are medically ok and you could spend the money and get the wrong answer.

You have a health problem that is incompatible with flying. My advice is to put flying to the side, go get treatment and live a happy life on the ground.
 
You will have challenges getting a medical certificate, but you do not need one to fly light sport aircraft, gliders, or balloons
 
bflynn said:
Yes OP, your medical history is problematic. You have a history of depression and an attempted suicide, which are grounding conditions.

If you are determined, it will take somewhere between $5,000 to $10,000 for the testing to convince the FAA that you are medically ok and you could spend the money and get the wrong answer.

You have a health problem that is incompatible with flying. My advice is to put flying to the side, go get treatment and live a happy life on the ground.
Click to expand...
But it wasn’t a suicide attempt... I had no plan to take my life. EMS put it down as a suicide attempt but the ER and psychiatric hospital classified it as just a stressful, etc event. I incredibly regret that incident. After talk therapy, coming out to the therapist, accepting myself and my stutter, I’ve been feeling great. I was never diagnosed with clinical depression. It was all situational. I grew up in a bad, lower class neighborhood where all of my peers were out to get each other. My stutter was obvious and I was an easy target. Also, I was raised in a homophobic setting. It feels terrible to be in the closet and have people around you constantly say homophobic things. I always feared being disowned by my family and friends. If I didn’t have any of those problems in life, life wouldn’t have been like this. And again, the psychologist and psychiatric never diagnosed me with depression. They said it themselves that I don’t have clinical depression. Yet they wanted me to test out the meds to “prove” their diagnoses. I wish I would’ve refused to see the psychiatrist.
I’m finishing up university now and things are looking up. I don’t feel depressed at all now. It was all situational.
 
Aviation_fan said:
I’m finishing up university now and things are looking up. I don’t feel depressed at all now. It was all situational.
Click to expand...

That’s good, but to convince the FAA will require the year or more and $5-10k. I would still suggest that before spending that time and money, take up flying gliders or light sport aircraft. You will learn a lot about flying and how much you do or don’t like it during the time when your medical is in the works.
 
I am not a doctor, just have a little experience as a user of the system. What the hospital used for your medical diagnosis codes will matter more than your protestations to the contrary. I made a doctor's office change a code once because that matters on your aviation medical. See posts 15 & 16 above - they speak truth. Seeking the guidance of an AME is really the only way, everything else here is just SGOTI (self included).
 
Aviation_fan said:
But it wasn’t a suicide attempt... I had no plan to take my life. EMS put it down as a suicide attempt but the ER and psychiatric hospital classified it as just a stressful, etc event. I incredibly regret that incident. After talk therapy, coming out to the therapist, accepting myself and my stutter, I’ve been feeling great. I was never diagnosed with clinical depression. It was all situational. I grew up in a bad, lower class neighborhood where all of my peers were out to get each other. My stutter was obvious and I was an easy target. Also, I was raised in a homophobic setting. It feels terrible to be in the closet and have people around you constantly say homophobic things. I always feared being disowned by my family and friends. If I didn’t have any of those problems in life, life wouldn’t have been like this. And again, the psychologist and psychiatric never diagnosed me with depression. They said it themselves that I don’t have clinical depression. Yet they wanted me to test out the meds to “prove” their diagnoses. I wish I would’ve refused to see the psychiatrist.
I’m finishing up university now and things are looking up. I don’t feel depressed at all now. It was all situational.
Click to expand...


Situational?

Do you understand that the situation of piloting an aircraft can be quite stressful? How will you handle the stress of being responsible for your passengers’ lives in an emergency?

And what happens when you have another life situation? Will you take another handful of pills the next time a lover jilts you? You have demonstrated very poor judgement and an inability to handle difficulties.

Stay on the ground. Fly drones.
 
Half Fast said:
Situational?

Do you understand that the situation of piloting an aircraft can be quite stressful? How will you handle the stress of being responsible for your passengers’ lives in an emergency?

And what happens when you have another life situation? Will you take another handful of pills the next time a lover jilts you? You have demonstrated very poor judgement and an inability to handle difficulties.

Stay on the ground. Fly drones.
Click to expand...
It seems like you've got a bone to pick with the OP for some reason, but if all you have to offer is "don't fly," why not just stay out of threads like this?

"Situational Depression" is a condition that in the OP's case likely would not preclude issuance off a medical certificate. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/314698.php

It seems that what will be an issue is what is in his records regarding the accidental overdose. If indeed it was a suicidal gesture, it will require evaluation by the FAA to issue a medical certificate.

The only answer anyone here can correctly give the OP is to take his records to an experienced "hard case" AME for a consultation. If the AME thinks a medical certificate is a non-starter, the OP can still fly gliders or light sport if he qualifies.

OP the reason you go for a consult instead of an exam is that if you fail an exam, you lose the option to fly light sport.
 
Just wishing you well and hoping that your life goes better from here on out. Good on you for not actually killing yourself. Seriously;;
 
It's going to take a HIMS AME (a senior AME doesn't give them any special authority or indication of expertise in this situation). Had it just been the earlier therapy, it would be an easier issuance, but once you get to the multiple incidents including drug abuse (even neglecting the suicidal ideations), you're going into a tough slog.

I can tell you that this is going to start with at a minimum of $3000 or so of psychological testing. Plus you're going to have to have a board certified (or better yet HIMS) psychiatrist (that's an MD) meet with you enough to write a report on you. Even that may not be sufficient to issue. Talking to the HIMS AME (for a consultation, not an examination), will give you likely what you're going to be up against. I had a flight instructor that I was quite close with start this process but pretty much gave it up as hopeless (and he had a prior medical obviously). He just had some unfortunate life turns (notably a bad marriage).
 
Salty said:
Would you be comfortable flying in a plane with 200 other people if the pilot had the issues you just described?
Click to expand...
That's why it's so important for a pilot to never admit to having problems and never seek medical attention. For anything. That worked great for my father - right up until the day he was found unconscious on the floor of an FBO mens room.

Now, for the original poster: It's too late to take the denial route, so the question becomes what kind of flying do you want to do? If you want to fly professionally, or fly larger, faster, aircraft you will have to spend a bucket full of time and money proving, to the FAAs satisfaction, what you already know... If you just want to fly as a hobby, then do not apply for a medical (that would be considered shooting oneself in the foot) and instead, pursue a non-FAA medical route. https://www.pilotsofamerica.com/com...medical-103-glider-lsa-got-kinda-long.101402/
 
Last edited:
flyingron said:
It's going to take a HIMS AME (a senior AME doesn't give them any special authority or indication of expertise in this situation). Had it just been the earlier therapy, it would be an easier issuance, but once you get to the multiple incidents including drug abuse (even neglecting the suicidal ideations), you're going into a tough slog.
Click to expand...
I'm always perplexed by folks in this forum in particular reading into what's said. The OP denied both drug abuse and suicidal ideation.
 
Lindberg said:
I'm always perplexed by folks in this forum in particular reading into what's said. The OP denied both drug abuse and suicidal ideation.
Click to expand...
The question is, and I quote directly from the form: "HAVE YOU EVER IN YOUR LIFE BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH, HAD, OR DO YOU PRESENTLY HAVE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING?"

He says plainly that he was diagnosed. It doesn't matter if he denies it or not. He has to answer the question yes.
 
Salty said:
The question is, and I quote directly from the form: "HAVE YOU EVER IN YOUR LIFE BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH, HAD, OR DO YOU PRESENTLY HAVE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING?"

He says plainly that he was diagnosed. It doesn't matter if he denies it or not. He has to answer the question yes.
Click to expand...
And therefore, which part of what I wrote is incorrect? And where did the OP admit to multiple incidents including drug abuse and suicidal ideation?

To quote myself:

"It seems that what will be an issue is what is in his records regarding the accidental overdose. If indeed it was a suicidal gesture, it will require evaluation by the FAA to issue a medical certificate."
 
Lindberg said:
I'm always perplexed by folks in this forum in particular reading into what's said. The OP denied both drug abuse and suicidal ideation.
Click to expand...
And I'm perplexed by people who can't read what they are carping about. I never said he had suicidal ideation. I said his second event was a problem even neglecting suicidal ideation (which was alleged, but ruled out).

But as to drug abuse, he said "Afterwards to deal with that pain I took extra amounts of the anxiety pills" and subsequently ended up in the ER. This is drug abuse. And even if it weren't a second medicated psychiatric condition from the first is pretty problematic.
 
You likely can get medical certification, but it will cost a lot of money to unravel all of the incorrect information and codes in your medical records, and if any of them are correct and disqualifying, money alone won't do it. You would need a course of treatment followed by thorough documentation that the problem identified in the records no longer exist.
 
Lindberg said:
And therefore, which part of what I wrote is incorrect? And where did the OP admit to multiple incidents including drug abuse and suicidal ideation?

To quote myself:

"It seems that what will be an issue is what is in his records regarding the accidental overdose. If indeed it was a suicidal gesture, it will require evaluation by the FAA to issue a medical certificate."
Click to expand...

You are quoting yourself??? OK, well that is good enough for me. I’m sold.
 
flyingron said:
And I'm perplexed by people who can't read what they are carping about. I never said he had suicidal ideation. I said his second event was a problem even neglecting suicidal ideation (which was alleged, but ruled out).
Click to expand...

Maybe it's problem in assuming people take more care than they do in what they write, instead of trying to figure out what they meant to write. You wrote, "the suicidal ideation" and I did not understand you meant "the alleged, but ruled out suicidal ideation." Regardless, OP says it was recorded as a suicidal gesture, which doesn't in itself mean suicidal ideation or intent. He also reports that he was released "because they determined I wasn’t trying to kill myself." If that's what the records say, that it was an a accidental overdose.....

* * *

No one here knows what the OP has or hasn't been diagnosed with, so all the pronouncements of what he's going to be and to do an what it will cost are just speculation.
 
You're splitting irrelevant hairs. If you have multiple psychiatric episodes it's going to be a difficult certification even WITHOUT suicide or drug abuse. Again, your carping contributes nothing but obfuscation. I never meant to say he was suicidal. I said the incident, even without it being a (whatever you want to call it) suicide is going to be problematic. The FAA makes it difficult with one resolved psychiatric issue, with a second, whether you call it anxiety or whatever, you're going to raise red flags.

I gave him what he needs to do. This is a HIMS issue at this point no matter how favorably you look at it.
 
flyingron said:
You're splitting irrelevant hairs. If you have multiple psychiatric episodes it's going to be a difficult certification even WITHOUT suicide or drug abuse. Again, your carping contributes nothing but obfuscation. I never meant to say he was suicidal. I said the incident, even without it being a (whatever you want to call it) suicide is going to be problematic. The FAA makes it difficult with one resolved psychiatric issue, with a second, whether you call it anxiety or whatever, you're going to raise red flags.

I gave him what he needs to do. This is a HIMS issue at this point no matter how favorably you look at it.
Click to expand...
I'm not the expert, but it seems that depending on the details, it could also be an AME issuance or SSRI path I. Depending on the details that we don't have.
 
That's right. You're not. The details don't much matter other than he has had two distinct psychiatric events. He's not going to just get an issuance under SSRI either path I or II without more testing, and enough examination by either a board-certified or HIMS psychiatrist to determine what he had for real. And then it's still going to be an extended review by the FAA. As I stated, even with the MOST favorable interpretation of what could have possibly happen here, he's going to need to have a frank discussion with a HIMS AME and if he proceeds it will be costly.
 
flyingron said:
This is drug abuse. And even if it weren't a second medicated psychiatric condition from the first is pretty problematic.
Click to expand...

Agree this will be a very difficult special issuance , if possible. Based on the history presented though I am not certain it would meet DSM criteria for a substance abuse disorder.
 
Lindberg said:
It seems like you've got a bone to pick with the OP for some reason, but if all you have to offer is "don't fly," why not just stay out of threads like this?

"Situational Depression" is a condition that in the OP's case likely would not preclude issuance off a medical certificate. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/314698.php

It seems that what will be an issue is what is in his records regarding the accidental overdose. If indeed it was a suicidal gesture, it will require evaluation by the FAA to issue a medical certificate.

The only answer anyone here can correctly give the OP is to take his records to an experienced "hard case" AME for a consultation. If the AME thinks a medical certificate is a non-starter, the OP can still fly gliders or light sport if he qualifies.

OP the reason you go for a consult instead of an exam is that if you fail an exam, you lose the option to fly light sport.
Click to expand...


No bone to pick.

From what the OP wrote, he already had a condition for which antidepressants were prescribed. On his own, he discontinued taking his prescribed meds. Then he had an emotional blow and swallowed a handful of pills.

Would he have done that if he had continued treatment including taking his meds as prescribed?

He has shown poor judgement and that he can't be trusted to continue treatment, and he seems to be rationalizing about it.

Look, right now this poor guy needs competent medical care a lot more than he needs flying lessons. Getting healthy is step one. This isn't the time to worry about jumping through the FÀA hoops.

OP, forget about flying for now and focus on getting some good psych help.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top