Have any of you been a Navy Seal?

[Buffalobob]

My son is pretty skinny. He doesn't have the stocky build that I got. Guess he'd better start eating more ice cream. He's got a shoulder injury that bothers him a lot too,

Don't know much about seals but am familiar with Special Forces.

I doubt he will make it with that shoulder injury. Before he signs a lot of years away he needs to insure that his shoulder is 100%. This is just a sad fact that he needs to consider. He can totally destroy his shoulder for the rest of his life by pushing too far when it is time to let the dream go. I told my son over and over again to go medical and recycle if injured and he got one foot stress fractured two days from the end and made it on ibuprofen the last way (SF selection). Foot has healed fine.

I was skinny. 6'3" and 158 #. The lack of upper body weight makes it easy to do the pull ups! Plus being as most of it is leg endurance I did not have a lot of weight to carry. A lot of the bulky guys will stress fracture their feet early in the weeding out process.

As was mentioned, it is about mental will power.

 

[SBruce]

Wanted to say Thank You all again for the responses.

Last time I talked to the boy, he told me that his intentions are to get into the Navy and hopefully find something he likes. And then, later possibly go into the SEAL training if they will take him. Apparently, he's gotta meet a certain ASFB score to even be considered for certain advanced training? Sounds like he's planning (hopefully) to have something to fall back on if he doesn't succeed.

Bob, I've had the same concern with his shoulder. He's been doing a lot of push ups and pull ups, trying to get ready, but I doubt he's really had it in a bind (which I am sure will happen with intense training). I dislocated mine multiple times in wrestling, finally had to have surgery just to keep it in place for "normal" activities. But that surgery kept me out of the military all together.

I understand the reasoning of the forces picking the man, rather than the other way around. I would think that they have to show above average progress and resolve to even be considered?

Thanks again folks.

 

[ICANHITHIMMAN]

If he is dead set on the NAVY just let him know that once in and done with boot camp and A school and assigned to a ship they are going to have a very hard time letting him go and the minimum is 2 years at sea before they will release you.

There are new programs in the NAVY that sound like they are more his speed. They have brought back the brown water navy and you don't have to be SWCC to join. Also they have some sort of infantry now too. I saw them in Kuwait on my way home last time. They are not part of special operations command and they had better gear than us I was like *** you kidding me.

Minimum score on the test is 54 for SEAL its slightly above average intelligence. Tell him to look at US ARMY civil Affairs of Psychological operations It will get him opportunities to go to schools like airborne which if he decided in the future to go SF will cut his training time under the new programs.

In my experience I don't like the mindset of the SEAL teams they have and arrogance about them that doesn't sit well with me. The SF guys I have worked with are much more mature and willing to teach what they know, very humble outstanding men to have in your company.

The ARMY is going to offer a lot more opportunities to go in the direction he wishes.

Also don't forget about flying a HELO

 

[SBruce]

Next time I talk to him, I'll have to ask if he's dead set on the Navy. Pretty sure he is, he likes the water and wants to do something diving related, that was the last I heard anyway.?

I changed my mind alot at that age, he might too.

 

[ICANHITHIMMAN]

Next time I talk to him, I'll have to ask if he's dead set on the Navy. Pretty sure he is, he likes the water and wants to do something diving related, that was the last I heard anyway.?

I changed my mind alot at that age, he might too.

Tell him to be a diver then. It dangerous but its not combat.

 

[BountyHunter]

SF has divers and dive teams and their own dive school at Key West.

I was on two dive teams. One was a SADM team (small manpack devices )that was both HALO and Scuba.

BH

 

[SBruce]

BountyHunter,

Are you talking Army SF? If so, I didnt' realize Army had diving/divers. I am sure my boy doesn't realize that either. He would love to be in Florida. We took a couple of trips there to see by brother, and he's wanted to go back ever since.

 

[Buffalobob]

Go to You Tube and watch "two weeks in Hell"

YouTube - Two Weeks in Hell (Part 1 of 9)
And then watch

See if you think his shoulder will hold up. Watch the log drills! In part 1 look at the instructor-- he is just as skinny as I was.

There is an extreme amount of psychological testing to include darkness, claustrophobia etc. Any mental phobia that would keep you from 100% efficiency is looked for, including a imprisonment/torture phase.

The attrition rate is 60+%. Then you are in a infantry slot for the duration of your enlistment contract if you don't make it. Nothing wrong with infantry as I am as proud of that as any other dodad I have.

Two benefits is that we are really good at staying alive in extremely dangerous situations and we know very well what grade of steel our spine is made from. As a father the first benefit is important to me. As an old geezer I wish the rest of me was made of 340 steel.

Getting into dive school is dependent upon which ODA (A-team) you are assigned to and you cannot guarantee the you will be assigned to a dive ODA. My ODA was just plain Jane ordinary with no extraordinary training required.

 

[cfvickers]

If he loves the water tell him to be a search and rescue swimmer in the navy. It is still fairly dangerous, knew a guy that had to jump out of a helicopter into the ocean 6 miles from the eye of hurricane Floyd in 1999. We had gone to get the crew of a sunken tug. All were saved and he was the hero of the day. You still have to be fearless, but you don't get shot at that often. The selection process is intense but nothing like SEALS. I wasn't able to make the 400 meter swim time in boot camp, not really built for it, and was looking at a bigger bonus to be an electronics tech instead, kind of lost the motivation to do it. But if he swims a lot I am sure he could make it. The physical fitness side is much like seals, you just have to be determined not to quit.

 

[BountyHunter]

BountyHunter,

Are you talking Army SF? If so, I didnt' realize Army had diving/divers. I am sure my boy doesn't realize that either. He would love to be in Florida. We took a couple of trips there to see by brother, and he's wanted to go back ever since.

Yes, Army SF

Air Force has the pararescue also, that are dive and halo qualified. Plus he can do another selection for JSOC later and work with the Seals and Delta.

BH

 

[SBruce]

Well, I talked with him some more, and he's pretty well set on Navy.

I forwarded the videos to him, and apparently he's watched them all. Hasn't deterred him yet.?

I don't know for sure how well the shoulder will hold up, but I told him to start doing some dumbbell presses and then try to move into headstand push ups. If he can do those headstand push ups, then perhaps he'll be ok on that part.