Stay strong my friend. The light is at the end of the tunnel. Here is a piece of advice for you if you do not mind. Start applying for jobs if you have not started. It is the one thing I did not expect to be a problem when I retired. I was an Officer, I had two degrees, and I had been in the Army for 15 years. I can only imagine how hard things are for my soldiers getting out who do not have degrees or a title that is associated with authority.
Civilians shaking our hands and thanking us is a good thing. It does not translate into obtaining employment. People have no idea what you have done or what you are trained to do unless your employer was a Veteran. Being in the Army has proven to be more of an impediment than a benefit. Either people look at you like you might be crazy or they view you as tainted because of being in Combat. Of course this is not accurate. Civilians opinion of us is based entirely off the fiction that is put out in film and on TV.
USAJOBS and Veterans preference in hiring is a myth. Please share if you obtain work from that site. I have not had any luck and neither has any of my buddies.
I'm not trying to discourage you in anyway. I just wish someone had told me this when I was getting out. It would have saved me a bunch of disappointment and rabbit punches to morale. Good luck to you, congratulations on getting out, and be proactive now as far as finding work.
Also with CRSC, things are all over the place as far as stringency in proving a combat relation to injuries on this forum. I do not think guys are misleading on this thread but I do think standards are continually changing. I think criteria for approval today is much less stringent than it was three years ago.
http://www.militarytimes.com/story/...-prompt-resubmission-of-ptsd-claims/78537074/
Hopefully things go our way and CRSC works out. I have a family and work like I said has been hard to come by. CRSC would really help us out.