Deferred Class 3 Medical

R

Ramsey

Guest
Hey All,

I wanted to ask you all for some advice. I'm a rusty pilot who's getting back into the game. I received my first medical in 2004 and passed my check ride for my PPL. However, due to the change in times and my career, I fell out of flying in 2006. The only thing that has changed in the past 15 years has been the addition of an SSRI (Zoloft) to help manage some mild anxiety.

I just had my new medical done today with my AME, and he advised me that at this time my medical will be deferred. He's a pilot himself and was very helpful in advising me of my options, which are 1) quit taking the meds or 2) file for an SI. The thing here is that my medication helps me with my day-to-day work. I'm a financial analyst and sometimes this role can be a bit harsh to manage, but it's nothing that I can't control. I don't have a history of suicidal thoughts or long bouts of depression. My main issues are OCD/OCPD and generalized anxiety. I would really like to maintain the medication as it's proved to be very helpful. I've been on it for more than a year and on this current dosage for more than 6 months. My primary psych doctor is board certified and I check in with him every 3 months. I also have another board-certified physiatrist that I see each month, but it's just to maintain a healthy headspace and manage stress. I know the easy step would be to stop the meds, get approval from my primary doctor and AME, but what happens if I feel I need to be back on the medication after this? Or should I try the long-drawn-out process of attempting to get an SI?

Any thoughts?
 
<Not a doctor>
The conventional wisdom around here is that you should take care of your health (including mental health) first, and flying takes lower priority. You describe OCD/anxiety as issues that you have (as opposed to being mis-diagnosed with it in the past), and you also say that the medication helps you day-to-day (not that it was prescribed carelessly). This suggests to me that you should keep taking it, and work with your AME to get the SI. If it helps, improves your life, treats something that you have -- just like blood pressure meds or reading glasses or a cast for a broken arm -- why would you stop?

There are lots of threads here from folks who got accidentally diagnosed with something, and prescribed a drug that they don't really need. It doesn't sound like this describes you. But even if it did, just "stopping the meds and getting approval" is not such an "easy step" as it seems you think it is. It would be a long drawn-out process either way. So choose the long drawn-out way that makes the most sense from the perspective of your health.
 
Wow. I hate to say it but it sounds like you may have screwed up with going for the third class if your original third class was after 7/14/2004 or you were under 40 years old at the time of your medical. If either of those were true then you would have been able to continue flying without going the SI route by going BasicMed. I don't believe you can just stop taking the med and re-apply, but could be wrong.

If nothing else, please contact your AME and educate him, this is an option that he should have given you before the physical was started...

Good Luck!
 
If you are only looking for recreation, I believe you can apply for basic med since you once held a 3rd class medical. (Others would have to confirm that). An actual medical at this point would be SSRI pathway 2. It’s do-able. Long process and expensive.
 
Never mind...already deferred. Disregard my basic med post.
 
Let us know what happens with your deferral. Not to be a killjoy, but there's a thread from someone who did a similar thing and it took him a year to get his medical straight.

The other thread is discussing the timing of switching from 3rd class to BasicMed. Right now your path is set and you must go through the deferral path, which is probably going to require at least one COG study.
 
I hate that you are having this problem. I think if I were in your position, I would stop the meds for long enough to get the AME to approve the Third class. If you feel you need the meds in the future, you could just deal with the hurdles then. The FAA is changing a lot of things, including increasing the weight limit for Light Sport as well as BasicMed, so you may have more options in the future when/if you needed the meds again.
 
It would occur to me that OKC would be more concerned with the OCD/OC-P-D diagnosis.
 
Ramsey Hall said:
It's ironic though, my OCD/OCPD just makes me more attentive to detail. I like things to have structure, have a plan, processes and procedures...etc, all things that help make great pilots! I was givin the medication to help settle little ticks I have when things are not planned, which can be a little annoying to me. I dont have depression, psychosis, crippling anxity or "changes in personality."
Click to expand...

At face value it would seem that the attention to detail would be a benefit. I believe the issue is that someone who suffers from OCD cannot pick and choose what they obsess about. Flying a perfect 360 heading isn’t so great if you’re losing 4000’ a minute.
 
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