Ummm careful. Here is why...
@WannFly has this kinda right. Read the stuff in the medical area here and if you have ANY question about a medical condition DO NOT APPLY before you have a PLAN on what will need to be provided to the FAA.
There's a really good post about this here, written by someone who paraphrased Doctor Bruce Chien - and Doc Bruce is THE best at this I've met in 20 years of being around aviation. My AME is good. Doc is outstanding.
Doc Bruce was the first person I've read who explained that one never applies to the FAA for anything medical UNTIL one KNOWS what the answer will be. Or at least knows the risks of a "no" answer.
For someone healthy with none of the listed conditions, one can walk into any AMEs office and walk out with a medical. Walmart.
For someone with ANY of the listed conditions STOP... and consult with an AME without applying through Medxpress, or retain Doc Bruce himself before even filling out the application.
The process most AMEs use is BACKWARD. They'll happily let you apply and start the clock ticking on giving the FAA information you have not gathered yet. Why do it? Gather FIRST and go in fully prepared to provide the required information UP FRONT.
FAA guidance is "Apply and we'll be in touch". Bruce points out that this is NOT the way to a smooth SI. He says, "Don't apply until you have everything documented and know what they'll want." And he's right.
"Get the medical DONE early" is correct for part of the answer. But if you have ANY of the medical conditions that trigger scrutiny by FAA that answer should also include, "Consult with a good AME before applying to FAA at all."
Do NOT start the MedXpress process if you think you won't meet the third class standard.
There are still OPTIONS available to you before you start the application. Once it's started, you've handed the ball to Aeromedical and if you don't hand them the documentation they will want to prove you're healthy enough to fly, you've triggered a back and forth that will be short on time and high on stress.
I used to say this because friends who are CFIs have had people who want to fly get caught in this mess. NOW as of today I say it because I was contacted by not one, but TWO potential student pilots who both needed guidance to avoid a lengthy Special Issuance process. One can avoid it. The other can't.
They may not be MY students down the road but they know I just passed my CFI and they came to me asking how to get started. They're referred to good hands as of a few hours ago and have the information they need to tackle their medicals.
I obviously can't share any more details, but CFIs are caught in a difficult spot here. We're the first people with any knowledge of the FAA medical process that any potential pilot will talk to. We owe it to them to point them to medical experts who will do the work up front, not as the letters trickle out of an overloaded FAA Medical staff in Oklahoma City.
But... we don't want to know your personal medical conditions. Really. We don't. We shouldn't really.
I swear I should write up a white paper to hand potential students on this topic with more time and thought about how to tread lightly -- but also that gives them some links and resources to look over and decide if they need to talk to an AME before the FAA application is started. The process is SO much better done up front than reactively to letters from OKC.
So yes. Get going on the medical if you're healthy and meet the standards. If not... STOP and assess with a medical expert who knows the FAA process.
