Should I even try for medical?

[Trying]

I want to start this off by saying I’m in the best shape of my life, best head space I’ve ever been in, and in a middle of a stable career. I’m 35 years old and it took a while to get my **** together. At this point I own my house and do well financially.

Becoming a pilot wasn’t something I ever thought was in the realm of possibility. It was just a dream but never seriously looked into it. Recently I looked into it and realized okay huge financial commitment but not impossible.

Drank/partied through my mid 20s. Saw a therapist around 27 (2016) who prescribed me generic lexapro. Went through some mental health issues. Discussed various things with the psych - but don’t remember exactly what. By 28 stopped the pills cold turkey. In 2019 got a DUI (regrettable and stupid and completely avoidable - yawned while moving car up the road and clipped a parked car). Then during COVID worked a lot and saw one of those tele med doctors for a few months who said he thinks I have a mood disorder and prescribed me some random **** (can’t remember what exactly but one of it was lamotrigine and escitaliophram) that was ineffective.

By the end of 2020 I began boxing daily. Which transformed into running and biking. Exercise cured any mental health issues. I run and work out daily now. I don’t really drink except for special occasion and don’t use drugs. I have a pretty decent career in finance that pays well but I don’t necessarily love. Oh yeah, I also have a thyroid condition, hashimotos disease so take levythroxine daily.

I would like to take an attempt at becoming a pilot but can’t imagine having to explain this history and also the prescriptions. Is it worth trying? I’m willing to be honest about everything but not sure if it’s just a money suck.

Any advice is appreciated!

 

[Half Fast]

I would like to take an attempt at becoming a pilot but can’t imagine having to explain this history and also the prescriptions. Is it worth trying?

Start with Sport Pilot (no medical required). See how you like it before starting down a VERY expen$ive path to a medical. You might decide Sport is enough.

 

[TCABM]

Without knowing exactly what’s in the record, Sport Pilot is the way to go because the FAA sees 2x mental health treatment episodes which could be considered recurrent disease, AND they see a DUI which, depending on BAC, could be abuse.

Each of those are separate exception processes, with expensive testing and long review times with no guarantees of success.

However, Sport Pilot allows you to fly some common airplanes solely on the basis of your driver’s license being valid. If you apply for an FAA medical and it is not approved, you then cannot exercise the Sport Pilot option.

 

[bbchien]

Two episodes in a lifetime and lamotrigine to boot (which is commonly for polar disorder) is going to call out an evaluation.....

 

[dbahn]

Is it worth trying?

Any advice is appreciated!

"Worth" is a loaded term linked to time and money. You don't know how much of each of those will be required until you start the process, but I suspect it's "doable".