--- title: "The true history behind the Air Force basic training ‘Stress Cards’ myth" description: "The truth of the old \"Stress Cards\" myth is that it wasn't the Air Force handing them out. It was the Navy. " date: "2021-09-03" modified: "2025-08-13" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/truth-behind-basic-training-stress-cards/" categories: - "Basic Training" - "Join the Military" - "Military Culture" tags: - "Air Force" - "Basic Training" - "Military Culture" - "Navy" --- # The true history behind the Air Force basic training ‘Stress Cards’ myth ![stress cards]() *(U.S. Air Force)* Basic trainees in the Air Force are being issued "Stress Cards." If basic training gets too hard or they need a time out, they can just pull these out, and the instructor has to stop yelling at them. No joke. I heard it from my cousin. Or my friend John. My buddy swears he saw them being handed out to the new trainees. Kids today just don't have the chutzpah my generation does. One time when I was a platoon leader in Somalia, this kid handed me one and asked for a time out, I kid you not. None of that is true, of course. The "stress cards" myth is usually attributed to the Air Force, due to the perceived ease of Air Force basic training, and the [Chair Force]() reputation (which can be, admittedly, deserved). Sometimes, the legend says Bill Clinton introduced them to the Army (because the 1990s were that awesome, I guess). According to the lore, an airman really could just hit the pause button on basic training, getting yelled at, military discipline, whatever was troubling them. Allegedly, the stress cards were yellow because if you needed to use one, you were probably yellow, too. Even some airmen are guilty of perpetuating it, because whenever someone hears about the "stress cards" myth, they are usually doomed to repeat it. But honestly, does this sound like something any military branch would do? No, it doesn't, because no one would do this... at least not in the way the myth explains it. The truth of the myth is that it wasn't the Air Force handing them out. It was the Navy. In the 1990s, actual cards were issued to new recruits joining the Navy. They didn't offer a "time out," however. They were intended to inform recruits of their options if they experienced depression while in basic training, which is not unheard of and can lead to a lot of disastrous outcomes. You know the ones I mean. The so-called "Stress Cards" contained basic information, such as chaplain services and what to tell your Recruit Division Commander, the Navy's version of a drill sergeant or drill instructor. Instead of deserting or washing out, the depressed and isolated recruit had options that the U.S. military offers all of its troops. And they were blue, because if you needed these services, you were probably blue too. ![stress cards]() *Not so much a ticket to help, but more like a map towards help.* The Blues Card was not a Get Out of Jail Free card, though some RDCs reported troops holding it up while being disciplined, trying desperately (and probably in vain) to use it in that way. If a recruit waved this in their RDC's face, he probably made them eat it. Or sent them to the chaplain... after making them eat it. The Army did issue "Stress Control Cards" which were the equivalent of a wallet-based mood ring. The recruit or soldier could put their finger on a special square, which would turn [colors]() to indicate a range of stress levels, from "relaxed" to "most stressed." ![stress cards]() *I feel better already.* For those of you who used to be in the Army or Navy, imagine your Drill Instructor's or RDC's response to your waving this card around while they're trying to discipline you. How would that have gone? ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()