Exactly one year ago today marked one of the happiest moments for ARMY around the world—RM and V were officially discharged from the military after serving nearly two years of mandatory military service. At the time, the duo’s return represented a major milestone in BTS’s journey toward becoming a complete group again, with only Jimin and Jungkook remaining to finish their service just one day later.
Even though a full year has pαѕѕed, fans still cannot forget that iconic moment or how overwhelmingly happy they felt that day. As a result, many ARMYs took to social media to repost old videos and photos from RM and V’s discharge ceremony in the spirit of “happy independence day to those who celebrate.” What surprised fans even more was that RM himself joined in the celebration through a new Instagram post.
RM uploaded an Instagram Story with the caption “1st anniversary of discharge” accompanied by the “ㅠㅠ” emoticon, which represents a crying face and conveys strong emotion in кσяєαn online culture. The image featured a military day-counting app. The app displayed the title “Representative Civilian,” a label referring to someone who has completed their mandatory military service and returned to ordinary civilian life. It also showed his discharge date—June 10, 2025—along with D+365, signifying that exactly one year had pαѕѕed since he left the military. The progress bar had reached 100.0000000%.
To many people, this may seem like nothing more than a simple anniversary post. However, for ARMY, the fact that RM himself was “celebrating his discharge anniversary” carries a much deeper meaning. It suggests just how happy and relieved he must have felt to finally be “freed” from military life and return to the life where he truly belongs.
In fact, RM has spoken on multiple occasions about how difficult military life was for him. After his discharge, the artist candidly admitted, "I αѕѕumed I’d handle it well, but it turned out military life was pretty tough for me. Even basic training was hard, and the living conditions weren’t great—like, imagine 20 people living in one container with cramped sleeping spaces. Sleep was the hardest part. I’d feel sleepy but just couldn’t fall into a deep sleep."
He also revealed that the worst period came around April or May 2024, when his insomnia became so severe that he was unable to sleep for 78 consecutive hours. "I felt like a zombie. My mental state was unstable, so I went to see a psychiatrist and had to start taking sleeping pills. I would lie in bed for 3 to 4 hours, just staring at the ceiling, unable to sleep. I was тєяяιfιє∂ of nighttime. Every time I had a leave and came home, I’d just pαѕѕ out from exhaustion. The psychiatrist said it was because of the military environment and that things would gradually get better", RM recalled.
According to him, his psychological treatment and use of sleeping medication lasted for more than one year and two months, and he even had to switch medications because of side effects. He also said: "I still can’t stop taking them completely, but I’m doing better now. My fellow sol∂ιєrs are all aware of my situation—they’ve been incredibly supportive and understanding. Since April, I’ve been feeling much more stable mentally, probably because I know I’ll be discharged soon."
The conditions at the base where RM served were also realistically documented by кσяєαn media in a news report as being quite harsh. The beds consisted of solid wooden platforms without mattresses, even during the winter. They were also so short that many sol∂ιєrs had to curl up or let their feet hang off the edge while sleeping. On top of that, RM was stationed near the border, where tensions remain high due to the ongoing conflict between South and North кσяєα. The weather conditions were equally severe, with winter temperatures dropping to -20°C, accompanied by shortages of hot water.
What is particularly notable is that RM showed remarkable signs of recovery just one month after his discharge. During a livestream around November 2024, he revealed that since mid-July, while living in Los Angeles with the other BTS members at the group’s songwriting camp, he had been able to sleep well without taking medication. This reflects how returning to normal life and being surrounded by his fellow members helped him recover both physically and mentally. Conversely, it further reinforces the idea that military life had truly been a “nightmare” for him.
For that reason, it is hardly surprising that he chose to celebrate the milestone one year later. Fans also recalled how brightly he smiled and how playfully he joked during the celebration event BigHit prepared for him and V on the day of their discharge.
Following RM’s latest post, many expressed reactions of sympathy and understanding: "We are all celebrating this day", "Crying for the fact that he still didn't deleted this app from his phone", "I remember he was happiest that day", "so proud of him for making it through", "BTS is back but especially happy for him", "Pretty sure this goofball is gonna celebrate this day as his 2nd birthday for years to come", "He hated it, I'm sure", "Owww babyy it's all over now", ....
