What Are The Chances

[abean]

New poster here...will try to shorten a very long story....

Prior to meeting husband, he was security police in the AF until 1994. He has been to the middle east, but was during Desert Calm or something like that. Met husband in college in 1994. Quirky, but cute. Married by May 1995. By early 2000's, and 3 kids later, he started a claim for micoplasma infection, and was denied even though he tested positive for it. He was convinced he had brought this terrible disease home to us and was going to kill us all. By 2004/2005 he was convinced he was a spy and that the military had implanted a chip in his head. He thought my dad and I were working undercover for the govt. to rat him out. He thought my earrings were honing devices, I was poisoning his food, the CIA was after him, the VA was after him, etc.... Lord, I could name a million things that boy thought. Anyways, in Jan 2006 he burnt our house down intentionally because he thought the govt. had bugged all of the electronic devices, phones, pets, you name it. After the fire, he was forcefully placed in a mental hospital, and then transfered to a VA hospital where he stayed for about a month. He was labeled as schizophrenic. He had a few more stays in 2006 until he had his meds worked out, but thank heavens, he does now.

He was initially awarded ssdi in the summer of 2006 (first try), but decided to decline it and try to work. Well, he tried, and was ok for a bit, but the stress load just got too hard. He then again filed in Jan 2009, and once again awarded first try.

I hadn't even thought about a va claim until recently listening to the news. All of his paranoia is directly related to his time in the service, but wasn't diagnosed until many years later. We went ahead and filed a claim in July 2010. We found out 2 weeks ago that it is at a rating board. He has mounds of medical records, and all state about his time in the Gulf, but I don't think fine folks at the VA will connect the dots. I think it will be too easy to say that too much time had lapsed between diagnosis and duty. The VA did call, but that was to inform us that he didn't have all his Dr's recent records, but they have since got them.

Oh, and he has not went for any kind of C&P exam. He is seen every 3 months by his psychiatrist so I don't know if that counts or not.

Thanks in advance for any replies.

[Berta]

A micoplasma infection is often called "walking pneumonia."

He would have to establish a direct nexus (link) to his service for this as well as establish that he has ratable residuals.

The VA recently published regulations covering nine new presumptives for Gulf War vets ( the Gulf War is not officially over so this includes any vet who served in SW Asia.

http://community.gettinghired.com/blogs/articles/archive/2010/10/20/va-publishes-final-regulation-on-presumptive-illnesses-for-gulf-war-and-iraq-afghanistan-veterans.aspx

I did a short topic here at hadit and also a radio show (in our SVR archives) on these 9 presumptives-many are infectious disease brought on by service in SW Asia.Many have residuals.

He needs to go to the NARA web site and click on veteran's records and fill out a SF 180 to obtain his personnel and medical records.He should specifically ask for both types of records.Unless these are the records he already has.

"All of his paranoia is directly related to his time in the service," -is it possible he experienced a severe stressor in service? or a severe infection?

Was he ever hospitalized while in the service?

"

"By early 2000's, and 3 kids later, he started a claim for micoplasma infection, and was denied even though he tested positive for it."

You mean he tested positive years after his service? or in service

His inservice files might reveal he had one of these infectios disease that caused the microplasma infection- what residuals does he have and are there treatment records of those residuals?

"He was initially awarded ssdi in the summer of 2006 (first try)" Was it for the schizophrenia?

His in service records might reveal ( even in any disciplinary reports) some hallmark symptoms of schizophrenia in service.Or of PTSD.

The new PTSD regulations are in our PTSD forum.

"He is seen every 3 months by his psychiatrist so I don't know if that counts or not." Is this a VA psychiatrist?

Other then the infection does he have any physical disabilities?

Schizophrenia can be service connected.But a service nexus (link) must be established.That goes as well for anything he claims.Has any doctor suggested he has PTSD.

[broncovet]

Yes, thank you for "standing by your man"...through his very difficult times and please thank him for his service to our country.

IMHO, this sounds like "classic" PTSD symptoms, such as paranoia.

For your Hubby to be Awarded benefits for PTSD, you are probably going to need a "nexus". A nexus is a "link" between military service and hubby's medical issues. This is normally provided by a doctor, when he writes something in his report similar to: "Veterans PTSD is at least as likely as not due to a trauma event incurred during military service". Of course, the doc would also have to make a diagnosis of PTSD, if your hubby actually has PTSD.

If your husband is not working, then you should apply for TDIU. (Total disability due to Individual Unemployability).

You wont get any of these benefits until/unless you apply for them. The sooner you apply, the sooner your effective date will be, if awarded.

[carlie]

abean,

I will have to most definitely but respectfully dis-agree with others on this particular claim.

I do not see any of the following as a result of PTSD,

" By 2004/2005 he was convinced he was a spy and that the military had implanted a chip in his head. He thought my dad and I were working undercover for the govt. to rat him out. He thought my earrings were honing devices, I was poisoning his food, the CIA was after him, the VA was after him, etc.... Lord, I could name a million things that boy thought. Anyways, in Jan 2006 he burnt our house down intentionally because he thought the govt. had bugged all of the electronic devices, phones, pets, you name it. After the fire, he was forcefully placed in a mental hospital, and then transfered to a VA hospital where he stayed for about a month. He was labeled as schizophrenic."

His diagnosis of being schizophrenic fits the above actions to a T.

I suggest you do as Berta posted, fill out and submit the SF 180 for his personnel and active duty

medical records (SMR/STR's). You and him go to the VAMC to Release of Information and get

all of those medical records - they are separate from the other's.

Go see his psychiatrist with him and come right out and ask the psychiatrist is it at least as

likely as not that his symptoms of schizophrenia began in service ? Sometimes they can support this due

to the age bracket of the person with the disease.

You will also really have to comb through his active duty records for anything (symptoms) that might relate

to schizophrenia. Perhaps he can find a way to contact a service buddy that might know some weird sheet

about your husband or something they remember happening. Did he write any letters home that people

may have kept (with post marked dates) that contained weird stuff.

Perhaps as a "security police in the AF" there might be some paper trail of him busting people

for weird things they were never convicted of, just crap his mind made up.

These are the type of things and evidence I would be trying to pin down.

Also, from your post,

"After the fire, he was forcefully placed in a mental hospital, and then transfered to a VA hospital where he stayed for about a month. He was labeled as schizophrenic.

Get ALL of the records from the mental hospital and the VA hospital and the SSA.

I'd almost be willing to bet that some doc has already provided a nexus to active duty somewhere

in what must be tons of medical information, records and evidence.

If anyone else in his family has mental health problems or if he had any problems prior to active duty, then there's a possibility that active duty aggravated your husband's disease beyond it's normal progression.

You just need to get hungry because I know there's alot of meat and potato's out there to get this claim granted.

[Pete53]

Its not a PTSD claim its a classic schizophrenia and all treatment counts. What is really needed is for a Medical Doctor preferably a shrink who will link treatment he had while serving to a current dx that will support his claim. Over the years we have seen Veterans with little more than symptoms and even problems they had in Military get service connected. The fact is most people who have this acquire it before they are much older than mid twenties.

Good Luck

[abean]

Wow, thanks everyone for all of the info! I'm a bit overwhelmed, but to answer ya'll questions....

No doctor has every mentioned PTSD because they were all pretty clear it was schizophrenia.

He only saw VA doctors when he was at the VA hospital (3 total stays in 2006). All of the other doctors have been civilian since he is very wary of the VA and govt because of his paranoia. So, basically, we've had to pay a lot of money out of pocket to keep him going.

We have submitted all records, even his SSDI file to the VA. I wrote a statement letter supporting the claim and giving them a history of us & what it has been like to live with him.

He does have a family history (undiagnosed) by his father, but his manifested itself after he returned from his service (army, I think) in the Korean War. After his mom & dad's divorce when he was 15, he never really spoke of him. His father refused any and all treatment. He has since passed away.

We used to have all of his military records, but lost them in the fire so I guess we need to get them again.

He was never treated for any symptoms or anything while serving. I've been told by many of his treating doctors that when someone has a mental condition like schizophrenia, realizing that something is wrong with their thinking is the last thing. They always try to involve lawyers, police, or think that something is physically wrong with them before they would believe something is wrong with their mind.

He was reprimanded a few times while in the Air Force. Once for wrecking a Hummer in the desert. Another time was, I think, being disrespectful to authority.

The micoplasma infection was not diagnosed until a few years before the fire. He did a lot of digging on his own on that one, and had to tell our family doctor the blood test she needed to give him for the test. He basically had skin rashes, achy joints but was on dixocycline for a few years and hasn't really had any problems with it since the fire. I just wondered how much of it was kind of related to his schizo. His conditioned really snowballed after this.

I've read over all of his records, except the ones from the VA and the most current ones from his doctor now. Some are very hard to read (why these people didn't type this stuff up is beyond me) but I see where at least one doctor has tried to connect his time in the service with his mental state. A lot of them ride on the family history bit, but do include that he is a Gulf War vet.

Have any of the new laws made it easier for claims like ours to go thru, or are we screwed because it isn't PTSD?

[abean]

Oh, and forgot to mention that his current psychiatrist says that his symptoms probably started in late teens/ early twenties. This would be his time in the Air Force. Some of the other records mention Gulf War Syndrome.

I also have no clue about the TDIU. Is that something that you get thru the VA? Would it delay his current claim?