Gonna Take The Plunge

[dogface]

I have visited a VSO and she says I need to write a stressor letter for my claim.it doesn't seem like she gives it much hope. Non combat is an uphill climb proving. I can t remember specific dates even to 3 months of the event in a couple of instances. I would like to thank y'all for being here for me, ya all rock!

[jbasser]

Add personal assault to the list.

J

[dogface]

Hello to all, An update to my situation is in order. As I was diagnosed by the VA psychologist during a few sessions never did he say "you have PTSD". He did say at one time " you have symptoms of PTSD." I never did get him to say what his diagnosis was even after asking him a couple of times "how do you see me". I came to realize the only way I was gonna find out was to see my records and I have a feeling the guy is a defense-man for the VA. If I made a formal request for records it might influence his opinion. Therefore I asked my primary doctor today and she let me view his record of me. He has me down as having depression and anxiety, but is leaving the ptsd open by adding r-o to the front of it meaning it's not ruled out, but not defined. I wonder if I should just file for the two diagnosed, as I understand it is a better course. Thanks to all for the direction and helping hands.

[carlie]

As far as anyone hurting my feelings by asking questions or even playing devils advocate I appreciate your position and experience, and would

encourage you not to hold back. Thanks very much...

dogface,

What do you feel is the exact stressor/event from active duty that causes you to have

depression/anxiety/PTSD. Don't hold back.

[dogface]

dogface,

What do you feel is the exact stressor/event from active duty that causes you to have

depression/anxiety/PTSD. Don't hold back.

I have had a few issues from my enlistment, but the dates are mostly forgotten. I witnessed and was involved in assaults, the last assault happened 2 months before my enlistment expired. Fortunately I was not seriously hurt. I was on burial duty for a few months at Fort Carson,but can't remember the exact date/time frame. We would go to the Denver area to bury vets. While sitting in the desert in my tank of which I was the driver I witnessed a plane crash in '77 and felt the heat of the flames. I heard screams of the survivors, but we were told to drive away. While in Korea in '79 after the assassination of the Korean president I was driving officers to division from near the DMZ and witnessed a ROK officer shooting at a person that went by his jeep that was blocking the MSR, and afterward he aimed his weapon at me to make sure I stopped. The next week I was riding in a taxi back to my compound from another and the driver purposely drove his taxi into a concrete power pole at 40 mph trying to kill me and my friend, another GI, because we were Americans- and many Koreans thought we were complicit in their presidents death. We fled the scene and made our way to the compound where my friend was treated at the aid station. I still have nightmares where I am flying and crash into flames, which I attribute to the plane/car crash. After the weeks I spent on burial detail I became a heavy drinker for many years...

[dogface]

Hello All,

I have had a peek at my file and the psychiatrist has me as r-o ptsd, depression, and anxiety. I am wondering f I should just file for depression and anxiety? Any opinion would be appreciated.

[Testvet]

the way that reads to me is that they haven't diagnosed you with anything yet they put the R/O in front of all of them I don't know the procedure where you are at but the VAMC where I go they do not let any doc make the diagnosis by themselves the PTSD team a shrink, a psychologist and a resident do the tests, the interviews and it was a 4 month process for me to get them to decide I did have PTSD and OCD and then they took the R/O out of my treatment records from May 2003 and used PTSD/OCD from then on I have lost 60 pounds and they still haven't taken obese off my list of medial problems either but I am well under 200 pounds now the VA does nothing fast add or delete things

you might want to ask your shrink exactly he does have you diagnosed with because if you file for them and they come back and say you aren't diagnosed with any of them then you will have the VARO with opinion that you are a compensation seeking vet and you don't have any real issues that they should compensate you for you do need to get your doctor to clarify things for you

better to go forward with a good plan than half armed just my 2 cents I spent 9 years fighting with the VARO because I didn't have a "good" plan