BFR

Thanks, all. I'll submit what you posted to the eBenefits team along with the info that I hope to get out of my next topic in this thread.

Reading through this forum I'm not sure if it's allowed or not. Does anyone know where the "ten commandments" for C&P exams can be found? TIA!

It's been 18 months since I filed my claim for Gulf War Syndrome (maybe now it's called Gulf War Illness), but I finally have my C&P set up for February 3rd. I read this section of the forums in order to learn more about what can happen in these exams and the things veterans can do to maximize the chance of a successful outcome. TO DO LIST - arrive early, or at least on time - take my wife with me into the exam. She views my illnesses from a different perspective. - thank the examiner for his time and his service in supporting vets - be truthful, answers the examiner's questions fully, but stay on topic - when the session is over thank the examiner again - take some vet's advice in these forms to answer questions as I felt not just at the moment but at the worst part in the last 30 days. Should these be on my TO DO LIST? - print out the VA exam sheets for GWI and the presumptive disorders that my IMO wrote a strong statement on (irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, and fibromyalgia) as notes to use during the exam - print out the relevant e-CFR (Electronic Code of Federal Regulations) segments that deal with the conditions listed in the line above so that I can indicate what I believe to be fair ratings for my situation Anything I've missed or forgotten? P

Does eBenefit work? Does it provide its users with useful information? Just wondering...

That's standard at Home Depot. Not sure about Lowe's.

@ carlie: There are three kinds of lies: little lies, big lies and statistics. @ Papa: Good advice. I didn't start getting itchy about it till I realized it had been 14 months. As for getting involved in veterans' issues, well, that's easy. I hip deep in them 40 hours a week. :)

Ouch, I had no idea they could take that long to do nothing. Could it be "stuck" in the system somewhere?

Thanks for the advice and information, but I'm still not sure what I should do. Should I simply wait it out? Would enlisting the help of a representative who can walk into the Waco RO and find out what's going on speed up or push back the Decision phase?

Interesting site. The Stats for the Waco, TX RO: 50,973 - Claims Pending 37,546 - Pending over 125 days 73.7% - Percent Pending over 125 days Mine is at 435 days (for initial rating decision, not an appeal)

That's true, Carlie. I'll have to work out the prescriptions based on the >50% rule. About getting a service officer from someone like the DAV involved: does anyone know if that will reset the timeline...in other words, will it put my claim back at the end of the line if one were to intervene on my behalf?

I should have added that I have gotten no tasks from VA. There are no C&P requests, no requests for additional information, no nothing except one letter that my county rep told me to expect within 30 days that we answered on time. As far as I know I've missed no deadlines. eBenefits seems to agree.

I was finally able to get into eBenefits and found what I expected to find; that my Gulf War Illness claim has been waiting for a decision for over a year. Apparently they've spent more than a year "review it to make sure we have everything we need to make an informed decision." Is that within the norm? I understand that things take time and the resources are limited, but all I filed for are conditions in the GWI "presumptives" list (with what I think is an awesome IMO) that is written in the "VA speak" that Dr Bash recommended ( it's full of phrases like "more likely than not" type of stuff). The IMO I sent is from a board certified in Internal Medicine saying "He has CFS. He has IBS. He has FM. And all of them are more likely than not directly related to military service." Do they really need a year to decide? I'm getting worse and need to get this service connected so I can get VA treatment my private medical bills are huge. Should I get a rep to go to the VARO in Waco to find out what needs to happen? If I do that will it push me to the back of the line? Please, any advice is most welcome. From the eBenefits page: Open Claims Claim Date Claim Type Claim Status Is Your Attention Needed? 2010-08-24 Compensation Decision Phase No Details on your Compensation claim received on 2010-08-24 Regional Office of Jurisdiction: Waco Power of Attorney: TEXAS VETERANS COMMISSIONStatus: Decision Phase Where Should You Send What We Need? Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office One Veterans Plaza 701 Clay Avenue Waco, TX 76799 Contentions Gulf War SyndromeNext Steps: Your claim is currently located with our rating activity. We will review it to make sure we have everything we need to make an informed decision. If we have everything we need, we will prepare a proposed decision on your claim.The length of time it takes to complete the Decision Phase depends on several factors, such as the type of claim filed, complexity of your disability(ies), the number of disabilities you claim, and the availability of evidence needed to decide your claim. The Decision Phase is completed on most claims between 16 and 28 days. The number of days provided is a national average of time claims spend in the Decision phase based on data at the end of May 2010. Please be advised that a claim may take longer in this phase based on the specifics of your claim.

Draft Gulf War Task Force Report Released Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki announced that the Department's Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses Task Force has completed the draft of a comprehensive report that will outline how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) addresses the concerns of Veterans who deployed during the Gulf War in 1990 and 1991.More information. Follow this link to a page. At the bottom of that page is the link below: http://www.va.gov/op...I-TF_Report.pdf I don't often read a VA report that strikes me as being nothing more than "filler" but this one does. Am I looking at it the wrong way?

I'm suffering from the same delusion too. I guess the VA will be telling us it's just "weather balloons" next.

http://chronicfatigue.about.com/od/symptoms/a/brainfog.htm Brain fog (also called fibro fog or cognitive dysfunction) is one of the most common complaints of people with fibromyalgia (FMS) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS or ME/CFS). For many, it can be severe and can have just as big an impact on their lives as pain or fatigue. In fact, some people say brain fog is more of a disability than their physical symptoms. [more at the link above]

Read more: http://www.digitaljo...5#ixzz1Ycn4AO71 Long a contentious issue between government agencies and veterans, a new study shows Gulf War Syndrome is the result of long-term exposure to small amounts of sarin gas, and at least 25 percent of veterans deployed in the war may have the syndrome. Long considered a form of combat stress by the US Defense Department and Department of Veterans Affairs, the syndrome has been examined extensively. A new study by researchers at the Southwestern Medical Center at the University of Texas in Dallas, finds abnormalities associated with Gulf War Syndrome have persisted for 20 years and in certain cases, have actually worsened.Dr. Robert Haley, chief epidemiologist at UT Southwestern, along with a team of clinicians and researchers, have been at odds with the government for over a decade in a funding battle over Gulf War Syndrome studies, yet the new report, published in the current issue of the journal Radiology, sheds more light on damages to the brain from nerve gas exposure. "This was really one of the first techniques to show an objective picture of whether there's really brain damage or not," said Haley, the Dallas Observer reports.In the study, a neurotransmitter which mimics nerve gas, acetylcholine, was used. It slows the heart rate as well as blood flowing to the brain, making one sluggish, but for receptors in those damaged by nerve gas, there is no sluggish experience. For some, it has the exact opposite effect.Once the acetylcholine was administered, radio waves were projected into the carotid artery. Haley then used a type of MRI for blood flow measurements. Veterans afflicted with the syndrome failed to respond with normal decreases in blood flow.Some veterans of the Persian Gulf War, or Operation Desert Storm, more commonly referred to as the Gulf War, have long complained of abnormalities including memory loss, depression, neuropathic pain and lack of concentration. For some veterans, these symptoms began almost immediately upon their return home, yet the government has been slow in acknowledging a connection to wartime activities.In its final report in 1997, President Bill Clinton's Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses found stress to be a likely factor contributing to the syndrome, and in its summary statedStress is known to affect the brain, immune system, cardiovascular system, and various hormonal responses. Stress manifests in diverse ways, and is likely to be an important contributing factor to the broad range of physical and psychological illnesses currently being reported by Gulf War veterans.However, the new study confirms brain damage is involved in Gulf War Syndrome, but which specific cells are being impacted limits treatment. "We're shooting in the dark," Haley noted, regarding treatments. "So far, nobody's guessed right. But the research is really going to come to a head in the next six to 12 months."

Just passed the one year mark, still no word. I know that it will come some day.

Thanks, I suspected that this was the case given that Congress had changed the rules for both Vietnam and Desert Storm at the same time. But you never know until you ask.

It's nearly a year now since IRIS told me that my claim had been received and sent to the rating board, but no action since then. Is this typical for other people's claims also? Or is mine "stuck" in some way?

Take it for what it's worth... http://www.usatoday.com/news/military/2011-06-26-antioxidants-Gulf-War-Syndrome_n.htm Anti-oxidants ease Gulf War Syndrome, study findsBy Kelly Kennedy, USA TODAY WASHINGTON — Anti-oxidant supplements can significantly reduce the symptoms of Gulf War Syndrome, suffered by tens of thousands of veterans, according to research to be presented Monday to theDepartment of Veterans Affairs. The study by Beatrice Golomb of the medical school at the University of California-San Diego tested the value of giving doses of the coenzyme Q10 to veterans of the Persian Gulf War. "Every single one of them … improved," Golomb said, adding that there was improvement for all 20 symptoms. "For it to have been chance alone is under one in a million." More than 20 years after the end of the Gulf War, the 1990-91 conflict that liberated Kuwait after an invasion by Iraq, Golomb's study is the first research that offers potential relief for sufferers of Gulf War Syndrome, said Jim Binns, chairman of the federal panel investigating the condition. Roughly one in four of the 697,000 veterans of the war has Gulf War illness, according to the federal Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans' Illnesses. Symptoms include memory and concentration problems, chronic headaches, widespread pain, gastrointestinal problems and chronic fatigue. "It is the first medication study to show a significant improvement of a major symptom of Gulf War illness in the history of Gulf War illness research," said Binns, the committee chairman. Although it's not a cure, Binns said, and requires further research, "it is extremely encouraging." Golomb said the treatments helped veterans with headaches, inability to focus and fatigue after exertion. There were also unexpected benefits, she said, such as fewer symptoms for participants suffering from chronic diarrhea and improved blood pressure levels. She worked with 46 veterans. Golomb found that those with Gulf War illness had the same list of symptoms as those with genetic mitochondrial disorders. Mitochondria convert oxygen and glucose into cell energy. The brain and the muscles use more energy than other parts of the body, so those organs are affected first by the disorder. "Oxidated stress can come from a lot of bad things in the environment," Golomb said, explaining that causes the problems in the mitochondria. Her past research has involved chemical exposures in the Persian Gulf, such as sarin gas, pesticides and anti-nerve-agent pills. The unpublished results will be released at a committee meeting at the VA . The research was funded by the Defense Department through the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs.

Here are some interesting excerpts from the April 14, 2011 edition of the CFR (Code of Federal Regulations). The wording is typically dry, but there are some good nuggets of information about the rules that VBA follows--or fails to follow when making decisions. (The red text for emphasis is mine.) § 4.2 Interpretation of examination reports. Different examiners, at different times, will not describe the same disability in the same language. Features of the disability which must have persisted unchanged may be overlooked or a change for the better or worse may not be accurately appreciated or described. It is the responsibility of the rating specialist to interpret reports of examination in the light of the whole recorded history, reconciling the various reports into a consistent picture so that the current rating may accurately reflect the elements of disability present. Each disability must be considered from the point of view of the veteran working or seeking work. If a diagnosis is not supported by the findings on the examination report or if the report does not contain sufficient detail, it is incumbent upon the rating board to return the report as inadequate for evaluation purposes. § 4.3 Resolution of reasonable doubt. It is the defined and consistently applied policy of the Department of Veterans Affairs to administer the law under a broad interpretation, consistent, however, with the facts shown in every case. When after careful consideration of all procurable and assembled data, a reasonable doubt arises regarding the degree of disability such doubt will be resolved in favor of the claimant. See §3.102 of this chapter § 4.10 Functional impairment. The basis of disability evaluations is the ability of the body as a whole, or of the psyche, or of a system or organ of the body to function under the ordinary conditions of daily life including employment. Whether the upper or lower extremities, the back or abdominal wall, the eyes or ears, or the cardiovascular, digestive, or other system, or psyche are affected, evaluations are based upon lack of usefulness, of these parts or systems, especially in self-support. This imposes upon the medical examiner the responsibility of furnishing, in addition to the etiological, anatomical, pathological, laboratory and prognostic data required for ordinary medical classification, full description of the effects of disability upon the person's ordinary activity. In this connection, it will be remembered that a person may be too disabled to engage in employment although he or she is up and about and fairly comfortable at home or upon limited activity. § 4.15 Total disability ratings. The ability to overcome the handicap of disability varies widely among individuals. The rating, however, is based primarily upon the average impairment in earning capacity, that is, upon the economic or industrial handicap which must be overcome and not from individual success in overcoming it. However, full consideration must be given to unusual physical or mental effects in individual cases, to peculiar effects of occupational activities, to defects in physical or mental endowment preventing the usual amount of success in overcoming the handicap of disability and to the effect of combinations of disability. Total disability will be considered to exist when there is present any impairment of mind or body which is sufficient to render it impossible for the average person to follow a substantially gainful occupation; Provided, That permanent total disability shall be taken to exist when the impairment is reasonably certain to continue throughout the life of the disabled person. The following will be considered to be permanent total disability: the permanent loss of the use of both hands, or of both feet, or of one hand and one foot, or of the sight of both eyes, or becoming permanently helpless or permanently bedridden. Other total disability ratings are scheduled in the various bodily systems of this schedule. .

Huah!

Our M8 started screaming at about 3am one morning. We all MOPP'ed up in a hurry but nothing happened. It just seemed to be forgotten.

Got Edit ability (Thanks Tbird!), fixed links.