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iceturkee
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Posts posted by iceturkee
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the op should definitely have an mri. routine xrays basically show nothing other than fractures and arthritis. mrs's will provide much more detail!
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lumbosacral spine strain with mild thoracic scoliosis 20% Service Connected ^^^ My current diagnosis... this was proven with an x-ray. My pain scale is at a 7, I went to the Examination for an increase and she seen how much pain I was in and how bad my muscles were swollen on the one side and she called it a "Flare up" even though I have this pain constantly and consistently every day all day. I can't even bench press half my weight with out it pinching and hurting enough to make me about drop the weight. They denied my increase, what more can I do to receive proper diagnosis and care? The doctors seem to brush me off, I seen a chiro for approximately six months and I am unable to receive a MRI because I have an AICD implant. I don't even know where to begin to try and get this fixed.
Any input is appreciated!
i am currently 40 percent for my back although it should be higher. but the va has quirky requirements for evaluating back problems. my last lumbar mri (taken in may of 2014) showed 5 herniated discs, a slipped vertebrae, foraminal and spinal stenosis, an abnormal upper lordatic curve, 2 torn disc and lots of arthritis.
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the va certainly sets themselves up for NOD's.
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Sorry that happens, Ice. As if you feel like explaining yourself repeatedly on the subject. If you ever feel like jacking with them for fun and yucks, answer their question with a question. Something like,
Why do you ask such an insensitive question?
Why ask, are you planning on challenging me to a relay race?
Why ask, is there a new turbo-charged version available and you want this one back?
People are taken aback when you answer a question with a question. It puts the pressure back where it belongs, on the idiot asking the question.
thanks. if all the c&p docs would take time to review my records, the question would be moot. i have had plenty of exams in the 27 years i have dealth with the va. but only one actually took time to review my navy medical record beside my va record. that's a sorry state of affairs.
once i had an exam, i was between power chairs as mine was condemmed and a new one was on order. i had to use a manual chair and get a volunteer to push me to the waiting room. i had to push myself to the examning room (with my rhuematoid arthritis is very difficult). doc asked why i was using the manual chair so i told him. yet, he still wrote on my exam about the manual chair and my claims of upper body strength.
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In a similar vein, if you ARE using a cane or any other apparatus when you show up for your C&P exam, it better have been prescribed for you or suggested in writing somewhere by a doctor. If it's not, the examiner will probably assume it's a dramatic prop used to exaggerate your condition and will likely note the discrepancy in the report.
i am wheel chair bound and my power chairs have been provided by the va. but i get asked that all the time. i tell them to look at my medical record.
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Buddy statements can document "lay evidence". They wont provide a nexus, they wont make a diagnosis. They can only help document the "in service event" if it is lacking. "buddys" can not make medical statements but they can report observable symptoms.
Example of good buddy statement: "I had the bunk below Joe Veteran and he snored so loud I had to wear earplugs. Joe Veteran and I were in simulated combat and he was wacked in the face, and got a bloody nose. "
This is a good statement, your friend is competent to report snoring, a symptom of sleep apnea.
Example of ineffective buddy statement:
"I saw Joe Veteran's X ray, and it showed broken metatarsals of 2 AND 5, IMHO".
Not so good. Your friend, unless he is a radiologist, is not competent to read and interpret x rays. This buddy statement wont fly, IMHO.
my buddy statements came from my then caretaker who could speak of my back and depression issues since she had taken care of me for a couple of years. the third came from a journalist friend who spoke of how well i did my job when we worked together and my then medical condition.
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i submitted buddy statements with my IU claim. not only was i awarded IU but all three claims were mentioned by the VA in their decision to favorably rate my claim! :-)
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The obvious answer is for you to apply for tdiu and whatever else, along with SMC S, if you "cannot work". I fully understand, tho, why people dont apply for benefits, understanding that it is a 10 year project for most of us. I have been at it 13 years, and I probably have several more years to go. Im also seeking SMC S. I dont know how many dependents you have, but you may bring home more with NSC pension with SMP housebound, which is easier to get. (Much easier. I get SMP housebound, but am 100% so I collect 0 for housebound) NSC Pension with SMP housebound is 1642 per month if you have no other income, with one dependent.
before i got IU, i was getting NSC pension A&A. i'm single and i know the current rate is $1788 a month. don't remember what i was collecting in november 2011 before my status changed.
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if I do my claim myself and send in all my evidence to the claims intake center....what happens to the DAV?
WILL THEY GET PISSED OFF AND SHOOT ME EH!
after what the last DAV VSO said to me, i could have shot him. he was a worthless piece of garbage.
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Buck,
I signed POA rights to DAV, back in March of this year. So far they have done...nada, zilch, nothing, no way, no how, zero to help me. I specifically asked for help with filing two claims. They told me I need to get a IMO first, then they would see what they could do.
The one claim is for a secondary SCD and is currently waiting for C&P to be scheduled. The other was for my back for increase, which I did wholly on my own,(thanks DAV) and was bumped from 10 to 40%. I began this year at 40% and doubled up with out the DAV lifting one finger for me.
The only thing that happens is when I receive any correspondence from the VA, the DAV gets a copy as well. The DAV has not initiated contact with me for anything. They do respond if and when I contact them first. I don't know what I expected them to do, really, but certainly I was expecting more than what they haven't done so far.
I sent my evidence package to my claims intake center in Newnan, GA. From what I have gathered just by being a member here, is trust VSOs as far as you can throw them. If you want you can make 2 copies of your package and send one to DAV and the other to the intake center.
So, in my humble opinion, send your evidence package directly to your claims intake center in Janesville.
Hopefully your C-file will come soon. If it's been more than 30 days, send an inquiry via IRIS using the complaint option. That may light some fire under your request.
Semper Fi.
Andyman
andy, i fired dav earlier this year. they had represented me since 1988. had a couple of really good service officers and a couple of really lousy. the last one i dealt with was worse than worthless!!!!
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i know as recently as 2 weeks ago, the vfw was asking for her resignation. truthfully, have no idea what the alleged scandal is.
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just read this at twitter from stars and stripes. va secretary bob mcdonald has announced hickey has resigned over a scandal involving relocation funds.
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Yeah, the statements I submitted from 2 co-workers and supervisor were mentioned in my award letter for IU. Hell even personal statements get read. Lay it out to em.
me too. i submitted three letters. two were from my then caretaker and the other my best friend. they were all mentioned in my IU award letter.
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when i was first diagnosed with lumbar radiculopathy, i had a bulging disc and arthritis. so you don't have to have a herniated disc.
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i always send everything i got. but for my IU claim, i submitted buddy letters which helped me a lot!
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Ah...maybe it is a CDRP thing, even though that's basically no in effect any longer apparently they still have to go through the DFAS audit and withhold part until that's complete? I think that's what I'm getting from a few threads I've read(posted before the full phase out). That's what's wrong with the system..too much BS twists and turns in the laws, I think tax laws might be the only laws that out BS the VA compensation laws.
My initial retro wasn't even partially paid until that was completed..that's what confused me.
Anyone out there that can shed some light please feel free. Now that there is full concurrent receipt I bet situations like mine will come up often.
not saying this is the reason however. when i was discharged from the navy, i received a lump sum severence pay. after receiving my rating, i was informed that my monthly check (then 10 percent) would be witheld until the va recouped the almost $32,000 i got from the navy.
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yes i got t&p with no future exams. my depression rating was 30 percent. but the psych who did my exam noted my depression and anxiety would not allow me to do even a sedentary job (i get totally freaked out in crowds) so hence, the inferred IU!! :-)
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Peter, technically you already have a claim in for IU, you just don't know it. If awarded 70% for PTSD, there should also be a statement regarding an "inferred IU Claim Deferral," included. You would then need to submit all the IU Evidence that you have, along with an official IU Claim. Sooner, rather than later.
Where did you get the 11/2015 date for PTSD Approval from? Have you compared your PTSD C & P DBQ with the 38 CFR 4 rating schedule? What do you think your award % will be?
Even if you get the "Inferred IU" statement, you still have to file the claim, why wait, get it filed on-line now. Complete the VA yearly employment & income statement and scan it along with whatever other IU Evidence you have, to your IU Application.
Semper Fi
i got an infered iu status when awarded service connection for depression because of a comment written by the psych doc who did my comp and pen. in their report, the va stated they would automatically begin working on iu. maybe, a month after that, regional called asking if i wanted to go ahead and subit the claim. three months later i had iu.
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I am 68 and retired per social Security. I plant to apply for TDIU when my PTSD claim is approved in November 2015. What barriers might I encounter with the VA?
if congress changes the IU requirements and you resort back to your real percentage once you reach 100 percent social security age (65 to 67 depending on month and year born).
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i received 30 percent for depression/anxiety. the shrink noted on my exam it was as likely or not that it was service connected.
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buck,
are you saying if you are 100 percent, you can still get ssdi, even without the appropriate ten years of work credit? or did i read it wrong. thanks.
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I have been using secure message to my PC all the time but now
all my messages goes to a nurse or somebody and then they send me a reply
we will forward this to your PC doctor.
1) why would I use a secure message to my doctor just to have someone else read it??
2) this got to some law for this right???
3) a secure message should be between you and the doctor and if anyone else read it is this secure???
4) it got to be a law for this kind of crap isn't it ??? I just cant find it
i believe the nurse reviews the message first before its sent to the doctor. my primary's nurse often answers my messages. sometimes she will tell me she is forwarding to the doctor and she does!!!
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Code 5235: Vertebral fracture or dislocation—the bones of the spine break or slip out of alignment due to a traumatic event like a car accident. Any generic spinal bone injury would be coded here.
"If there is an abnormal spine contour (like scoliosis), or if you have muscle spasms, or if you guard your spine movements enough that you walk abnormally, then the condition is rated 20%. Proof of the abnormal spine contour or abnormal walk must be noted by the physician in an exam, not just with radiological evidence."
would code 5235 be a seperate rating? if i am service connected for arthritis in my spine but i have an abnormal spine contour or walk (which has been noted on comp and pen), could i or anyone else apply for this as well?
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Hamslice, thanks for the advice as this all new to me. To ensure I'm tracking, I should file for an increase on the 10% I currently have for my back condition (chronic lower back pain) under 5235 and new secondaries for L3-4 through L5-S1 joints?
i would agree with hamslice's recommendation. in theory, it should be easier to receive primary and secondary service connections based on arthritis in the back.
and arthritis does spread. well, it really doesn't spread per se. but arthritis of the spine can lead to arthritis of the hips and feet and so forth.
Back Pain Worsening, denied increase?
in Eligibility - Veterans Compensation Benefit Claims
Posted
andy, what did the mri show? if you posted before, i apologize as i don't remember. thanks.