john999

Dean I know what others should do, but when it comes to myself I often worry I am making a bad decision. That is part of depression. I tend to see the worst of all possible outcomes of situations for myself. I fear any situation where I don't feel I am in control of my enviornment. This is due to my chronic pain disorder, and anxiety and depression. You probably suffer from some of this as well. John

Skunk I also got a two page decision in 1973. No appeal rights, no discussion, no C&P exam, but just a rating. These old decisions really stink the way they were written. The VA did not list evidence and only used hospital records to make their rating. My evidence they just ignored. It pisses me off because now I have an uphill battle. You sure need a lawyer for this type of claim if you are looking for retro based on CUE.

Wings That is a good case. I have read it in the VBM that if the VA has knowledge that a vet is unemployable due to a SC condition that is an inferred claim for IU. Here the VA is trying everything they can to get out of this duty. Some say the VA is not adversarial, ha, ha. The VA has one hand on the checkbook and the other with its fingers crossed. Their motto should be "Never give a veteran an even break". It is just about the money, and damn the veterans and the law.

Cymbalt is a combination of welbutrin and prozac. Both of these drugs can cause insomnia at least when you first start taking it.

I have some sort of sleep disorder but I am not sure if it is sleep apnea. I would sure like to have a sleep study done on me. I have insomnia and have had it for years.

If you are rated at the 100% schedular level the VA is supposed to "consider" you for housebound. You need some evidence to show housebound, but they are supposed to consider it because being 100% means you have a severe disability. In my experience the VA never considers it unless you claim it. This is what I have read in the Veterans Benefits Manual.

Cowgirl The VA won't go back 9 years and give the vet IU based on a increase in disability. The only way to get that is to show the VA made a CUE somehow, and that the original rating should have been IU. If there was some kind of inferred claim for IU then the vet might have something. I mean if there was a record that showed the VA knew the vet was unemployable due to his/her SC disability then that might be a CUE if they did not adjudicate the claim. This is tricky stuff and if there is any hope of this I would get a lawyer. The VA will resist a retro claim for IU that goes back 9 years with all their might. Maybe someone else has an idea.

Les Save that retro and you will have money to pay for some medical opinions that might get you more compensation one day.

SSGTrick Amen!

Since the VA consistently underestimates costs they consistently are unable to make long range plans for new hospitals and services for vets. My VAMC was built back around 1970. At that time there was miles of land around the VAMC that could have been bought cheap by the VA for expansion. The VA did not do that so now it is all built up and we have to park at a shopping center, and catch a shuttle bus to get to the hospital. This usually adds 20-30 minutes to the trip to get to the actual hospital. If the VA made good estimates of costs they would have known the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan would mean more vets needing services. Instead they just muddle through, and screw all of us by their piss poor planning. This is VA politics which has gone on forever, and seems to still be going on now. What happened to mandatory funding? Now I understand the Marine Corps wants to go to Afghanistan. That will mean lots more wounded needing treatment at the VA eventually. Active duty are already being treated at my VAMC.

Les Are you getting 5 years backpay? Rest for a few months and then ask for an increase.

Subvet You have nothing to fear from making a recovery from a 100% mental condition because you have been 100% for 20 years. Any other vet who is 100% for a mental condition and starts to work has plenty to fear from the VA.

With a deferred decision there is no set time limit. The VA does the claim when they get around to it. That is hell, but it is the truth. That is why you should save like a son of a gun so you can wait until they finally grant your claim without becoming homeless in the meantime. I got 70% but was denied TDIU. I had to appeal and it took about 6 months to get TDIU. Then I was denied P&T and that took another 8 months. The VA treats each issue like a separate grant or claim.

Rock The VA does not supervise the vet's use of narcotics or any of the drugs that can hurt you. Even tylenol in large does can kill you by destroying your liver. You probably do have a claim, but in the future you need to be your own advocate to keep them from killing you. I have been on narcotics for years. The pain management program consists of throwing various narcotics at me until I get sick and then they change it to something else and start over. Really, when you go through all available pain meds and become immune they start over with the ones you took before that stopped working.

Carlie You probably need a CT scan to find out because many things mimic gall bladder like ulcers or diverticulitus. You sure as heck don't want it to rupture if the gall bladder or diverticuli is badly infected. If it is really hurting it is an emergency. My wife had sharp pain in her gut and they first thought it was gall bladder but did a CT scan and it was diverticulitus. If you have persistent pain get to the doctor and don't let them put you off. If my wife had waited a few more days it would have ruptured and then it is a big deal.

The VA must be going the extra mile to CYA.

Yes, she probably would need nursing care to get A&A or be in a nursing home. It takes months just to get the A&A up and running. If she had a permanent problem where she could not do basic chores of life (bathing,eating etc) then the vet could get A&A for his wife.

Bern I think an outside IMO should support the progress notes. You want to tell the IMO what your problem is and what you objective is and then let them take the hint and do the report. Most doctors need to feel they are not just writing an opinion for pay even though they are doing just that. You are not paying them for an opinion that is negative.

I think it would be hard to get SC'ed for this because the VA is going to say that if you have a hip injury what the heck are you doing riding a motorcycle. Also, you have to demonstrate that it was the hip injury that caused the wreck and not some other factor. Now if you were walking in your house and your hip gave out and you fell and broke your leg you might have a claim because I can see a doctor saying the broken leg was a consequence of hip giving out and causing the fall. Even in that case you probably have a fight on your hands.

Bern If your shoulder problems are SC'ed all you need is for the doctor to say that the chronic pain from your shoulders is causing your depression in his opinion. It would be good if the doctor gave a history of your injury and restated the fact your shoulder problems is service connected. He should draw the conclusion that the chronic pain you suffer along with the medications you take are causing your depression. The depression is a secondary condition so you just have to hitch it to the primary SC condition. It would be good if you VA doctor would do this since all the information is right there in front of him, and you don't have to bring him up to speed. The private shrink may want to talk to you for a while to get an idea of what is going on and to understand your case. Having the nexus letter is a good idea even if the private IMO uses it as a guide.

That is why you get a private opinion, so that if the doctor does not want to give you the opinion you want you can shitcan it. "Probably" is poison. Your shrink seems to be showing the gutless disease. Many VA doctors simply won't stick their necks out for their patients. You can't win a VA claim with a "probably". You need "as least as likely as not" minimum.

Unless you are IU or 100% you have to be SC'ed for dental condition for the VA to work on your teeth. If you can afford the implants or bridges get them because when you start to lose teeth it leads to more tooth loss. Did you have a dental condition in the service that was diagnosed? I had two teeth pulled in service but I did not get any other dental care until I got TDIU. I still had to pay for an implant recently because the VA would not do it. The VA says dental health is crucial to overall health but they don't want to pay for it.

Cavman I don't think the VA would mess with your 100% rating if you file for other conditions. One small thing to remember is if you die from SC condition the VA pays a certain amount for your funeral expense. They don't do that if you die from NSC condition after 10 years. I have filed for a number of things since I was P&T and they have not attempted to challange my rating. I filed for AO conditions and secondary conditions and a CUE. So if you hang on for ten years and then die from SC condition your spouse is given a little more support by the VA paying for funeral, and if you die from SC condition before the ten years then that makes all the difference. Of course, the VA will leave you in ignorance of all these factors and never advise you to file claims that are clearly presumptive to AO, for instance. I am going to file for HBP and cataracts due to AO as soon as my CUE is decided. I am already SC for heart disease secondary to DmII.

I read the VCS and they are screaming about the onslaught of new OIF/OEF vets coming to the VA. What most don't understand is that only a fraction of eligible vets use the VA at this time. If all eligible vets were to use the VA the institution would just collapse. I think the VA will bill for all conditions both SC and NSC if you have insurance. They do what they can get away with if no one complains.

If you last NOD was filed after July 2007 you can get an veteran's lawyer in the nation to represent you if he will take your case. Do you have copies of the documents you believe the VA may have shredded? If the lawyer gets you significant backpay he has earned his 20%.