63SIERRA

Outside pain management doc rx me LYRICA. I called the phar money , and they want 511 buckskins for 30 days supply. My VA lies so much, I cant believe anything they say, and usually thier answer is NO, NO, NO. So im trying to find out if they prescribe to anyone at all at any VAMC.

She helped MANY veterans and we appreciate the time she took to help.; .. prayers to the loved ones and may God comfort Lucy. Carlie made a difference in this crazy old world, and for that I salute her. !!!

Ok, I went to the VAMC in Temple TX to try and get steroid injections from the pain management dept. Upon filling out the consultation questionaire, abt 3/4 down on the first page is the question. ARE YOU NOW IN LITIGATION, OR ARE CURRENTLY SEEKING DISABILITY COMPENSATION FOR THE PROBLEM CAUSING YOU PAIN TODAY.. So my question is, why would the treating doctor need to know this.. Its not thier wheelhouse. Its not thier business. why, why ,why would they want to know this... The treating physicians are directly involved with VA disability, and im sure of this, because after recieving treatment for a previous condition,the treating NP actually filed a claim for me, set up everything, sent me to the rep inside the hospital and it was a done deal. I actually should have been rated at the 100 percent rate for the year I was bening treated, but didnt find that out until years later. The NP who filed the claim, could have told me I was eligible, but didnt, she waited until the treatment was over THEN set up a claim. She saved her uncle sam around 45K at my suffering anguish and expense. I believe the doctors in the VAMC s are alot more involved in the comp side of things than most would believe. Heres another example. Ive had a claim for a skeletal injury off and on for decades. VA fought me tooth and nail, not to give me an MRI. An MRI is quite conclusive evidence. If theres no evidence of injury or ilness , there will be no evidence to support a claim. I dont think it was a coincidence that they were systematically denying me healthcare and tests, and would still be doing so if I hadnt gotten wise and got an outside opinion. The Primarys nurses will tell you, that you dont meet the criteria for an MRI. They will give xrays all day long, an call whatever problem you may have, either degenerative disc disease or a little arthritis... WHY because they are usually naturally occuring diseases. Soldiering is hard on the skeletal system, and sooner or later you feel it. Skeletal and nerve damage is usually lifelong, permanent damage. The VA doesnt seem to want to acknowledge and treat these issues.

Im so happy for you.. Blessings do come, in thier own time..

I would have the VA give you an MRI on your back, then take that to an outside specialist.. The VA always calls spine issues DDD.. WHY? Because its a naturally progressive bone disease. you likely have alot more problems than you realize... The MRI is quite conclusive because you can see things quite evident. If you disc is slipped, they can see it, if your back was fractured, they can see it, if your spine is curved, a bone is pinching a nerve in the spinal canal, ect, it is easy to see.. Instead of going to the trouble to find out exactly what the problem is, its easy for the VA to just put generic l;abels.... especially labels that dont qualify for compensation.. not saying this is the case with you but the first thing you need to do is get to the facts and the truth .

AWESOME !!! you never gave up and you never backed down, and you got it.. !!!!

SS has completely different guidelines,. although the VA and SS seem to be now exchanging information, To get TDIU you must not be able to perform suitable , reasonable employment, For SS if you can breathe on your own and fold clothes , answer a phone, scoop dogshit,,,, you will be denied. . It is a trap, because the Lawyers want you to " enhance" your situation to try and win. So if you embellish your severities of disability, and later down the line, you get caught spinning the wheel on wheel of fortune, your ass is going to jail. for the little SS pays, if your getting TDIU, I would not even bother. ALSO SS isnt a give it to you and forget abt you. They can call you every few months and bother the hell out of you. I have a totally handicapped, autistic son, and they call and bother us trying to shave his check every chance they get... If you cannot make it on TDIU, with free medicine, free healthcare, no taxes, ect, you may want to take a hard look at what your wants and needs are. Also I know its more expensive to live in some places. Theres an old saying that says...... IM LIVING HOW I HAVE TO NOW, SO I CAN LIVE HOW I WANT TO SOONER.

Thy will be done...

if they screwed up.. they cant get that money back and wont try,,, .

GREAT TO HEAR BROTHER!!

Hold the horses for a minute Tonto, I have a better plan... REQUEST A DRO HEARING. Go to the hearing with your evidence and present it to the DRO.. You can request and be granted a hearing at any time, You can bring in witness statements, your computer, give verbal testimony, ect.. you will likely speak with an RSVR who will then work with the DRO... You want to keep it from going to appeals if you can. because it may get sent right back to the RO, and another goofball goofs the claim. Have you recieved a statement of the case yet?

the veteran should be given the opportunity to view and audit thier C fileat any time,,, via Ebenefits portal. . Any incorrect information should be a priority to be corrected immediately. Have a " work order" opened and assign a person to that claim. who would be sole responsible for the final outcome.. There is no responsibility, without accountability, Whenever possible when doing business I always try to get the persons name.. it makes a big difference.

ive been down many paths and they all led to failure, until I found Had.it. its the very least we can do when we win. my retro should hit the bank soon, and I will feel very good making a donation.

I would also like to say that listening to the had it radio shows, reading ASK,NODS book , and bouncing PMs back and forth were essential to my success. The information is out there, you must be thirsty for that information, and how it pertains to your particular situation, because everyone has different problems. If I had to make a cheat sheet to the path to success it would be as follows. First find out exactly what your current problems are and have them updated to your problems list at the VA. You will likely have to go outside the VA to get honest, comprehensive evaluations. second, reconcile the current problems against your in service ailments and injuries and any possible residuals that derive from them.. Third submit a claim with ADEQUATE evidence to win your claim. VA will always say it iisnt enough, hoping you will submit something that will make u screw yourself. Organize your paperwork in a LARGE 3 ring binder with tabs.. some tabs could be.. Previous claims, civillian examinations, CP exams, va letters, ect. Always send everything green card certified, and if you submit on line print the verification sheet. (it came in handy for me because they "" couldnt find it" . Get familiar with your health problems, you would be surprised how ate up some doctors and CP examiners are. When you submit evidence if you dont have the actual files, always give the va the place and a feasible date range that the procedure or treatment was performed, because evidently, getting off thier lazy asses and going look thru a file, is out of the question. I had several claims initially denied because they said the ilness was never diagnosed.. This is after they were told it was diagnosed in the VA hospital. No date range, no ice cream fat boy.!!! Study 38 CFR regularly and try to find BVA cases that may be similar to yours. This came in very handy in my case, because the BVA cases I submitted, let the DRO know, that I had done my homework, knew abt the BVA, and was prepared to go AND WIN there if need be.. When dealing with people in the VA mc and VA ro, try to be kind, but insistant.. Being very nice while being a pain in the ass is an art form. Dont let the process consume you, take a road trip, go rockhounding, go organize the shed, whatever, but take breaks and dont let it eat you. Dont let denials deter you. and last but certainly not least, ALWAYS REMEMBER THIS.'''''' THE CLAIM IS NEVER OVER, UNTIL YOU, THE VETERAN SAYS ITS OVER. IT CAN GO ALL THE WAY TO THE SUPREME COURT IF NEEDED, AND IF YOU LOSE THERE, YOU CAN ALWAYS REOPEN WITH NEW AND MATERIAL EVIDENCE, WHICH CAN BE JUST A DOCTORS OPINION!!!!

Buck, Mark, Georgia,, thanks very much,. !!!! Watching others get service connection for so long, wondering when my time would come, was quite the challenge. Many had come on the forum, after I did with new claims, and had success, and there I still sat, waiting, wondering, hoping.. but I never gave up hope, and decided to wait on the lord, and not the VA./

Berta tell your prayer group they have power.. I certainly had a spiritual awakening shortly after getting added to the prayer list, and it gave me hope. bless you all...

thanks so much, I now know what folks mean after they win , you still feel like your in the fight, kind of like a fist fight where it was brewing a long time, you get into it, win, but still hold a grudge.. I need to work on that, as its hard for me to forgive those whom I greatly despise. God tells us we must forgive, just as he forgives us. we cant always achieve forgiveness but we must try, and try, and try. Vengeance belongs to the lord, and his army of 10,000 times 10,000 angels that will soon appear and punish the wicked. Forgiveness is an attribute of humility, because its our pride that keeps us from forgiveness. Lust of the flesh, lust of the eye and pride of life are our pitfalls.. Im still in shock, really just doesnt seem real. I am by far no expert, but have learned a few things along the way., so if anyone thinks I may know the answer to your question, plz ask, and if I can help or point u in the right direction I will.

ARNG thanks so much, your positive attitude and encouragement did not go unnoticed...

it gave me primal nightmare of horrific nature and frontal lobe headaches.. its trash

Many of you awesome people on this site have been following my journey and offering encouragement and support along the way, and for that I am truly grateful. I was granted TDIU with P and T with no future exams scheduled. In the end it turned out to be just what I predicited it would be.. A mexican standoff ending in negotiations with a favorable outcome.. I would like to thank my awesome benefits agent Mr.John Dorle for his epertise in getting my complicated claims sorted out in such a way that we could muster up an effective plan of action. John noticed some very key aspects of my claims that put us in a very good position and we were able to make lemonade out of lemons. I would highly reccommend John Dorle to anyone struggling with thier claims and want to get on the right track, to success. I learned many things on this long journey, and one of them is that you cannot take the VA s word for it that they did things correctly ......they make MANY mistakes.. These mistakes can be very valuable to you in your quest for benefits. Sometimes we get so engaged over specific issues we miss the big picture, we miss the specific things that will win the claim and VA certainly isnt likely to point them out to you.. Theres SO many people on this forum who helped I will not try to recall all, because it wouldnt be right if I missed someone, I will just say, THANKS to all, from the bottom of my heart. God has been my rock, and I believe he led me to this website. TBIRD,,,,,,,, be looking for a nice little bump to your paypal acct. the retro should hit the bank very soon, and its the very least I can do to show my appreciation for the hard work you do to keep the site going.. God bless you !!!! If I had not found this site and the GREAT people on it, I would still be wandering aimlessly, in the darkness and confusion.

Ive seen this time and time again... on the CP exam doc will write statement that favors veterans claim in a summary, but in the section where it asks, for instance .... does the veterans gerd affect ability to work,,, yes or no,,, they check no... and guess what the M21 looks at,,, the yes or no boxes.. heres an example of what they did to me for a service connected conditon that left a very large scar.. examiner wrote., patient states scar is painful when bending and painful with chenges in the weather. this is a large scar on the abdomin area.. THEN MIND YOU, right under that was the question., Is the scar painful? and she checked NO.. So I contested the exam in writing, and got another exam.. IT TOOK 4 CP EXAMS TO GET SERVICE CONNECTION FOR A 10 PERCENT SCAR!!!!!! Read your CP exams very, very carefully, pay close attention to the yes or no questions... The first exam I had for the scar was a goof because the doc put the wrong info down and minimized the scar.. the second exam was favorable.. but being va is in the business of trying to deny, they scheduled a third exam, this is where the examiner wrote that the scar was painful but checked the no box.. Finally the 4th exam caused a grant for 10 percent, ... 4 exams for a deep tissue 13 inch abdominal scar!!!!! The reason they were hell bent on denial was because I filed for tdui and they were looking to decrease me any way possible to remove me from the 70 percent accumulative rating . I believe that they are trying hard to stop vets from seeing exams because they are getting busted either falsifying information or making grandiose mistakes

did the injury or ilness happen during combat operations in a theater of war? if it did they must take your word for it, unless they can prove otherwise. you could have tripped getting off the bus at the airport in iraq and injured your elbow and it must be taken as fact unless they can prove it otherwise.

Forensically examine every service connected condition and its symptoms against the 38 cfr, and see if they are matched. also see what conditions may be caused or aggravated by existing service connected conditions. the rating should reflect symptoms suffered BEFORE the medicated physical or mental state. MOST medications have side effects, which can also be service connected... many anti depressants cause erectile dysfunction. The human body is a chemical and electrical masterpiece. When one system is out of balance other systems are affected. Here is an example. I have neck pain, due to degenerative discs in my neck.. ok, the nerve in my neck is getting pressure and pinched. this signals my brain to contract the muscles in my neck and upper back, and causes spasms.. so there is muscle pain. Also I have numbness in my arms and hand due to the nerve being pinched in my neck,, so I dont sleep well because the pain awakens me if I sleep in any but one exact position... Ok I take muscle relaxers for the muscle pain, which causes fatigue and tiredness, the fatigue and tiredness causes inactivity, the inactivity causes weight gain, the weight gain causes joint pain, the joint pain causes neck pain, weight gain and muscle spasms cause depression, I take depression meds, depression meds cause erectile dysfunction, erectile dysfunction causes more depression because lack of sex is depressing, so I take viagra, viagra causes intense hunger, so more weight gain, dont want to take it, because already obese, but want to pleasure wife, ok,,, just saw commercial on tv,, viagra causing skin cancer, now more depressed worried abt new spot on calf, that might be skin cancer.. its a damned hamster wheel I tell ya

was he initially rated Pand T with no future exams scheduled? Also you need to look at the symptoms he is having and compare them with the 38cfr regulations. Many times the vet qualifies for the next higher percentage because even one symptom is in the higher percentage criteria, but the VA doesnt correctly rate. For example, if a person with a mental health disorder has 5 symptoms at the 50 percent rate, and 2 that are in the 70 percent rate, the veteran should really get the 70 percent rate.. Va doenst try to do this,, they try to go to the lowest rating. Also if there are several different conditions that can give similar symptoms, unless the examiner can provide proof of reasonable certainty which condition is causing which symtom, ALL symptoms must be attributed to the service connected condition,, THE LAWS FAVOR THE VETERAN QUITE HIGHLY, BUT THESE LAWS ARENT BEING FOLLOWED. THE RATERS HAVE CHIPPED AWAY AND FUDGED THE LAWS TO SCREW THE VETERAN AND THE WHOLE SYSTEM HAS BECOME DISCOMBOBULATED OR THE RATERS JUST DONT HAVE THE EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE NEEDED TO PROPERLY PROCESS CLAIMS ACCURATELY. CHANCES ARE THERE IS A MAJOR MIKSTAKE ON YOUR CLAIMS THAT IS NOT IN YOUR FAVOR !!!!!!!

its should an inferred claim which will be " raised of record"' do not give up.. most raters dont know thier ass from a hole in the ground and vets have been getting ripped off so long they think its standard procedure. Many times AFTER the one year recovery period or shortly before, people inside the hospital will set up a CP exam.. you will get rated, but they wont tell you you were eligible for the temporary 100 rate and should get back pay..