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SilentBob

Seaman
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Everything posted by SilentBob

  1. I have 4 more things I could file for (5 if this paxil-related side-effect doesn't go away). One of the 4 has the potential, though it's unlikely, to get up to 60%. More than likely it would be 30% or less. Another has potential for 40%, though we'll see how that goes. The third maxes out at 30% and the 4th maxes out at 10%. I've run through caluclations of the various percentages, but it's impossible to know what will happen. But as they're all inter-connected with the ones that are already awarded service-connection, it's better to get them on file than to not...whatever the outcome.
  2. I apparently still have some fighting, so to speak. Through my appointments and such I learned that about 4 or 5 more conditions I have are attributable to the same cause as the others that are already rated.
  3. I didn't even get a medical. I was one of those that had a mental health diagnosis and then got a "general under honorable conditions" discharge with a code that indicated "condition not a disability." Funny how my "not a disability" diagnosis got a 70% disability award all by itself (it was the other two that boosted it to an overall 90%). What's more...annoying...is the knowledge that my discharge type led to absolutely zero mention of VA care or benefits when they were shoving me out the door 11 years ago. That's 11 years of benefits and treatment I missed out on.
  4. That's not really much of a problem, I've already posted more with this screen name than the other. I only made one intro post with the other name.
  5. As I mentioned in the intro forum, all three of my initial claims (filed last April) were accepted by March of this year, for an overal 90% rating (OCD w/depression, shoulder pain and migraines). From what I've seen on a variety of boards and posts, that qualifies as a success story. Though I quickly learned that what I assumed would happen actually did happen. Or perhaps didn't happen would be more appropriate. I don't feel any better. Sure, it's nice to have the VA acknowlege how screwed up I am....and the cash helps with bills and such, especially since I don't feel like this latest job is going to work out much longer. But I don't feel suddenly "happy" as I've seen some other people get when their claims were accepted. I know one guy, a former marine who got a 60% rating for a variety of physical issues and was as giddy as a school boy when he got his letter. I got my letter and almost cried. Yes, the cash helps with bills...but I still feel like crap. :-/ And I suppose mine is also only a partial success story because after filing, I realized that I have a few more "issues" than I originally thought, which are all essentially connected to the same time-frame of service. So it looks like I'll be filing again.
  6. I previously made another screen name here, at a rather low point in my mood. And although my depression and such continues, I decided I needed a better name. So here it is. I first filed for disability in April of last year, for dysthimic disorder, shoulder pain and migraines. In January, the first two were accepted, giving me a 70% rating. In March, I was notified that the migraine claim was accepted at the max level, raising me up to 90% overall. Anyway, I figure this screen name suits me better because I usually don't talk much unless I have something to say. (That and many don't seem to care for some of my views, so I tend to not say anything to avoid listening to accusations and assumptions.) Plus, it actually is my first name, so there's that.
  7. My trazadone problem was similar, yet slightly different. I was prescribed trazadone for sleep at the same time I was prescribed zoloft for depression and OCD. The 25mg dose of trazadone didn't do much for me, so my doc said to try 50mg. At the same time, I told her the zoloft wasn't working out, because of side effects, so I was prescribed paxil. On the paxil, I didn't need the trazadone for sleep. I couldn't stay awake as it was. I slept in some instances for almost 24 hours straight. When other, more problematic side effects started due to the paxil, I weaned myself off of it. Surprise suprise, I couldn't sleep again. So, being that 25mg and 50 mg of trazadone didn't help much before, and since the doc said to just increase the dose, I took 100mg to try and sleep. I then got every bad side effect you'd imagine all at once. I still couldn't sleep, but now my heart was pounding, my head felt....odd...and I felt my nasal passages close up over a 5 minute period...I also felt my mouth go bone dry. All that mixed with the lovely withdrawl symptoms from the paxil and I did not have a good day. After relaying all this to my doc, she made a brilliant suppostion -- "You might be sensitive to medication." You don't say.
  8. Quite. I'm about to start prescription 9...or 10...hard to keep track. The first one made me have flu-like symptoms and chest pains; the second screwed up my vision; the third (which I'd taken a decade ago on active duty) dilated my eyes and thus, screwd up my vision; the next couple I didn't take for a variety of reasons and side effect fears. Then we tried one that aggravated my IBS-like symptoms and...well that was just bad. Then came paxil, Paxil totally negated the need for the trazadone I was given. I couldn't stay awake, so I needed no help sleeping. A month or more went by where I did...nothing. I put off a grocery store trip until my kitchen was almost completely devoid of food or drinks (I had some deli rolls and some cheese...and one package of popcorn...that was it.). When I hit 30mg (my doc wanted me on 60mg) I noticed borderline incontinence and some other problems and then decdide that was enough and started to wean myself back off it. I'm honestly getting tired of trying prescription drugs. More than a couple of people seem to agree I'd benefit from a big bag of weed, but I'm the only one I know in my family or circle of friends to never try that.....yet. I must say I'm inching ever closer to that day.
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