Jay Johnson

A CUE is just an argument of law on ANY decision made by the RO. One does not need to exhaust all appeals on a claim to file CUE; there simply needs to have been a "final" decision, which is the initial decision by the RO (appealed or otherwise). The trick to CUE is that it ONLY deals with the regulations and most people want to argue over medical evidence. In order to file a CUE you will need to cite specific regs, how they were not followed and how following them now would result in an increase in benefits. It's a very simple process that many folks blow out of proportion in my opinion, but it's also terribly difficult to win because you are very limited in what you can argue. BTW, this is an area where I think lawyers will be a HUGE help because the law is their area of expertise....if you can find one that understands CUE use him/her imho. P.S. - I know people will argue with what I've written, but I've spoken directly to an RO director on this issue and people here cannot seem to distinguish between a "final decision" (which a CUE calls for) and a "finally adjudicated decision" (which a CUE does NOT call for)....these are both defined in the regs and quite clear.....final only means ANY decision by an RO; you can CUE while you're still in the appeals process!

If his issues are physical in nature then go for it, but I wouldn't wave a banner in a front yard saying I make XXX dollar while getting 100% disability:-) The system, as it stands now, is terribly flawed and hypocritical; the VA seems content paying physically disabled vets for social implications, but will not do so for mentally disabled vets who typically suffer far more in that department....... BTW, medical billing is a legit home income source....one just needs to be certified in medical billing to do it.

I didn't say a 100% vet shouldn't volunteer; I said they shouldn't do it through the VA. The regs are quite clear and if you are volunteering (and they catch you) you are NOT 100% by the VA criteria. I think's it's a real grey area, but if you're going to risk it then do so wisely.......getting the VA involved in the process is just a horrible idea though! Just because the law is in the veteran's favor, in the end, it doesn't mean the RO won't make your life hell until you can get the BVA to follow doctrine on this topic....I've had an RO try to drop my wife from 100% A&A/P&T to 50% based on a note from a PA that said she could handle her finances. We were just lucky in that we got it "fixed" at the DRO level; we could have been in poverty and lost everything until the BVA process took place. PTSD is VERY, VERY subjective and it is VERY hard to argue the whole medical evidence issue (how they weight it), so getting caught having an even remotely normal life can cost you your benefits in the short term....is just depends on how big of an Ahole your rater happens to be. So, again, volunteer if you want, but keep the VA out of it....there are plenty of volunteer opportunities that do not involve the VA in some official capacity. P.S. - TDIU is a slightly different beast BTW; even if the RO tried to lower someone based on rating's criteria,due to volunteer work, the TDIU status would trump it because it does not express an ability to hold gainful employment.....50% TDIU is the same pay rate as 70% TDIU, so there's no point in messing with the claim.

How is ANY of this conducive to seeking ANY sort of program the VA has to offer? If you want to gamble your benefits away then so be it, but everyone else should be cautious when using ANY VA program when you are 100% (or tdiu) with PTSD...the ratings criteria is ridiculous and even the slightest hint of anything even remotely resembling a social life can mean a reduction in one's rating. P.S. - If you can do the things you've said than you do not qualify for your benefits under current VA criteria....you can argue the criteria, but it's the law as of today.

Especially given the VA's history with not granting claims in cases where doctors sexually assault patients. If I were a female vet I would NEVER enter ANY VA doctor's office without a family member:-( To the OP: Did you do anything to warrant being detained? If not, you can likely file a criminal charge against the VA for unlawful imprisonment.....the VA, nor anyone else, has the right to detain you for ANYTHING unless you have committed a crime or suspected of committing a crime. If you did nothing wrong, I would suggest calling the police and hiring a good lawyer!

My wife has very similar issues, but her PTSD doesn't allow her to do much of anything for more than a very brief period (she can become suicidal over the laundry). However, she feels much the same way you do and, in time, I think she may be able to volunteer somewhere even if it's only for a few hours per week. With that said, you are TDIU which, oddly enough, seems better protected than someone who is 100% schedular for PTSD, so I think you can be fairly safe as long as you maintain a good medical history (don't stop seeing psychs and taking meds) and you do your volunteering somewhere that isn't linked to the government. Also, I probably wouldn't make a full time job out of it (IE - 30-40 hrs a week). BTW, I feel your pain....I raised my 3 kids while the wife was in the AF (while going to school at night) and I currently work from home to take care of the kids & the wife. It's mind-numbing work that very few people seem to respect (especially when it's the father). I know I would MUCH rather do my 40 hrs in a job in which I was paid outside of the home:-)

There's also the possibility of PTSD meds damaging your kidneys and/or liver (if you're taking them). But I wouldn't really worry, it sounds like your docs are being precautious in general, which is a good thing. Just be sure to ask questions and see what their thought processes are. BTW, PTSD can have a profound impact on your blood-work....before the wife initially broke down with hers her blood-work was all over the place. At one point, they thought she might even have cancer (due to low WBC count). They even did an ultrasound of her abdomen to see if there was cancer...... In the end, her blood-work stabilized, once she fully dealt with the PTSD and got some meds for it.

Washington state *just* passed a law for free tuition for kids, and spouses, of 100% vets, effective this semester (fall). It covers up to a BA/BS in a state with some good public colleges (WSU & UW).

I've never heard it granted for such a reason; good for you. My wife had it for a year, but it was due largely to her suicidal ideation....

I understand what you're saying here, but it's faulty logic. It doesn't matter who pays the bill in the end, because your tax dollars are used to subsidize both the private insurance companies and the employers who use them, so it's all coming out of the same pot eventually. The only thing that changes is that the VA can claim they "saved" X amount of dollars in some bogus budget report, but that just means they're taking tax dollars from some other fund. As I said in the other thread about universal health care, we already have socialized medicine...the only difference between ours and the rest of the world's is that more people are profiting in our system, it's far less efficient and 50 million people have no health insurance (and countless more have sub-standard insurance). So, no, the VA shouldn't be billing other companies for medical services provided to deserving veterans.....

You got A&A for panic disorder and agoraphobia?

Not even remotely true and it is on topic; changing our system of medical care would drastically alter both veteran's health care AND compensation. I won't go into details for why you are wrong, but I will give you some links, so you can educate yourself on the topic (and I don't mean to sound condescending; I recently wrote a paper on this and have a LOT of sources): 1) Study 1 2) Study 2 3) Study 3 In short what you'll find in the above is that not only is our system BY FAR the most expensive (per capita) in the world, it's also far from the best. Also, most anti-universal health care folks are under the delusion that we have a private system at the moment, which couldn't be further from the truth. People who are uninsured still need emergent care and hospitals are required by law to give it, so we end up spending more, in tax write-offs, than we would to just insure said people. Also, your "private" insurance is nothing more than national health insurance that is being triple billed....in other words, the government gives tax breaks to companies to give out "private" insurance, which, in turn, raises our tax rates to compensate, so you're already in a national health care system, but this one doesn't cover everyone and we have several middle men profiting off of other's illnesses needlessly. As for your VA comparison: That is an issue of proper funding. England has had issues with their universal health care system because conservatives in that country refuse to spend enough to properly fund the programs. One should also note that england currently spends about 1/3, per capita, on health care as we do and they insure everyone in the country. Personally, I favor a national, single payer, insurance program like the one detailed in the harvard study listed above. It allows for the providers to remain private, but does away with the "middle men" (IE - insurance companies). Either way, any type of national health care system would be immensely better than the one we currently employ and it would drastically change how both the VA and military deal with health care...also, as I mentioned before, it would free up BILLIONS for VA compensation because there would be no need for VA health care. By the way, my paper was a research paper and NOT an argumentative one, so I had to research the opposing view on this as well and all of the opposing viewpoints were based on ideological beliefs and not practical, real-world data. In other words, those opposed to this are opposed because they "believe" private health care is better and that government health care is bad, but the data clearly shows that universal health care beats our system. I think you'd be hard pressed to find dissenting views that aren't based on ideology.......

With that said, psychology is a lot like voodoo medicine in that any diagnosis is merely an observation......I mean, what is bipolar really? It's not like they can take an MRI and point to an area in the brain that looks like bipolar disorder. I think in 50 years, or so, we'll look back on all these different "disorders" and laugh about how wrong they actually are. I think a good psych knows this and knows exactly how limited these official labels really are, so they will resort to any type of medication that causes the patient to improve. So, I wouldn't worry so much with any official label and just see how the meds work....it's better that your psych is willing to think outside of the box than limit meds based on some limited knowledge of an alleged "disorder". Just be honest with the effects and make sure you get routine bloodwork done because depakote can be toxic at certain levels and remains in your system for a long time.

I can say this enough, WE NEED SOCIALIZED MEDICINE IN THIS COUNTRY!!!!!! It works better than ours in EVERY other country on the planet and it would be a HUGE help to veterans/military families....it would mean no more tricare, no more champva, no more VA medical treatment in general; just copays based on the level of service connection! It would also free up BILLIONS from the military and VA budget for compensation....in other words, they could actually afford to pay vets whatthey deserve and hire enough claims adjusters to meet demand (crazy concept, I know). If you really want to put an end to this nonsense push your elected officials to formulate some type of socialized medicine, be it a single payer insurance program or a government run system like canada.....either way, it's 100000000% better than what we currently use.

Good article. It's sad that there's "debate" over this topic, because none of the sides have any real conclusive evidence one way or another and what concrete evidence we do have shows an organic change in the brains of PTSD veterans. As my wife's *civilian* psychologist recently said, "you have an organic disorder and I'm here to help you COPE with it, not cure it". Any psych who says he/she can *cure* PTSD is speaking out of the wrong end of his/her anatomy:-)

If he was medically discharged it won't matter how long he was in......

How can anything be illegal by VA standards? Who gets charged if they take an action that defies the regs? Heck, they don't even get repremanded for it; if anything, they are probably rewarded for keeping claims down. The RO uses the BVA to weed out people who are either A) About to die, or B) not willing to fight for 5 years. I bet the RO's around the country have saved billions that way......and who's going to stop them, themselves?

Do you think that she is persuing another relationship? I don't think people like that pursue other relationships in the way you may be thinking. *If* she is with someone else it would be because of security issues and not something you did wrong, so keep that in mind. What are the chances? To be perfectly honest it is completely up to her and dependent upon whether or not she can admit her problems to herself....if she stays in denial things aren't likely to change much and if they do, it will be a temporary fix. She gets help in the end? Again, only she can get help. There's not much you can do outside of assuring her that you are there when/if she gets help and that you're willing to work with her even if she gets worse because of it in the short term. She returns to me before the divorce is final? She may, but I think that would just be a temporary band aid, so to speak. She loves me and my daughter? Without a doubt, but love isn't always enough to overcome mental problems. Think of how many vets have tried to (or wanted to) commit suicide....how would that affect our loved ones? Yet they do it anyway, because the disease clouds one's judgment to a point where they can rationalize the irrational. That I lost her forever? I wouldn't look that far into the future. Take it one day at a time and do what you can both for you and her. Be there for her if she decides to get help; anything else is speculation that is just going to push you into depression and anxiety. That she will be calling to talk to me in a week? If she does, be very supportive and let her know that you love her and that you are there for her, *but* that she needs help in order for the relationship to work. It's a fine line to walk because asking someone in her position to get help in that fashion can often come off as an ultimatum, which will push her further away. Go to marriage counseling? Marriage counseling isn't the primary concern in my opinion. She needs individual help for her PTSD before you can even attempt to reconcile marital differences. My wife will find something to be angry about when she's in the mood to be angry and no amount of counseling can change that, so the little things that make up a marriage really aren't the issue; it's getting her on meds so she's no drinking and/or abusing herself. How did you and your wife ever survive? Honestly, I think it's because I'm a very tolerant person and that I have always had an interest in the field of psychology. This has allowed me to look past the simple explanations to get to the deeper seeded causes. However, it's still an every day struggle and it's very hard to fight that urge to respond in kind....when someone tries to pick a fight with you it takes a LOT to swallow your pride and ignore their advances; it's something I've had to learn over time. Also, I keep reminding myself that the person she is when she gets angry, drinks, etc it not the person I married and that change is NOT her fault.....deep down I know she loves me and the kids and that helps me rationalize the bad times. I've also learned to take advantage of the good days, which helps keep us together. yeah the thing with the territorial thing is this. My female cousin said too bad I couldn't just be friends with a beautiful woman who would brag about me in the way that she could possibly find out. She said let it simmer and watch her run back to show everyone 'to leave me alone' she said that she took social work classes an jealousy of intense feelings for something. I don't want to go down that road. ITs just not me. Well, there's a difference between typical jealousy and what your wife is probably experiencing. I think what appears to be jealousy is likely more of a control issue......your wife wants control of the relationship and when another woman is interested in you that control breaks down. Oddly enough, when she feels a loss of control she pushes you away....if she were just merely jealous she would either confront you or the "other" woman. Just keep in mind that rape is a control issue and not s sexual one, so women who suffer from rape tend to have severe control problems. By feeling in "control" of the relationship she neutralizes any threat you could be to her (IE - attacking her physically/sexually). This is something that will likely never go away either....my wife and I have been together for 12 years now and dealing with the PTSD for 6 years and she still has control issues and feels very insecure about the relationship. It doesn't matter what I've been through with her, nor how many times I tell her that I'm never leaving her no matter what she does; in her mind, the fear of me hurting her or leaving her is always there. It's a fine line to walk and a process I'm still learning, but the key to winning the battle is treatment for her because those meds help her see things more rationally then she would otherwise. When someone thinks the irrational is rational there is no amount of arguing that can change the situation......

As I said, "it may not be impossible" given the regs regarding this issue, but I think it would be highly likely that the VA would at least attempt to reduce ANY TDIU PTSD vet who attempted to work, even if it was marginal work. Heck, I'm willing to bet the VA would try to reduce a PTSD vet if they were caught volunteering somewhere.....it would likely be overturned at the BVA, but who pays the bills for that 5 year battle? They tried reducing my wife from 100% P&T with A&A to 50% because of a letter from a PCM (NP) that said ONLY, "the patient seems capable of handling her finances and her PTSD does not seem to affect her ability to manage money"....this was their sole reason for reducing her to 50%. The VA will jump at any and all chances to drop a PTSD vet due to the subjective nature of the dieases and the high threshold for a 70%+ rating. It's a free country and you're welcome to try to work with TDIU PTSD, but don't come crying to me when they bust you down to 50% because of it:-) (by "you" I don't mean you personally btw)

Spike, No, I'm not the same Jay Johnson. As for the territorial thing: It's actually funny that you bring this up. I mentioned earlier this summer that *I* had to go to jail because of an issue late one night before July 4th. My wife started going off on me at about 1 AM for no reason.....she started yelling at me, calling me a no good SOB, etc and she even began to push me. I tried to get away from her and out of the bedroom but she blocked my way and began pushing/hitting me in the chest, so I pushed her out of the room and locked the door. After about 10 minutes I went downstairs to check on her and she was huddled in a corner with this horrible look on her face and I knew it was time to call 911 and get her to s hospital, but she preempted me and called the police to say I was "yelling at her" (which I wasn't btw). Of course the cops ignored the fact that she is a 100% PTSD vet with a history of this sort of behavior and I spent 2 days in jail. The moral of the story? Apparently, this was ALL because she had secretly became very jealous of the fact that I had lost about 50 lbs (over the last year) and started lifting again. She had also stopped taking her meds, which just compounded this irrational fear that I was going to leave her. Ironically, her way of trying to stop me from leaving was to fight and push me away, which seems crazy, but it's par for the course with women like that.....if they think you're going to leave, they push you away first to make themselves feel like they have control:-( As for loving you: It takes a LOT of trust for someone with a history of sexual violence to be with ANY man and the mere fact that she has been with you this long should tell you that she most certainly cares for you, but she has her own demons and no amount of love can fix that. Perhaps she needs to hit rock bottom before she is willing to get the treatment needed to stabilize her life and maybe losing you might just push her to that realization, but there's really no way to tell. In the end, she has to admit something that most women won't: she has a problem because of her past and she NEEDS help.....nothing you can do can change that and the more you push the more she will likely retreat into her irrational ways. It's a viscous cycle and only she can change it..... P.S. - I applaud you for trying to help her and being so understanding.......it takes a real man to see the bigger picture in these cases and it has to be that much more difficult given your own PTSD issues!

Spike, Wow, you're in a really tough spot and it's hard to help someone (your wife) when you have "issues" of your own to contend with. Let me start off with a few things I've learned about women who have had sexual abuse in their past (especially as kids): Your fears of adultery could very well be true, but not likely for the reasons most americans would assume. Women who have been raped/molested can become hypersexual, but it has nothing to do with their husband/BF; rather, it's an issue of control. In other words, those women have a deep seeded need to prove that they have control over their bodies, so they seek out relationships to show that they can manipulate and control the men they're with. This tends to be influenced by their relationships at home; if they feel they are losing control of their husbands (for various reasons) they may seek out other relationships to get back that feeling of safety and control. However, the ultimate goal is almost never sexual intercourse because intercourse is a submissive act (for women). This is also why women who have been raped or molested tend to have a much higher chance of being raped again later in life; in essence, they purposely put themselves in situations to which there is a high probably for rape (IE - they lead on overly sexually aggressive men and back out at the last moment). I have found myself in this situation with my wife. After the first rape in the military she began to become hostile towards me (of course I was unaware of the rape until long after the fact) and she began to go out to clubs and drink heavily. This put her in horrible situations and led to two more rapes. It was a viscous cycle and it's very hard to break (especially without treating the PTSD with meds). The only thing you can do is be VERY caring towards her to give her a level of stability so she doesn't seek it elsewhere. Also, it is imperative that she seeks treatment for her PTSD (and I'm 99% certain she has PTSD given your post). Without treatment this cycle will NEVER end and you will find yourself in this position over and over again. What's worse is that the more you get upset about what she's doing the more it will drive her to do the things she does and the more viscous she will become towards you, regardless of the fact that you're well within your right to be upset. It's an issue where logic has NO meaning and no amount reasoning will fix the situation. As for my wife, I tried to commit suicide while she was in the military because of the hell she was putting me through (going out 'till 3 am every other night and coming home drunk) and the thought of actually losing me snapped her out of it, but it wasn't until the PTSD really kicked in (delayed onset) that she really began to understand just how crazy her life was and illogical her actions were. But, even to this day, if she were to stop taking meds and start drinking again I have no doubt that she would end up back in the same lifestyle that got her to where she is..... The one thing I have learned is that you cannot meet her aggression with anger....the only way I can snap her out of it is by being overly caring via hugs and a calm voice; anything else just pushes her further over the edge. However, there's NOTHING I can do to get her under control without the psych meds......no meds = no chance of correcting the problem; she either ends up hospitalized, dead (or at least attempting it) or drunk (self medicating). So, try to help her to help herself, but if she's not willing to work with you it is probably in your best interest to cut the ties between you. Serving her with divorce papers will only compound the problem, so if she's not willing to seek treatment before that, I highly doubt she will after:-(

That is true ONLY for physically disabled vets and many vets who frequent these forums (and others) are PTSD vets. The VA bases one's level of mental disability almost solely on their ability to hold ANY employment...heck, the 100% level even states that one must be "totally occupationally disabled". So, you need to delineate between the two when making such a claim. Of course, this isn't to say that it's impossible to hold a job (making under $700/month) and still maintain TDIU for PTSD, but I wouldn't want to be the one who tries it, because you'll likely spend five years trying to get your TDIU back!

I would think a lot of amputees are 100%, yet still work in good jobs. These days, one can lose both legs and lead a fairly normal life.....you even see them competing in sporting events. It's a completely unfair double standard imho and that isn't to take anything away from those who have lost limbs, but if they are being compensated for quality of life changes then so should those with mental issues that typically suffer far greater in that department.

I found this rather interesting: 3 to 4 hours???? At most, my wife got 30 minutes with a psych for a C&P and her first C&P was only about 10 min! This is why the VA is not accepting the IMOs....they set up some bogus criteria that their own docs do not follow, but they use it as a rationale for dismissing IMOs when the private docs doesn't. No doctor in his/her right mind is going to block off 4hrs+ of his/her time for an eval; be it VA or otherwise. This is EXACTLY what I suspected in the other thread....the VA has set up its own internal "regulations" that are there for the sole purpose of denying vets who seek IMOs. How many of you have ever spent close to 3-4hrs in a C&P???

I agree with free; get this into the press ASAP. Refusing to take liability for a veteran that was sexually assaulted under the VA's care is repugnant to say the least and this is the sort of thing that can cause heads to roll within your local VA (or nationally). Call me pessimistic, but I bet this isn't the first case the BVA has taken on of this sort and you're probably not the only veteran that has been denied for this reason, so bringing your case to light may just bring a lot more folks out of the woodworks and a class action lawsuit could be in the works.....