[File increase from 80% to 100% ?]

Hi everyone . I was awarded 80% combine rating last year . 70% for my major  depression . 10% for tinnitus, 10% for cervical strain and 10% for scoliosis. And 0% for migraine .  I have been impatient to the mental hospital for about 10 day in Dec 2018 , and been on and off with mental health doctor appointment since thereafter , because I am worried that they gonna put me in hospital again . I have been diagnosed with PTSD apart from major depression . And my migraine has actually getting worse . I feel like 0 percentage for my migraine is under rated and I want to get my rating to 100% . But I have read online that people are saying when filling for increase , I could also get a decrease . And if I would file the increase , how should I go about ? Hire an attorney? Or use VSO ? or just do it myself ?  Am really hoping someone would give me some advice and weight the pro and cons to help me make a decision . Any input would be appreciated. 

[Entered into preparation for decision phase]

Hi everyone, so this is a question and an update for everybody at same time . My claim has entered into preparation for decision last Friday , and I’m really nervous and excited at same time . I’m nervous of what they will rate me and excited that this claim is one step closer to get finished . Do you guys have a general idea how long will this phase take ? Thanks . I will keep update my status as it’s moving forward to give people an Idea of the timeline . Thanks 

[please look at my c&p exam results and tell me what should i expect]

No , I don’t think so because I never saw combat . But I’ve been thru some scare situations that left me nightmares @Berta

[please look at my c&p exam results and tell me what should i expect]

Did you see the headache ? Do you think I’ll get something out of headaches ? @Buck52

[please look at my c&p exam results and tell me what should i expect]

1. Diagnosis
------------
a. Does the Veteran now have or has he/she ever been diagnosed with a mental disorder(s)?
[X] Yes [ ] No
If the Veteran currently has one or more mental disorders that conform to
DSM-5 criteria provide all diagnoses:
Mental Disorder Diagnosis #1: Major Depressive Disorder, with anxious distress
Mental Disorder Diagnosis #2: Other Specified Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorder
Mental Disorder Diagnosis #3:

3. Occupational and social impairment
-------------------------------------
a. Which of the following best summarizes the Veteran's level of occupational and social impairment with regards to all mental diagnoses? (Check only one)
[ ] No mental disorder diagnosis
[ ] A mental condition has been formally diagnosed, but symptoms are not
severe enough either to interfere with occupational and social functioning or to require continuous medication
[ ] Occupational and social impairment due to mild or transient symptoms
which decrease work efficiency and ability to perform occupational
tasks only during periods of significant stress, or; symptoms controlled by medication
[ ] Occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work
efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform
occupational tasks, although generally functioning satisfactorily,
with normal routine behavior, self-care and conversation
[ ] Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and Productivity
[X] Occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas,
such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking and/or mood
[ ] Total occupational and social impairment

Veteran's diagnoses:
[X] Depressed mood [X] Anxiety
[ ] Suspiciousness
[ ] Panic attacks that occur weekly or less often
[ ] Panic attacks more than once a week
[ ] Near-continuous panic or depression affecting the ability to function
independently, appropriately and effectively [X] Chronic sleep impairment
[ ] Mild memory loss, such as forgetting names, directions or recent events
[ ] Impairment of short- and long-term memory, for example, retention of only highly learned material, while forgetting to complete tasks
[ ] Memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name
[X] Flattened affect
[ ] Circumstantial, circumlocutory or stereotyped speech
[ ] Speech intermittently illogical, obscure, or irrelevant
[ ] Difficulty in understanding complex commands
[ ] Impaired judgment
[ ] Impaired abstract thinking
[ ] Gross impairment in thought processes or communication [X] Disturbances of motivation and mood
[X] Difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships
[X] Difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances, including work or a work like setting
[X] Inability to establish and maintain effective relationships [X] Suicidal ideation
[ ] Obsessional rituals which interfere with routine activities
[ ] Impaired impulse control, such as unprovoked irritability with periods of violence
[ ] Spatial disorientation
[ ] Persistent delusions or hallucinations
[ ] Grossly inappropriate behavior
[ ] Persistent danger of hurting self or others
[ ] Neglect of personal appearance and hygiene
[X] Intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living, including maintenance of minimal personal hygiene
[ ] Disorientation to time or place

It is at
least
as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that these symptoms
also
incurred during military service.

This is an opinion in regards to concurrently completed DBQ NEURO Headaches
 (including migraine headaches):
 MEDICAL OPINION REQUEST
 Does the Veteran have a diagnosis of (a) headaches that is at least as
 likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) incurred in or caused by
 (the) headaches during service?
 OPINION:
 Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not (50/50 probability)
caused
 by or
 a result of headaches noted in the service.
 RATIONALE:
 People with depression often experience headaches and other forms of chronic
 pain simultaneously. The depressed patient often presents a wide variety of
 complaints that can be categorized as physical, emotional, and psychic. The
 physical complaints include chronic pain and headaches. Review of
veteran's strs revealed complaints of headache and a host of psychiatric complaints which prompted brain imaging and psychiatric evlauation.

 1. Diagnosis
 ------------
 Does the Veteran now have or has he/she ever been diagnosed with a headache
 condition?
 [X] Yes [ ] No

 [X] Migraine including migraine variants

 3. Symptoms
 -----------
 a. Does the Veteran experience headache pain?
 [X] Yes [ ] No
 [X] Pulsating or throbbing head pain
 [X] Pain on both sides of the head
 [X] Pain worsens with physical activity
 b. Does the Veteran experience non-headache symptoms associated with
 headaches? (including symptoms associated with an aura prior to headache
 pain)
 [X] Yes [ ] No
 [X] Nausea
 [X] Vomiting
 [X] Sensitivity to light

 [X] Sensitivity to sound
 [X] Changes in vision (such as scotoma, flashes of light, tunnel vision)
 c. Indicate duration of typical head pain
 [X] Less than 1 day
 d. Indicate location of typical head pain
 [X] Both sides of head
 4. Prostrating attacks of headache pain
 ---------------------------------------
 a. Migraine / Non-Migraine- Does the Veteran have characteristic prostrating
 attacks of migraine / non-migraine headache pain?
 [ ] Yes [X] No

 5. Other pertinent physical findings, complications, conditions, signs,
 symptoms and scars
 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
 a. Does the Veteran have any other pertinent physical findings,
 complications, conditions, signs or symptoms related to any conditions
 listed in the Diagnosis Section above?
 [ ] Yes [X] No

 b. Does the Veteran have any scars (surgical or otherwise) related to any
 conditions or to the treatment of any conditions listed in the Diagnosis
 Section above?
 [ ] Yes [X] No

 c. Comments, if any:
 No response provided.

 6. Diagnostic testing
 ---------------------
 Are there any other significant diagnostic test findings and/or results?
 [X] Yes [ ] No

 If yes, provide type of test or procedure, date and results (brief
 summary):
 NCHCT-negative

 

it took a lot of your time to read this and thank you very much

[New here , just got my c&p result , what rating will I get in your experience?]

Hi guys , thank you very much for replying me ,I am new to the va and have no idea what is going on , and i wanted to repy your posts but this site is little complicated to navigate around .  thank you all for your time and if theres anything you think i need to know please just follow the post . thank you again and thank you for your service.

[New here , just got my c&p result , what rating will I get in your experience?]

On 11/6/2018 at 11:59 AM, Berta said:

I agree with the 70%- as potential - and if you are not employed the VA should send you a 21-8940 to apply for TDIU.

But then again my husband was finally rated properly for his PTSD ( 100% P & T ) (1997)and they took so long to rate him, that he had been dead for almost 3 years before they made that posthumous award.At least they gave him the correct EED , 1991.He was 30% SC PTSD in his lifetime.

Also he received SSDI solely for PTSD but as a victim of VA's ability to 

"Hornswaggle"his claim, the VA told my two state senators and my Congressman that the SSA refused to release his SSDI records to them.

I still have those letters. I called SSA in Baltimore only to learn that VA had never even requested those records. His signed  authorization form for VA to get them was in his C file when he died.He should have seen his 100% award in his lifetime.

Another problem was that the VA claimed they never had any medical records from his shrink.I went right over to the VAMC, and the shrink gave me copies of everything and wrote a letter to the VARO as well.The award letter soon followed.

BTW the SSDI award was based solely on his years of VA health care, from 1983 to 1994.

It is one thing to opine on  a rating that we feel should be proper-but we can never determine what VA will really do. 

Do you receive SSDI and is it solely for your disabilities this exam is for?

 

i 

On 11/6/2018 at 11:59 AM, Berta said:

I don’t know what is stressor but I have been thru some terrifying stuff .

 

 

 

[New here , just got my c&p result , what rating will I get in your experience?]

1. Diagnosis
------------
a. Does the Veteran now have or has he/she ever been diagnosed with a mental disorder(s)?
[X] Yes [ ] No
If the Veteran currently has one or more mental disorders that conform to
DSM-5 criteria provide all diagnoses:
Mental Disorder Diagnosis #1: Major Depressive Disorder, with anxious distress
Mental Disorder Diagnosis #2: Other Specified Trauma- and Stressor-Related Disorder
Mental Disorder Diagnosis #3:

3. Occupational and social impairment
-------------------------------------
a. Which of the following best summarizes the Veteran's level of occupational and social impairment with regards to all mental diagnoses? (Check only one)
[ ] No mental disorder diagnosis
[ ] A mental condition has been formally diagnosed, but symptoms are not
severe enough either to interfere with occupational and social functioning or to require continuous medication
[ ] Occupational and social impairment due to mild or transient symptoms
which decrease work efficiency and ability to perform occupational
tasks only during periods of significant stress, or; symptoms controlled by medication
[ ] Occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work
efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform
occupational tasks, although generally functioning satisfactorily,
with normal routine behavior, self-care and conversation
[ ] Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and Productivity
[X] Occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas,
such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking and/or mood
[ ] Total occupational and social impairment

Veteran's diagnoses:
[X] Depressed mood [X] Anxiety
[ ] Suspiciousness
[ ] Panic attacks that occur weekly or less often
[ ] Panic attacks more than once a week
[ ] Near-continuous panic or depression affecting the ability to function
independently, appropriately and effectively [X] Chronic sleep impairment
[ ] Mild memory loss, such as forgetting names, directions or recent events
[ ] Impairment of short- and long-term memory, for example, retention of only highly learned material, while forgetting to complete tasks
[ ] Memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name
[X] Flattened affect
[ ] Circumstantial, circumlocutory or stereotyped speech
[ ] Speech intermittently illogical, obscure, or irrelevant
[ ] Difficulty in understanding complex commands
[ ] Impaired judgment
[ ] Impaired abstract thinking
[ ] Gross impairment in thought processes or communication [X] Disturbances of motivation and mood
[X] Difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships
[X] Difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances, including work or a work like setting
[X] Inability to establish and maintain effective relationships [X] Suicidal ideation
[ ] Obsessional rituals which interfere with routine activities
[ ] Impaired impulse control, such as unprovoked irritability with periods of violence
[ ] Spatial disorientation
[ ] Persistent delusions or hallucinations
[ ] Grossly inappropriate behavior
[ ] Persistent danger of hurting self or others
[ ] Neglect of personal appearance and hygiene
[X] Intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living, including maintenance of minimal personal hygiene
[ ] Disorientation to time or place

It is at
least
as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that these symptoms
also
incurred during military service.