daroosta

The VA is out to try to expose and fake PTSDers especially. You can bet ur azz that’s what’s happening. I disagree with continuing any kind of mental health care with the VA. They will never stop the witch hunt. Rediagnose, invalidate, downplay, and minimize All goes in the notes!!!! They know this. Instructions coming down right from the VISN directors I’m sure. Get involved at your own peril. VA mental health is all smoke and mirrors. Every time u tear drop, laugh, comment, gesture, facial expression, and etc....Is being scrutinized, and observed like a rat in a lab experiment. It’s all being recorded in the notes!!!! And inpatient stay is the biggest joke on the face of the earth at the VA. You would have to be blind not to see. It’s solely used as environment to REALLY have your butt dissected, and observed. It’s like voluntarily handing them the knife to stab you in the neck with. They got u exactly where they want you in that environment. I’ve been to hell before, and that wasn’t near as bad as subjecting myself to the minions at the VA mental health clinic. Write the directors, let them know we know what they’re up too.

Curious if anyone else has awakened to this. Over the years with VA mental health groups and providers and inpatient stays. Same tune. Different providers. Doesn’t matter. It’s all about minimizing, down playing, and attempts at rediagnosing conditions and symptoms. Just read your notes afterwards. It’s all the same subtle attempt. Funny how obvious it has become. It’s all smoke and mirrors. It’s not about treatment as much as it is about invalidating symptoms and conditions. It’s their sneaky way of trying to contribute to the hopeful possibility of losing your service connection benefits if you are ever reviewed. They are trained to do this. I looked in my notes a few years ago in regard to an inpatient stay. It amazes me what they wrote. They even dug up old entries from prior providers in regard to comments I made in regard to situations I was in while on active duty from like 8 years back in time!! And quoted those comments in their notes!! They try to pretend your getting treatment by implementing ridiculous arts and crafts groups...and yoga group, and a few CBT type classes held by some unenthusiastic social workers. Then the psychiatrist and her team of minions come and spend an hour with their cold stares, basically interrogating you. Just read the notes. It’s all there. Treatment my azz. The entire mental health VA system is collectively trained to and out to do one thing: find out if the supposedly suicidal veteran in front of them is a fake and feigning symptoms. Period. Then write it in the notes! Lmao. It’s a huge joke. Trusting these people is as smart jumping in a lake full or piranhas. Best to seek out civilian mental heath care if possible. They won’t be conducting a witch-hunt like the VA does. Be forewarned. I’m sure some vets receive genuine treatment. If you are service-connected for mental conditions. Be wary. Read your notes. That’s all I’m saying. Seek out civilian care instead. Plus mental health groups at the VA are mostly handouts and homework. Ran by overpaid PHD’s, who are strictly textbook, and about as zealous as a carrot stick. And again...it’s all smoke and mirrors. Be wary. May not apply to all, I’m just pointing out my own experience over the years.

Yea thanks for advice. I’m not sure if I can have an appt or not with the director at my VA. Have no clue If it’s possible or not. Don’t how I would be recieved either. So it’s a bit daunting to me. Not sure how to proceed yet. I was considering the VISN Director actually. Even above the local VA director. What would be best? I mean would they really make time for a pee on like me? What do I do? Just walk upstairs to the administrative offices and ask to see the director? That seems unrealistic and crazy. Do advise. Thanks.

I already wrote an 1800 word letter. I would like to bring that with me and read it in front of one of the directors. I don’t know if that’s possible to get a impersonal meeting with a director though. IRIS suggests writing a letter and sending it. But that may be quite a long time before one gets a response by doing it that way? Not sure.

Thanks guys. Yes it helps a hell of a lot. And thanks for taking the time. It’s a definite rudeness issue coming from a couple providers. A couple instances are within the last few weeks. And yes it’s stressing me out to a severe degree. I got into a pretty nasty at fault car accident two weeks ago on my way down to the VA for a group. Not all of course. Of course the VA has been a huge blessing in my life as well. In regard to the benefits I receive. I’m eternally grateful for that. I just don’t want to feel like I’m being emotionally invalidated or treated rudely. This is a handful of incidents. And not the majority. But it has been affecting me. I just feel it’s necessary to politely address it with the VA. I have went to like to patient advocates in the past. Both times I got absolutely nowhere. And I also read a lot of negative examples with advocates from tons of other vets online. So I’m jaded. And I read that I can write to the VA director, or even the VISN director. What concerns me the most though, is if I do this, the VA may retaliate. And VA care is all I have I don’t want to risk losing that. I don’t want to piss people off. I just don’t want this additional mental stress to continue to burden me, as I have enough to contend with. Yes, I did call the White House hotline, They were actually pretty knowledgeable. But I did not open up a complaint with them yet. And by the way I did place a phone call to the directors office a few weeks ago, or administrative offices. Somebody did tell me that would have the supervisor of the patient advocates call me. That was three weeks ago still no phone call. My thoughts are to likely take this to the directors office though I’m not sure if I should expect any results from even doing that.

Hi there I have been having issues with various VA providers over the course of time. Rudeness and not so nice comments as well. I am not wanting to rock the boat, But I would truly like to address my concerns without fear of Retaliation from the VA. I also don’t think the patient advocates are worth two nickels. With someone please help and suggest who I can write a letter to. Would it be the chief of staff? Head of the patient advocates? The directors office? Or the director of the VISN? Please help as I am at a loss. Thanks.

Yes. Thanks for replies. Yes I admit that I am not well. I have not been for a long time. Much more severely then can often be understood. Even by professionals. Yes I was hospitalized in the service. And since,.. but it doesn’t matter....the providers don’t appear to care. They only appear to be out to downplay and diminish. Not all of course. But yes, I have had one of the same providers for a while now. She’s ok. It’s the others. In the group settings. And to be honest...the group is so mundane and uninspiring to begin with, I feel like Im attending a funeral gathering.

I hear you Richard. Thanks for reply. Yea, think I had to contact the privacy officer some years ago about an incorrect note. Then he sent me a form. I can do it that way if u suggest. Then print out the note from the ROI office and highlight it, and fill out the amendment request form. The bigger issue though is the ongoing problem I been having with providers, especially in the mental health clinic, with them always appearing to be out to discredit my disabilities, rather then treat me for them. Even in the psych ward it felt way more like being interrogated and disbelieved. It’s been ongoing though.

Im surprised that there is absolutely nothing a veteran can do to get assistance if he or she feels like they are being targeted by mental health providers and others, at the VA, in various ways, for a long time. Causing extreme additional mental stress. I guess we all are at their mercy then. That’s a really sad state of affairs.

I called the VA to think about finally addressing it. I did not want to speak with a patient advocate. As I can’t know whether or not they will look out for me. I called the administrative office and got someone in the phone who said she would pass on my concern to somebody called a patient experience officer. I found out that this is the person who basically oversees all the patient advocates. I’m not sure this will be high enough in the command chain though. I believe another vet mentioned contacting the VAMC directors office? Anyone knowledgeable about that avenue?

Yea thanks for replies all. I just had another car accident with my rental car. Had a major car accident a week ago. My mind has been off in lala land. Can’t focus well. This has all been so taxing on me. All this stress from my experiences with care at the VA has been destroying any slither of peace that I’ve had. If any to begin with. My mental state is going straight down to hell. When u feel like u are being targeted from every provider you deal with. At least in my perceptions.

Don’t know what happened to A similar question that I posted earlier. But it’s gone. So I’ll try again. Seems to me that when involved in mental health groups, or meeting with individual providers, I sense a subtle disdain, and instead Of receiving treatment, I usually feel like it is a subtle setting really for them to interrogate you, and That their real cryptic agenda is to try to prove that you are fine, and that you are lying about your disabilities, or exaggerating them. Maybe I’m delusional, but It’s one reason I normally don’t care to be involved with mental health at the VA. To me, it’s hostile. And it causes a severe exacerbation of symptoms. This has been my experience for a long tine now. I have also had to face providers at times in regard to incorrect notes put into my healthevet thru the privacy officer to get notes amended. But he was not helpful. And once again there is another false note from a recent visit just last week with another provider that I will have to try to get amended!!. The amount of additional mental stress this creates, is off the charts. What can I do to address these occurrences with the mental health clinic? Who can I politely bring these issues up to without being put on some disturbance list or blacklist by the the VA medical center? Has anyone else gone thru this sort of thing as well? Another vet told me something about requesting administrative notes from the release of information office at the hospital. Because he said that those notes are not included in the blue button myheathevet notes. I’m just trying to figure out what might be happening and what actions I can take to protect myself. Thanks.

This isn’t the first time providers have entered in untrue and incorrect notes into Myhealthevet blue button medical notes. I just found another what is an incorrect entry in progress notes. Also what does a Vet do when he suspects that he may getting secretly targeted by mental health providers trying to discredit his disabilities? I can sense that this is what is exactly going on. Especially in the mental health clinic. The psychologists can’t even hide it well. This is why I usually avoid the VA for any kind of mental health treatment. Though I’ve started group, I have already felt the distain coming from the providers. One of them made a rude comment after I made a comment about a certain symptom she brought up to the group. This is endless. I know what they are up to. The exacerbation of existing symptoms as a result of all this, has been paralyzing to me. On my way to my last group recently I even got into a car crash because my mind was so distraught about having to attend the group. My experience with the mental health clinic over time, via my intuition and experiences, tells me that their primary, hidden purpose, is to try to discredit vets. Please advice. How should I proceed? Please advise. Thanks.