Christopher Robinson

I'm currently only at 10% for tinnitus, but a little insighy into my case.... when I came home from my deployment in Iraq in late 2005 my unit sent me to the VA because of the pain in my back I complained about while I was overseas and when I came home and mentioned it to the doctors at the demonization site. I went and saw my local VA, they examined me and said they believed it was due to my fallen archs on both of my feet so the referred me to get custom made inserts for my feet. They helped somewhat but didn't completely to the trick and I just took it as that and have dealt with the pain over the years. When I did mention to the doctors that I use to have arches in my feet they told me to go see a service officer while I was there, so I did and when I talked it over it with them they basically told me I had zero chance of getting approved ( this is when I was 21) so I just didn't bother with it. Fast forward a 5 year or so the pain thatvI have been dealing with has gotten worse and I start to visit the VA more for different treatments and but for the most part just deal with it still. About 6 years ago the pain was so bad I couldn't move at times but it would come and go. After talking g to a friend about it, hr suggested Chiropractic care, so with my own private insurance I decided to go get adjustment on my own but I also tell my VA doctor and they send me to physical therapy and finally take x-rays, the physical therapy helps somewhat but the Chiropractic adjustment helped more with pain and I'm able to move around a little more. After my co-payment started to become to much I asked the VA to start giving me Chiropractic care, also during this time they have the result of my x-rays and see I have two disc's in my lower back that were in bad shape (can't remember the exact medical terminology) and have degenerative disc disease. Now I work at the VA and after seeing what I saw and talking to other veterans about my case, I was told that the first service officer I saw when I first got back home told me bad info and I started the process of working on my claim. So the first step I tool was try to get my military records and reach out to my old unit and archives.gov and they both basically tell me they have nothing, so basically my unit lost my records. I talk to another service officer and tell them my story and they submit my claims, then COVID hit us and everything gets shut down, after about year of waiting they send me to a c&p exam for my hearing and feet but not for my back, they connect my tinnitus to my service, also my hearing loss but said it's bad enough to grant me any kind of rating but deny my back and feet issues. After talking to my service rep again, they said it was a bunch of bull, that the C&P exam said my fallen archive were due to my service and that my back issues should of been awarded too due to my records treatment but the VA said they had no records of me seeing then for the back and foot issues when I first came home from Iraq but suggested I do a HLR, so I submit it and I wait 4 months get my call, the person asks my why I think there were issues in my first decision, I tell them that I did see the VA when I came home from Iraq and that I also was seen at sick multiple times while I was on active duty for these issues but they were unable to find my records and I thought it was unfair I was denied just because my unit lost my records. The rep said they would look at my records and do their best to decide in my favor. A few days later I log into VA.hov and see they made a new decision on my HLR, that they found and error and was returning it for correct. After finding out it was a duty to assist error and that they found some records showing I had a profile for both issues while I was still in service and they used the wording that I had qualified events occurred while in service I thought I was all set but I guess not. I did talk to my service rep and they said I was in fact denied again and they were also confused as to why, that the correspondence they sent me, contradicts themselves and that the C&P exam also said my fallen arches were due to my service and for my back pain, even with the VA not having those records for when I first came home I still had records of a back pain profile when I was still in the military. They did say they were going to do something to see if they get the HLR overturned because of a new program when the VA makes an error, but if that doesn't work I should do a board appeal. On a side note, sorry for the long rant, it is just frustrating to deal with this and I thought I might be able to get some insight on what other may think or dealt with to maybe give me more strength to keep on fighting because at this point, I'm just woren out, not only for the ongoing pain I deal with but also dealing with the VA...also please excuse any spelling or grammar mistakes as I typed this on my phone, don't have a computer. Thanks again for any help/guidance people can give me.

I'm trying to get them rated as service connected. They denied them in my initial claim, so I did the HLR. The below was in a letter that I received in a decision letter from the higher level review and it said they needed to make a correction (the duty to assist error) before they could make a final decision. The way they worded it, it sounded like they were deciding in my favor but the HLR was closed and my rating wasn't increased. When I called the VA Regional Office they said that they couldn't tell me anything except that if they were rating it as service connected then I would see the change on my ebenefits right now. I still haven't received the final letter, so I guess I should wait but I was hoping to find out something The letter said there was a favorable finding for both and that a qualifying event, injury had an onset during my service and my service record shows I had a profile for both.

I haven't yet been approved as them both it being rated as service connected, they were both denied on my initial claim, so I submitted a HLR but it was just closed and I haven't actually gotten that decision letter yet but when I called they said if I were to get a service connected rating that I would see the percentage increase on my ebenefits page but beyond that they said they couldn't tell me anything and I had to wait for the letter. I guess I should wait for the letter before I say it was denied but with what they told me regarding ebenefits, that if i did get rated as service connected I would see it on my page I'm assuming that they were denied. I was trying to upload images to this post but it says it needs to be a URL, is there a different way to upload it? The letter says the following: 1. Higher Level Review for Lower Back Degenerative Disc Disease. The issue for lower back degenerative disc disease was returned for correction of a duty to assist error in the prior decision. We failed to get federal records. We will develop for a final notification letter. Favorable Findings identified in this decision: The evidence shows that a qualifying event, injury or disease had its onset during your service. Your service reserve treatment records show you had a low back pain profile as of January 2010. You have been diagnosed with a disability. You were diagnosed with degenerative disc disease at the VAMC on February 2018. 2. Higher Level Review for pes planus (claimed as bilateral fallen arches). The issue for pes planus was returned for correction of a duty to assist error in the prior decision. We failed to get federal records. We will develop for a final notification letter. Favorable Findings identified in this decision: The evidence shows that a qualifying event, injury or disease had its onset during your service. Your service reserve treatment records show you had a profile for pes planus as of January 2010. You have been diagnosed with a disability. You were diagnosed with pes planus at a VA Exam dated November 23, 2020. ( this was my C&P exam but I was I really was diagnosed early 2006 when the VA mad custom inserts for me but the VBA is telling me the VA don't have those records, so not only did the Army lose my records but also the VA)

I had my degenerative disc disease and flat feet bilateral claims denied, submitted a higher level review and a duty to assist error was found. The letter said there was a favorable finding for both and that a qualifying event, injury had an onset during my service and my service record shows I had a profile for both but yet still no increase in my percentage. They couldn't find really any of my records from when I was in the Army or from my deployment to Iraq and said my records were minimal at best. How is it my fault that the Army lost my records! I'm so sick of the VA and it's very discouraging to have to go to the next step of hiring a lawyer apply for the board appeal, its already been almost a year and a half, now this will take a least another year at best. Has anyone else had this happen to them as well? Any suggestions? One thing I was reading that I thought would help me is the presumptive law for my conditions being able to be tied to my service because I served in a war zone in Iraq also my C and P exam for my flat feet, the doctors said they condition was due to my service but I guess I'm wrong. Any help or direction from my fellow Veteran would be greatly appreciated.

I had my degenerative disc disease and flat feet bilateral claims denied, submitted a higher level review and a duty to assist error was found. The letter said there was a favorable finding for both and that a qualifying event, injury had an onset during my service and my service record shows I had a profile for both but yet still no increase in my percentage. They couldn't find really any of my records from when I was in the Army or from my deployment to Iraq and said my records were minimal at best. How is it my fault that the Army lost my records! I'm so sick of the VA and it's very discouraging to have to go to the next step of hiring a lawyer apply for the board appeal, its already been almost a year and a half, now this will take a least another year at best. Has anyone else had this happen to them as well? Any suggestions? One thing I was reading that I thought would help me is the presumptive law for my conditions being able to be tied to my service because I served in a war zone in Iraq also my C and P exam for my flat feet, the doctors said they condition was due to my service but I guess I'm wrong. Any help or direction from my fellow Veteran would be greatly appreciated.