LadyVet

RLS may be related to your kidney issues. “ Co-Existing Conditions There are several conditions which can accompany or may be linked to restless leg syndrome: End-stage renal disease Iron deficiency Neuropathy Use of certain medications(including antinausea medications, antipsychotic medications, antidepressants, and allergy medication) Use of alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine Pregnancy Sleep Apnea” Also, RLS can lead to fatigue if it keeps you awake at night. So, consider RLS secondary to CKD, then fatigue secondary to RLS. As far as the SMC, which criteria do you fall under? Are you considering loss of use of both feet? Or another criteria? They could come back with L 1/2 if your condition causes loss of use of both feet and you have added rating of more than 50%. “ You may receive an SMC-L 1/2 designation if any of these situations are true for you: You’ve had one foot and the other knee amputated, or You’ve had one foot amputated, and have lost the use of the other knee, or You’ve had one foot and one elbow amputated, or You’ve had one foot amputated, and have lost the use of one elbow, or You’ve had one knee and one hand amputated, or You’ve had one knee amputated, and have lost the use of one hand Or: You’ve lost the use of one foot, and have had the other knee amputated, or You’ve lost the use of one foot, and have had one elbow amputated, or You’ve lost the use of one foot and one elbow, or You’ve lost the use of one knee, and have had one hand amputated, or You’ve lost the use of one knee and one hand Or: You have blindness in one eye and total blindness in the other eye with only the ability to perceive light, or You have blindness in both eyes, and have lost the use of one foot (rated as less than 50% disabling), or You have blindness in both eyes, and have total deafness in one ear Or both of these are true: You have a disability or situation listed in the SMC-L designation, and You have one or more additional permanent disabilities rated as 50% or more disabling” “ You may receive an SMC-M 1/2 designation if any of these situations are true for you: You’ve had one knee amputated, and have had one leg amputated so close to the hip that you can’t wear a prosthesis, or You’ve had one knee amputated, and have had one arm amputated so close to the shoulder that you can’t wear a prosthesis, or You’ve had one elbow amputated, and have had one leg amputated so close to the hip that you can’t wear a prosthesis, or You’ve had one hand and one elbow amputated, or You’ve had one hand amputated, and have lost the use of one elbow Or: You’ve lost the use of one knee, and have had one leg amputated so close to the hip that you can’t wear a prosthesis, or You’ve lost the use of one knee, and have had one arm amputated so close to the shoulder that you can’t wear a prosthesis, or You’ve lost the use of one elbow, and have had one leg amputated so close to the hip that you can’t wear a prosthesis, or You’ve lost of use of one hand, and have had one elbow amputated, or You’ve lost the use of one hand and of one elbow Or you have total blindness with only the ability to perceive light: In one eye, and have physically lost the other eye, or In one eye, and have total blindness without the ability to perceive light in the other eye, or In both eyes, and have lost the use of one foot (rated as less than 50% disabling) Or you have blindness in one eye, and: You’ve physically lost the other eye, and have total deafness in one ear, or You have total blindness without the ability to perceive light in the other eye, and have total deafness in one ear, or You have total blindness with only the ability to perceive light in the other eye, and have deafness in both ears (rated as 30% or more disabling), or You have total blindness with only the ability to perceive light in the other eye, and have had one foot amputated, or You have total blindness with only the ability to perceive light in the other eye, and have lost the use of one foot (rated as 50% or more disabling), or You have total blindness with only the ability to perceive light in the other eye, and have had one hand amputated, or You have total blindness with only the ability to perceive light in the other eye, and have lost the use of one hand Or: You have blindness in both eyes and total deafness in one ear, or You have blindness in both eyes that requires you to have daily help with basic needs (like eating, bathing, and dressing), and have lost the use of one foot (rated as less than 50% disabling) Or both of these are true: You have a disability or situation listed in the SMC-M designation, and You have one or more additional permanent disabilities rated as 50% or more disabling” I hope this helps! I would wait for a few things to be sorted out since they are required to consider you for SMC based on your conditions. In the meantime keep seeing the doctor and complaining about all of the conditions for which you are applying for compensation. Blessings, Lisa C

You’re correct. Your policy must already exist when you’re awarded 100% P&T, in order to apply for the premium waiver. Also, they no longer accept applications for those policies since the new veterans life insurance came out.

I didn’t have any military buddy statement either. Most of us had no idea we might need evidence later. Why would we be thinking about that? Most recent veterans wouldn’t seek help with PTSD symptoms out of fear of being medically discharged. The VA needs to relax in regards to combat combat injuries; both physical and stress related. Unfortunately, expensive independent medical opinions are often needed and the cost is up front. I’m grateful that I was able to establish service-connection without that. However, when I was severely underrated by the VA, I paid for an outside medical opinion to apply for an increase, which was granted. So in my case, it was absolutely worth it. It’s not a guarantee it will help though. I’ll never forget the frustration and anger I felt for so many years. The VBA and VHA are completely separated, yet you can’t get your VA doc to write a nexus letter; even more frustrating since they’re the ones that know you best.

I’m sorry to hear about your struggles. It does feel like they don’t really care about us. Since you don’t have much in-service medical evidence, check your medical records within 12 months after your date of separation. https://www.va.gov/disability/eligibility/illnesses-within-one-year-of-discharge/ You can also try scouring you emails, letters, diaries, your military personnel records, and statements from buddies and family. As an example, after 30 years of denials, I went through every scrap of paper I had from the military. I found two hand-written quarterly performance reports that they use to write the annual performance reports that had been inserted into my training file, which they gave me to hand carry to my final assignment. I never turned them in. These were the key to my service-connection because they showed clear changes in behavior and were dated and signed. Another kind of evidence required, is a current diagnosis and evidence that you’ve been seeking treatment for the condition. So, you can see, the evidence you submit should tell the full story. Look for clues in your denial letters. They almost always tell you what evidence you provided that is beneficial, then often will let you know what evidence is missing. I have spent hours and hours reading at VA.gov and every second of it was worth it when I was finally service-connected. It felt like a huge weight lifted and I was finally vindicated. Most of all, don’t give up!

Great, thanks!

I haven’t heard of any if those. I don’t think I’ll be a good fit for podcast either. However, I’m great at research

Hi Tbird, lots of good news! I’d be interested in helping with research and maybe podcast. I’ll try to going the meeting Saturday. Lisa C