cowgirl

Yee Haw!! Congrats Rock, yes its sort of early to count the chickens, but I am sure thrilled with this first giant step for you after all this time!! Speaking of chickens, only once did I get anything near the amount expected from the va after sc. Vocational Rehab is available at 10%, not sure but if I recall you have 12 years to use or lose this 'benefit'. All the best to ya, CG'up!

Okie Dokie! Good news for your well earned efforts to get whats due you. I hope you get great health care, you deserve the best. I salute you. cg

Thanks for the reminder Carlie, win-win advice! cg

Berta, you are very correct about claiming each and every condition for potential SC. I was told to do that but needed guidance how to do it right. I missed years of sc not using closest medical terms, diagnosis description and or current diagnosis. Years later, still reworking original claim with declining health. I am the only one that reads my smrs, Cfile, va med records for details and sc disabilities. I learned to avoid "military whitewash' thinking. During outprocess, sure signed tons of papers without clue to future effect. Thought someone had my back covered, but learned being 'out of' service is a foreign world. If I got a restart, I'd "Question and research before sigining" outprocessing forms, suspense dates are someone elses responsibility. Bottom LINE - service connect cardio conditions ASAP with good IMO. cg .

THanks ricky, good advice as usual for this ole cg. ha ha!

Got a increased rating for sc issue. The rating information I've found is exactly the same for the issue when first claimed and now. This sc issue I've had for years was rated to date of discharge but I believe at a wrong low %. My approach - claim for EED explaining & showing the va Imo reports then & now read exactly same for that condition. The rating criteria, as far as I can find, hasn't changed and the increased rating shows the lower rating was wrong from start. Am I right to proceed with claim for EED fix? or should I go CUE? (may have asked this before, but double checkin ole cg here) thanks, cg

Thanks Rental, no need to apologize for taking care of yourself and family! Hope it all smooths out into a calm process for you. Got your points re Imo, and as you can see, the battle is on! I have detailed medical notes, signed by mil, va and contracted doctors. I believe all test results read the same, meet the same criteria c&p doc used CFR 38-4. Because of c&p doc helped bring this issue to light, I'm in treatment I shoulda had from day of discharge years ago! Lord willin and that creek don't rise, the IMO, notes and my description will support my claim. Uh, my goof on date of increase, it was date of va test result a ways back, unassociated with c&p for tdiu. Ya know what? They goofed up first, showed me that they did, now my life is changed overnight. Meds and worries, along with a new attitude. I didnt get care or compensation as needed from the starting gate! But hold on, cause yer gonna see a Cowgirl fly...~ ~ ~ !. Cg,up!

Larry, is this Federal or state? rebate or taxes? Thanks, wonder how many hits this topic will get? Ha, cg

Unemployment is a definite something you want to look into. Maybe a time limit, Best to ya, cg

Congratulations and bless you both! Feel free to share what ya learned, it may help a vet here or there! Take good care of yourselves, Cg'up!

John, you're doin good asking questions. I'm not medical, but maybe check your private doctor with a copy of that echo, any notes and clincians guide, rating criteria too. Just a thought. Found this on web search dunno if it applies...Echo: test that measures the fraction of blood pumped or ejected from the heart with each beat. this measurement is ejection fraction, which can be measured with a heart ultrasound called an echocardiogram or "echo." A healthy heart pumps about one-half of the blood it holds with each beat. A normal ejection fraction is 50-55%. A reduced ejection fraction indicates that a cardiomyopathy is present Best to ya, Cg!

Timetowin, good to see you! Thank you, Sandbox, best wishes and Berta you are always informative! Time, that was a long time for you, 12-14 yrs, your psych doc earned their wings. Thank you sincerely for your service. Checking my short 'ought to be sc' list, tbi question nags at me. Smrs show patient with possible concussion admitted to 2 different mil hosp's for 'observation' within 24 hours. No flags to tbi to any other visits forward. Neuropsych exam, is that lengthy? - putting pegs in holes, other odd tests, childhood questions and how long I could sit in a chair answering? IF so, had va exam like that with 1st claim. Clown wrote 'probable' diagnosis of nsc Pd. ha. n.s.c = non 'service' compensable, better definition. Other sc ratings are in, but I feel tbi need sc. Oh, concussion (aka,tbi) was listed on first claim years ago. Way back then, didnt know how to va proof the claim, appealed a few issues for sc, but most were denied. Fast forward to past few years, realized I've 'hadit' with ignorance and am catching up. Thanks again, Cg

Amen and congratulations on getting whats due you! We know it shouldnt have taken so long to get to you and your loved ones. You are an inspiration~! Best to ya, Cg

John, did you get an EF rate too? What you have described is believable and unbelievable. If the VA diagnosed Arterioclerotic thats a heart disease, isnt it? I found CFR 38 and 4.104 Schedule of ratings—cardiovascular system. Diseases of the Heart7005 Arteriosclerotic heart disease (Coronary artery disease): 4.104 very interesting... Best to ya, guess you're gonna get cardio exam notes in order, private & va, sure helps. Found unshared results I didnt know a thing about in my va med file or smr's when searching. Then I scratch my head and wish private insurance for vets with disabilities, less combat injuries that deserve only the best Class A care. cg

Thanks jbasser, I will also ask the doc that can write the imo to do just that. I'm just oooohhh mad, nervous and out of words for my feelings......! Wonder if I should just ask for p/t?? Again thanks for the reminder for IU. yours, cg

Thanks Pete, I intend to do the 'narrative' asap. But got the vcaa letter, not sure if I should go with 'decide' now or go over '30' try to get every lil detail together. I have lots of information as I sit here. All signed by doctors or listed in my va med file. But I dont have independent IMO statement as of yet. Think its best I get one - eh?? I feel under 30 days best for this one. cg

Carlie, I'd send ya flowers if I could. Got the attach url and skimmed it, thank you. I have proof of mil hospitalization. but that was prior to seperation. Would that be informal? OR other than that I did add it to my first VA claim in blacknwhite! After the denial, I appealed and got it sc. Have to check the dates to be exact. Meanwhile the Va watched me for the issue occasionally. Me? Didnt know sc % was wrong ..oooh - just smak me now! Checked current vcaa letter, says 'if we grant your claim...the beginning date of your entitlement or increased entitlement to benefits will 'generally' be based on factors ...when we recieved your claim (even if filed w/va 1 yr from service sep.when the evidence shows level of disability that supports rating.) or 'when the evidence shows a level of disability the supports a certain rating under the rating sched (same ole same ole) Now get this in "reasons for Decision" Reviewed decision and it says eval of X % is assigned the date when medical evidence establishes an increased evaluation of this disability is warranted. The regulation and diagnosis has not changed. It is one and the same. Just this c&p doc notes described the exact condition and diagnosis in detail since discharge, so the % was corrected UP but only from the day of my recent tdiu app. Again thanks, I will be writing and detailing my response alot this week. cg'UP! .

John, I glanced over your posts here and feel for you. Glad to see you at Hadit and keep yer chin up. Are you currently SC for depression? My story, on a visit to VA php (flu shot time), intake interview asked 'are your or have you been depressed', a standard question. Stunned me somehow, said 'uh,,yes', got immediate consult. After a few visits, VA psych diagnosed years of depression re military service events. The diagnosis resulted in psych notes in VA med records. Hadit family helped w/stressors, what, when, and how to 'clearly' present for a much needed claim. A while later, % compensation and continued va care. (THANKS Hadit!). When va php, psych or any doc asks, my truthful response is Yes. Now its occasional counseling, some meds and continued compensation for chronic Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Hard work but a good difference in being here for my family. Best to ya, cg (sc lumbar, d3, veins, etc..)

Dicktracy, are you sc for the sleep issues also? If VA doesnt offer a service, say a sleep clinic, you could request a consult. Brotherinlaw* used sleep clinic in his town, worked - so far so good. (*he is on heart, depression meds. etc) Best to ya, cg

Kookie, one more mention, regards dependents it took va over a year to compensate the dependents after I got my 30% rating and pay. Hope you have already added birth/marriage certification into the system! cg

Kookie good for you! You are getting there and Betty (aka Joesphine!) is the best and Determined, er, did I mention very determined! wow, what successes! I am too concerned about a few rating issues in, but have learned a few times over its hard to 'count' the compensation up front, there are so many 'exceptions'. Kookie, again, good for you and best wishes on your pursuits! Cg

OIC, va test results are rarely shared anyway and I didn't get needed treatment. It's my turn. H o o - R a h! & Thank you John. CG'up!

This is good discussion and yes, I'll decide to take a prescibed medicine or not. If I fill the script, I'll use it or say why not, just my way. Been on new meds and told to take another 'new' power med asap? Just got a 60% rating correction. Put in eed claim for the lost decade (I'm mad ,really mad...years of lost care, compensation, etc. !!) IF power med helps alot, Halleleujah, for me and family! But if I'm better, the rating may change. yikes. well ok. My concern, If the newly achieved corrected rating changes; could this affect the EED claim? thanks for reading my worries and gripes, cg'up!

Thanks Betty and Betrayed, I am going after the IMO! I'm fuzzy, stunned and very anxious just now. The clock is on, vcaa form letter arrived, no specific details, only if we need help getting medical records from 'other' sources its my responsibility.... Yup, I got a huge increase. But get this, the date was retro'd only a few years back to the c&p date, c&p was for tdiu. C&p dr notes caused rating to be corrected. So they even showed me the light! So I am on meds, getting regular care, reading the regs, frontwards/backwards. I continue to see my diagnosis & rating are exactly the same, then and now. The sc rating within the year I departed the service wasnt easy, denied, then got imo, was rated minimally. I didnt know regs or anything, thought all was ok and continued casually on with no major worries. Now with this new rating, I see I didnt know better, poor or no representation, and I believe I've (and my family) have been seriously shortchanged since the beginning. With irregular occasional monitoring by va in the last decade , I'm extremely concerned about the 'what ifs'. What if this or that? Guess I'm not only worried, but mad too. So, no they did not retro the date to the first claim for the condition. Now, I've gone back for eed to fix that. one more thing, meds are scripted by civ doc and issued by va. Once I heard that meds needed to be written by va doc to 'really' matter in situations like this. Not sure if thats a bit paranoid thinking on my part. Sometimes I feel so clueless and sometimes very connected. Thanks for responding and I just hope some of this makes sense, cg

Congratulations to you and thanks for the inspiration! I am glad you got 'your due' and hope this eases your back a bit. Best to ya! cg