ptsd Will I Lose My Benefits

[Sgt eve]

Hi, I have a question. I'm getting 30% for "Geralized anxiety disorder with depressive disorder" and my therapist and VA rep. told me that I needed to do a new claim for "PTSD" since that is also what my shrink diagnosed me as having. My question is, will they take away my current 30% disability comp. and say, "oh..... your Dr. said you have PTSD and that is the reason why you are depressed" then they can turn around and say they (VA) dosen't have enough evidence to support PTSD? Should I have not done a new claim? I'm thinking not and just be happy (lack of a better word) with what the VA gave me first time around.

Did I totally confuse you guys, lol. Thanks in advance for any help/advice in this matter.

[john999]

Sgt Eve

You know you have to have a verifiable stressor with PTSD. I don't see why you need to file for PTSD if you can get the same rating by sticking with the GAD and depression. You can get 100% for GAD or depression. However, if you have the proofs necessary for PTSD and your doctor is saying you are getting worse and will back you then why not. I don't think it will hurt your rating by changing diagnosis but you have to prove, more or less, that you suffered the stressor while in service and that you suffer from PTSD symptoms. My Vet Center counselor wanted me to submit a PTSD claim but I was already 30% SC for bipolar disorder. I just got an IMO saying my bipolar was worse and that I was IU because of it. The VA then gave me 70% and TDIU. Diagnosis is not the kicker but how your symptoms affect your daily life.

[Pete53]

I agree with John. I believe that PTSD is one of the hardest claims to get from the VA and it appears to me that it is getting even harder.

Are you able to work? Do you get Social Security Disability? If you won a PTSD claim at this time you would not have 2 ratings they would roll your current rating into it.

Good Luck

[Berta]

Sgt Eve -the VA sometimes will change a diagnosis because they might be able to provide better treatment for it-

I guess I mean of a vet has depression service connected- the VA treatment could focus on many things regarding depression-

PTSD however is a different ball game-

As long as they feel (and this is clearly stated in your med recs) that you have PTSD DUE to your service, then I dont see how this will hurt you at all-

Is the nexus for PTSD stressor the same as what the nexus was for the other diagnosis?

Other types of mental disabilities dont need a "stressor" as PTSD claims do but they still need proof of an event or etiology that caused the disability. I am sure you have already had that well established.

I dont think the change in diagnosis will hurt you-if based on your service- I am concerned at the 30% however-

do your medical records reveal that you fit into a higher rating?

The Schedule for Ratings is all here at hadit.

Perhaps if the diagnosis is changed it is due to a change that the VA docs have perceived-

and they might want to change your meds too---

and maybe the 30% is not an accurate reflection and this should be higher.

Maybe the docs want you to consider participating in a PTSD rap group?

and this is why the change?

I sure wouldn't worry veteran- as long as whatever the VA comps you for is directly related to your service, you should be OK.

[john999]

Sgt Eve

You know PTSD is just another form of anxiety disorder. You don't need to reinvent the wheel in your case. You just need to prove your symptoms have gotten worse. Every know-it-all VA doctor assumes anyone in a combat zone must have PTSD. This is just not the case and unless you have combat awards it is not that easy to prove the stressors. Some here have worked for years to prove non-combat stressors. If you walk into a Vet Center and tell them you are anxious and depressed and that you were in a combat zone they are going to send you off to chase the PTSD claim. Their diagnosis means squat unless you have a verifiable stressor.

[Jay Johnson]

PTSD is under the same classification as GAD; they are both anxiety disorders. As for your case specifically, if you feel you deserve a higher rating than file for an increase, but there's no need to change/add a diagnosis simply because a doctor said you have another one. In some cases, it is wise to get additional issues evaluated due to DIC compensation, but PTSD and GAD are the same issue and, coupled with depression, they all fall under the same category, so if you qualify for DIC under GAD/depression it will not change anything if you have PTSD as well.

However, if you can prove a stressor and you feel your condition has worsened then, by all means, file for an increase and put a claim in for PTSD. 30% isn't exactly a big deal...now, if you were 100% P&T with your current diagnosis, then I would probably advise against claiming PTSD.

[Sgt eve]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. But honestly I'm more confused now What If the VA says, "yeah, your Dr. said you have PTSD so we'll take back the 30% we gave you for GAD and depression and give you 0% for PTSD because even though 1 Dr. said you suffer from PTSD, the VA does not feel you have it all that bad". Basically I'm just worried that they'll take my initial 30% away. I knew I should have just left well enough alone. Well it's done now, I sent the claim in already with medical records and deployment information and have my appointment with VA dr's next week.