Jump to content

Ask Your VA Claims Questions | Read Current Posts 
Read VA Disability Claims Articles
Search | View All Forums | Donate | Blogs | New Users | Rules 

  • tbirds-va-claims-struggle (1).png

  • 01-2024-stay-online-donate-banner.png

     

  • 0

Day Treatment Question

Rate this question


Guest Jim S.

Question

This past week has been a very difficult one for me, spent three days on the Psych ward for suicidal idealations and severe depression with mild psycotic symtoms. They tweaked my meds a bit and I am now back home with my critters, Cat and Dog that is. Boy were they happy to see me and I them. I'm glad I opted to give them both self feeders and had left plenty of water out for them. I never know what will happen, so at least, I didn't have to worry about them in my absence.

The Dr's and Pyschiatrists want me to think about doing voluntary work at the VAMC to help get me out of the house and doing something constructive. I have some concerns with this type of program and how it might effect my SSDI, if it is shown that I can do more than my current disability picture shows.

Some of the programs pay a couple of dollars and hour to help defrey the cost of transportation to and from the VAMC.

Has anyone been in these programs and could they tell more about them and whether it may have had a negative impact, that is to say, your disability picture improved and they looked at this in determining your current benefits?

I don't know if I can physically handle a day, much less a few hours, I usually have to have a day or two to recuperate from my current trips in.

Anyway, just needs some info.

Jim S. B)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Answers 2
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters For This Question

Top Posters For This Question

2 answers to this question

Recommended Posts

  • HadIt.com Elder

Jim:

The nice thing about Volunteer work is that you can say no or limit what you can do to suit your own needs. The little that they pay is ok cause first of all you can earn for 9 months at a regular job and SSD still pays. Also they will probably not pay you near enough to go over the 700 or 800 a month that SSD allows you to earn with no change in status.

So the first thing is that you can do it without jeopardy to your SSD benefits and secondly its your choice. Don't forget that there are other things you can volunteer for also. A good friend of mine used to drag a big coffee pot around and offer free coffee to anyone who wanted it in the VA and said he loved doing it.

I think that what your Doc's have suggested would make you feel better about yourself. Good Luck.

Veterans deserve real choice for their health care.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jim,

One of my old VA shrinks suggested I do some volunteer work @ Bay Pines VA.

I checked into it and was told they ONLY want volunteers that will be very dependable and show up as scheduled.

With my multiple medical problems I am veiwed as non-dependable, therefore they did not want to make use of what I did have to offer - which would be showing up to help work as I was able and not on a set schedule.

The payment there for volunteers is a meal if you work a certain amount of hours during specific shifts.

OMO,

carlie

Carlie passed away in November 2015 she is missed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.


  • Tell a friend

    Love HadIt.com’s VA Disability Community Vets helping Vets since 1997? Tell a friend!
  • Recent Achievements

    • spazbototto earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Paul Gretza earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Troy Spurlock went up a rank
      Community Regular
    • KMac1181 earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • jERRYMCK earned a badge
      Week One Done
  • Our picks

    • These decisions have made a big impact on how VA disability claims are handled, giving veterans more chances to get benefits and clearing up important issues.

      Service Connection

      Frost v. Shulkin (2017)
      This case established that for secondary service connection claims, the primary service-connected disability does not need to be service-connected or diagnosed at the time the secondary condition is incurred 1. This allows veterans to potentially receive secondary service connection for conditions that developed before their primary condition was officially service-connected. 

      Saunders v. Wilkie (2018)
      The Federal Circuit ruled that pain alone, without an accompanying diagnosed condition, can constitute a disability for VA compensation purposes if it results in functional impairment 1. This overturned previous precedent that required an underlying pathology for pain to be considered a disability.

      Effective Dates

      Martinez v. McDonough (2023)
      This case dealt with the denial of an earlier effective date for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) 2. It addressed issues around the validity of appeal withdrawals and the consideration of cognitive impairment in such decisions.

      Rating Issues

      Continue Reading on HadIt.com
      • 0 replies
    • I met with a VSO today at my VA Hospital who was very knowledgeable and very helpful.  We decided I should submit a few new claims which we did.  He told me that he didn't need copies of my military records that showed my sick call notations related to any of the claims.  He said that the VA now has entire military medical record on file and would find the record(s) in their own file.  It seemed odd to me as my service dates back to  1981 and spans 34 years through my retirement in 2015.  It sure seemed to make more sense for me to give him copies of my military medical record pages that document the injuries as I'd already had them with me.  He didn't want my copies.  Anyone have any information on this.  Much thanks in advance.  
      • 4 replies
    • Caluza Triangle defines what is necessary for service connection
      Caluza Triangle – Caluza vs Brown defined what is necessary for service connection. See COVA– CALUZA V. BROWN–TOTAL RECALL

      This has to be MEDICALLY Documented in your records:

      Current Diagnosis.   (No diagnosis, no Service Connection.)

      In-Service Event or Aggravation.
      Nexus (link- cause and effect- connection) or Doctor’s Statement close to: “The Veteran’s (current diagnosis) is at least as likely due to x Event in military service”
      • 0 replies
    • Do the sct codes help or hurt my disability rating 
    • VA has gotten away with (mis) interpreting their  ambigious, , vague regulations, then enforcing them willy nilly never in Veterans favor.  

      They justify all this to congress by calling themselves a "pro claimant Veteran friendly organization" who grants the benefit of the doubt to Veterans.  

      This is not true, 

      Proof:  

          About 80-90 percent of Veterans are initially denied by VA, pushing us into a massive backlog of appeals, or worse, sending impoverished Veterans "to the homeless streets" because  when they cant work, they can not keep their home.  I was one of those Veterans who they denied for a bogus reason:  "Its been too long since military service".  This is bogus because its not one of the criteria for service connection, but simply made up by VA.  And, I was a homeless Vet, albeit a short time,  mostly due to the kindness of strangers and friends. 

          Hadit would not be necessary if, indeed, VA gave Veterans the benefit of the doubt, and processed our claims efficiently and paid us promptly.  The VA is broken. 

          A huge percentage (nearly 100 percent) of Veterans who do get 100 percent, do so only after lengthy appeals.  I have answered questions for thousands of Veterans, and can only name ONE person who got their benefits correct on the first Regional Office decision.  All of the rest of us pretty much had lengthy frustrating appeals, mostly having to appeal multiple multiple times like I did. 

          I wish I know how VA gets away with lying to congress about how "VA is a claimant friendly system, where the Veteran is given the benefit of the doubt".   Then how come so many Veterans are homeless, and how come 22 Veterans take their life each day?  Va likes to blame the Veterans, not their system.   
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Guidelines and Terms of Use