Voluntary Commitment...

[Sidney56]

Hey guys, just wanted some advice on a decision I need to make today. My mental state has been rapidly declining lately, and I think I need to get some in house treatment quickly. My mood changes are occurring more frequently and my family is scared of what the next out burst will bring.

A friend of the family told me that I need to check myself into the hospital for evaluation and possible treatment. That sounds okay, as I am willing to do whatever it takes to get some help to rid myself of this pain, mentally and physically. Each time that I go to my PCP, I'm treated for everything, except what my complaints are. I went to the clinic last week and the nurse told me to return to the emergency room if things got worse. He set an appointment to see my PCP on the 19th, but I really don't think that I can wait until then.

I am taking Citalopram Hydrobromide(40 mg), but it has no effect whatsoever. I am starting to have hallucinations and have not had any sleep going on 2 days. My nerves are shot and I don't remember anything that I do 5 minutes afterwards.

My problem is, I don't know what to expect when I try to check myself into the hospital. I have heard so many horror stories about checking into the mental ward for observation and I am having second thoughts. Could someone give me some insight as how to handle this situation. Whatever decision I make has to be asap.

Thanks

[carlie]

Hey guys, just wanted some advice on a decision I need to make today. My mental state has been rapidly declining lately, and I think I need to get some in house treatment quickly. My mood changes are occurring more frequently and my family is scared of what the next out burst will bring.

Sidney - it takes a strong and caring person to be able to admit their family is scared

and it sounds like you may also be scared.

A friend of the family told me that I need to check myself into the hospital for evaluation and possible treatment. That sounds okay, as I am willing to do whatever it takes to get some help to rid myself of this pain, mentally and physically. Each time that I go to my PCP, I'm treated for everything, except what my complaints are. I went to the clinic last week and the nurse told me to return to the emergency room if things got worse. He set an appointment to see my PCP on the 19th, but I really don't think that I can wait until then.

If you go to the ER - I would either take a family member or your friend of the family

with you. Is your PCP trying to treat your mental health problems on their own

or are you also in touch with a MH professional, such as one on one or group therapy ?

You also mentioned physical pain - do you recieve RX meds to help your pain ?

I am taking Citalopram Hydrobromide(40 mg), but it has no effect whatsoever. I am starting to have hallucinations and have not had any sleep going on 2 days. My nerves are shot and I don't remember anything that I do 5 minutes afterwards.

I am no doctor or pharm tech - but the PDR says this RX is for depression and I don't

think that's all you need help with if you are having hallucinations and no sleep for 2 days.

The lack of restful sleep can result in several additional problems.

My problem is, I don't know what to expect when I try to check myself into the hospital. I have heard so many horror stories about checking into the mental ward for observation and I am having second thoughts. Could someone give me some insight as how to handle this situation. Whatever decision I make has to be asap.

If the only medical contact you have for now is your PCP, you may want to go to their office and see if they can be of more assistance, again, take someone with you.

The only thing that bothered me about being on the flight deck was I am a female

and MOST of the other inpatient's were male.

I will tell you, in all cases I know of they will hang onto your street clothes and give you

VA jammies to wear for the first day or two - the food is regular hospital food - and you will need to kind of earn priviledges like going out in a group to have a smoke, (if you smoke).

If you feel you are a danger to yourself or others, then I think you should surely seek additional help. This would be good too for getting any medications available to help you

if that is your decision.

Good luck - you and your family deserve to feel safe.

jmho,

carlie

Thanks

[LarryJ]

I am in TOTAL agreement with Carlie!

Do it, and do it NOW! (if you haven't already).

[Pete53]

Sidney:

When you are in the state you are in going ionto the Hospital will seem like a blessing to you.

Good Luck

I did it once and probably best thing I did in many years.

[Sidney56]

Hi Guys,

I just wanted to give an update to my struggle and thank you for your replies. This may be a little long, but I will try to make it as short as possible. Blame any mistakes on the all the meds they have me on.

I checked into the hospital for a couple of weeks and the experience was not as bad as I thought it would be. I did receive some help, but was mostly just sedated most of the time. I think they just went through the motions for the most part. I had a doctor that made 5 minute rounds each morning and asked the same questions each time, then ordered more meds. Social worker suggested that I need to look into a day care center so as not to be left home alone after discharge, as my wife works and that is the only income that we have. When I asked her how I was suppose to pay for this, she had no suggestions, except to check with community organizations.

After discharge, I was scheduled to follow up with a psychiatrist whom I had not met during my hospitalization. She seemed very concerned and subscribed Divalproex and Haloperidol, and scheduled a follow up. She also suggested that I have some sort of home care set up, and file for NC disability. I told her I am not eligible for SSD because I don't have enough work credits. I have not worked since 2004. She said to file for SSI, but I have been denied for that also a couple of years back. Reason being, wife makes too much. She doesn't even make enough to pay all the bills when due. My wife couldn't attend that appointment, because she could not afford to take off work. Psychiatrist said she must talk with her to verify my behavior at home. She did call my wife that same night around 8 PM. Surprised me. She told my wife to make sure that I take the meds subscribed and contact her if things got worse.

I had a follow up yesterday and explained that the meds were not working. She said that she would only talk to my wife again, so she could discuss a new med treatment and verify again as for the changes observed by family. She said that she was entering in my records that I am unemployable due to my mental condition and need some type of home health care asap. She did enter it, because she actually showed it to me. She stated that she would do whatever needed to convince the VA that I need some help with my living arrangement and medical condition. She called my wife again tonight, but we had not made it home in time to receive the call. She said she would call back today(Saturday), to discuss with my wife what she needs her to do on her end to help.

She keeps asking what else she can do to help, but we don't know what to tell her. Should we ask her to write the VARO a letter stating her position, as my claim is at the board now awaiting a decision for an increase due to my mental condition and also IU. I called the 800 number a couple of days ago, and was told that they are awaiting a response from the Social Security dept. I also submitted an inquiry through IRIS and received the following reply today:

Response (Department of Veterans Affairs) 07/17/2009 12:27 PM

Dear Mr. McLean:

This is in response to your inquiry.

We show that your claim is currently pending in the development stage. Once your claim leaves the development stage it will then go to the rating board where we review your file and make a decision on service connection and disability percentages. We are unable to give you a timeline when they will review your file as we do not know their caseload. After a rating has been established, your file will go to the authorization department for verification and review. The claims process can be lengthy due to the many processes and the time we must allow for information to be sent to us from you or obtained by us on your behalf from outside sources.

Once you have been approved a rating you will be paid retroactively to the date you became entitled to benefits based on the claim currently being processed. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work our way through the claims processing procedures. You will receive notification via US Mail once your claim has been finalized. Your notification letter will explain our decision in detail.

Thank you for contacting us. If you have questions or need additional help with the information in our reply, please respond to this message or see our other contact information below.

Sincerely yours,

E. J. Kruse

National IRIS Response Center Manager

akt

How to Contact VA:

On line:

www.va.gov

By phone:

(800) 827-1000

(800) 829-4833 (TDD hearing impaired)

By fax:

(336) 714-0651

By letter:

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Winston-Salem VA Regional Office

Federal Bldg.

251 N. Main St.

Winston-Salem, NC 27155

Looks like a form letter to me. Does anyone have any suggestions on what we should do? I also had a CT Scan yesterday and was given some type of device for ED. Here are just some of the meds that they have me on:

Haloperidol

Divalproex

Gemfibrozil

Hydrochlorothiazide

Bupropion

Butalbital

Hydroxyzine Pamoate

Lisinopril

Potassium Chloride

Simvastatin

Vardenafil HCL

There are some others, but the list and too long and my meds are starting to kick in. Any feedback would be very much appreciated.

[Berta]

If the mental condition is the 20% you have now- and if it is in a Pending claim for higher rating-

"She said that she was entering in my records that I am unemployable due to my mental condition and need some type of home health care asap." this would help get you TDIU amd possible Aid and attendance---

As long as there is an establish

[Sidney56]

If the mental condition is the 20% you have now- and if it is in a Pending claim for higher rating-

"She said that she was entering in my records that I am unemployable due to my mental condition and need some type of home health care asap." this would help get you TDIU amd possible Aid and attendance---

As long as there is an establish

Thanks Berta for your quick response. The 20% is, 10% for TBI(head injury) and 10% for residuals. I hope I understand what you are saying. I filed a claim for mental conditions secondary to TBI a few years back. I have been through a few NODS and it was just remanded from BVA to AMC for redevelopment about 4-5 months ago. I think I have my times correct. I was told that 10% is the highest rating given for head injuries, so I filed a NOD in 2006 I think, and was awarded for residuals. I hope all this makes sense.

Do you think that a letter from my VA psychiatrist will help, or just her notes that she entered yesterday will be suffice? She has not called yet, we are awaiting the call now. I have never heard of a doctor calling a patient on a weekend, especially from the VA. She seems to want to help as she stated.

What does " as long as there is an establish" mean?

Edited July 18, 2009 by Sidney56 (see edit history)

[Pete53]

Since you have a diagnosed mental condition you should ask SSD to reopen your claim and use 2004 date you stopped working to go back and do your work credits. You would probably qualify and get a lot of back pay.If it was me I would go to Social Security Office and ask for help.

It never ceases to amaze me how many are cheated out of earned SSD benefits cause no one tells them.

I would also concentrate my efforts on Social Security as they work faster than VA.

Good Luck

[Sidney56]

Since you have a diagnosed mental condition you should ask SSD to reopen your claim and use 2004 date you stopped working to go back and do your work credits. You would probably qualify and get a lot of back pay.If it was me I would go to Social Security Office and ask for help.

It never ceases to amaze me how many are cheated out of earned SSD benefits cause no one tells them.

I would also concentrate my efforts on Social Security as they work faster than VA.

Good Luck

Hey Pete my friend....was wondering when I would hear from you. Knew it wouldn't be long.;)

I didn't know that I could do that. I had an appointment with a law firm that is suppose to be the best and specializes in social security in my state. When I told them that I had received my yearly statement from the ss dept stating that I did not have enough credits to file for SSD, I was told that they could not help me, because I had not paid anything in, so the law states that I could not receive disability payments. Shouldn't they have known that?

Thanks my friend. Will start on that first thing Monday morning!

PS: Here is what was said on my last benefits statement from SS:

"To get benefits if you become disabled now, right now, you need 31 credits of work, and 20 of these credits had to be earned in the last 10 years. Your records shows you do not have enough credits in the right time period."

If they would go back to 2004, this would be my income history. I think they state that you can earn up to 4 credits a year, depending on income. Not sure if this would add up to the amount I need. Looks like I still may be short.

2004......19,085

2003......6,267

2002......0

2001......0

2000......0

1999......0

1998......0

1997......297

1996......26,116

1995......15,239

Edited July 18, 2009 by Sidney56 (see edit history)

[Pete53]

You are also supposed to get credit for each quarter you were in the Military. May be a squeaker but needs to be looked at.

[Sidney56]

You are also supposed to get credit for each quarter you were in the Military. May be a squeaker but needs to be looked at.

Not sure I understand Pete. I was in the military in the early '70.

[Pete53]

Social Security is supposed to give you credit for each quarter you served in Military during that period. It is not limited by time so if you served 2 years you would be entitled to 8 quarters credit. It can help you and is often over looked.You really need to talk to someone who understands this better than I

[WHOLESALE]

Yep yep, you pay taxes in the military just like any other job.

Frank

Social Security is supposed to give you credit for each quarter you served in Military during that period. It is not limited by time so if you served 2 years you would be entitled to 8 quarters credit. It can help you and is often over looked.You really need to talk to someone who understands this better than I

[Sidney56]

Social Security is supposed to give you credit for each quarter you served in Military during that period. It is not limited by time so if you served 2 years you would be entitled to 8 quarters credit. It can help you and is often over looked.You really need to talk to someone who understands this better than I

Thanks Pete....I will look into that. Guess I will call that law firm back and put this to them. Baffles me why they didn't know this. May be someone on here will see this thread and give me some feedback.

Do you mean to tell me that there is something that you don't have knowledge about ;)

Thanks

[Sidney56]

Thanks Pete....I will look into that. Guess I will call that law firm back and put this to them. Baffles me why they didn't know this. May be someone on here will see this thread and give me some feedback.

Do you mean to tell me that there is something that you don't have knowledge about :P

Thanks

Talked with the SS office today and was told the following:

"You don't have enough credits to file for disability, and if we did add your credits for military service, you would still not have enough credits. We don't base our decision on when you say you were unable to work, but when we have a doctor's diagnoses stating the date you were unable to work. Then we go back 10 years from that date. You are not eligible for SSI either because your household income is above the threshold set by law."

My doctor only entered into my records that I am unemployable due to my mental condition last month. I guess this means that SS is out of the question.

Edited August 4, 2009 by Sidney56 (see edit history)

[Pete53]

No it means you need to get a Doc to use the date that you last were able to work and back it up with Social Security Earnings report. I am saying that you can get SS

Don't you dare give up. They just did you a favor and told you exactly what is needed.

Appeal the decision and go see a Doc to make it right.

[Sidney56]

No it means you need to get a Doc to use the date that you last were able to work and back it up with Social Security Earnings report. I am saying that you can get SS

Don't you dare give up. They just did you a favor and told you exactly what is needed.

Appeal the decision and go see a Doc to make it right.

Well I'm up banging my head against the wall because another sleepless night.

Thanks for the reply Pete. I forgot to inform you, that last year a relative hired me as a independent contractor, just so I could have a few dollars to help with the bills. Really didn't do anything,except answer the phone a few times a day. That project has ended. She is working on an out of state project now, so don't have that opportunity anymore. My accountant filed my 1099 income taxes showing $5000 as my income. Won't that show up on my Social Security Earnings report, therefore, me not being able to use an earlier date as not being able to work? Don't worry if you can't answer, I can contact my accountant if need be. He's very good. Use to work with the IRS, but quit because of some of their tactics.

The lady at the SS office was very adamant about those credits though. Do you know of someone that has gotten approved for SS without having enough credits to qualify?

I have an appointment with my psych next Thursday, and if anyone will write that letter, she probably will. If they require a treatment history dating back to 2004, I don't know how that would be handled.

I guess I'll do some pacing, maybe I can tire myself, so I can get a couple hours sleep.

[Pete53]

Five thousand dollars can be cover come if you got paid over a year and did not go over the SS Max.

Very important do not get distracted.

You need a Doc to certify and earlier date that will include the amount of quarters you need.That is the main thing.

Also if your relative can write a letter that the 5000 was paid for a project that you worked on for a year.

[Sidney56]

Five thousand dollars can be cover come if you got paid over a year and did not go over the SS Max.

Very important do not get distracted.

You need a Doc to certify and earlier date that will include the amount of quarters you need.That is the main thing.

Also if your relative can write a letter that the 5000 was paid for a project that you worked on for a year.

Yea Pete, the earnings were for about a years work. I will talk to the doc next week about a certification date. I first need to figure out what that date is myself.

Will keep on top of things Pete.

[Pete53]

If I can help let me know.

Pete

[Sidney56]

If I can help let me know.

Pete

I am sending a Form 21-4138 with the progress notes from my psychiatrist attached, stating her diagnoses of me not being employable and needing home health care. My claim is in the development stage, according to the iris report posted earlier. Claim was remanded by BVA to the AMC for development.

My question is: do I need to include Form 21-4142 as an enclosure?

I am doing this because I don't trust the VARO to collect all the relevant documents needed to make a decision on my claim for an increase in rating in the evaluation of my mental disorder claim, including IU.