Jump to content
VA Disability Community via Hadit.com

VA Disability Claims Articles

Ask Your VA Claims Question | Current Forum Posts Search | Rules | View All Forums
VA Disability Articles | Chats and Other Events | Donate | Blogs | New Users

  • homepage-banner-2024-2.png

  • donate-be-a-hero.png

  • 0

Men And Mst

Rate this question


carl1124

Question

Up till about a 2 week ago I have never talk about this, but it has affected my life with ever thing I do. I was 20 I was station in Diego Garcia. I was sitting on the beach when I was Sexual assault by two men. After that I started drinking hard and end up in Rehab for 6 weeks. I still did not talk about then I was a fearfully that I would get kick out of the Navy for being nuts or homosexual, "Please remember that was 1986 and the Military was on the hunt for any one that might be gay". I am unable to hold a job for 2 years at time and now take Citalopram for depression. At times my depression is so bad I think it would be easier if I just ended it all. I have all kinds problems when it comes to men. I don't trust many people and sit in my computer room most days. I feel safest when no one is around me and God help anyone that sneaks up on me. I have real bad mood swings . Last week I went to the V.A. and told them what happen and the meds. I take. Who did I get for a Doctor was retired Navy Capt. that did not know what to say or act. He looked at me like I was some kind of freak. I know that I need help with this I can not do by myself any more. It has taken 20 years to talk about it, and taken so much of my life away from me. There is so much help out there for women, but I am finding very little help for men. :(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Answers 20
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters For This Question

Recommended Posts

Well the V.A has seen me and is taken care of me now with M/H. They went me come in Once a month. I don't know if I am going to put in claim on PDST yet. Just going to see the Doctor was hard on me did not sleep the night before at all.

carl,

I am glad you have begun getting services for your issues.

As time goes by you hopefully will become more comfortable.

carlie

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Up till about a 2 week ago I have never talk about this, but it has affected my life with ever thing I do. I was 20 I was station in Diego Garcia. I was sitting on the beach when I was Sexual assault by two men. After that I started drinking hard and end up in Rehab for 6 weeks. I still did not talk about then I was a fearfully that I would get kick out of the Navy for being nuts or homosexual, "Please remember that was 1986 and the Military was on the hunt for any one that might be gay". I am unable to hold a job for 2 years at time and now take Citalopram for depression. At times my depression is so bad I think it would be easier if I just ended it all. I have all kinds problems when it comes to men. I don't trust many people and sit in my computer room most days. I feel safest when no one is around me and God help anyone that sneaks up on me. I have real bad mood swings . Last week I went to the V.A. and told them what happen and the meds. I take. Who did I get for a Doctor was retired Navy Capt. that did not know what to say or act. He looked at me like I was some kind of freak. I know that I need help with this I can not do by myself any more. It has taken 20 years to talk about it, and taken so much of my life away from me. There is so much help out there for women, but I am finding very little help for men. <_<

I have a hard time talking about it, but the same thing happened to me -- not on a beach. I had flown into Lakehurst Naval Air Station in New Jersey in Sept. 1876 on my way to England, and two airforce guys, Vietnam vets (I have provided their names to VA) offered me a ride into NYC. I went with them and they stopped for beer then brought me to an area called the Battery; it was a run down place and there was some oldtime abandoned building with arches on it. We went in there and were pretty drunk by that time when I thought they were just rolling me but soon found out different. I had a pretty severe head injury. I also went to a free clinic near my duty station under an assumed name because I had developed this rash. I went to sick bay for the head injury several times, but only one document remains in my VA medical record, which took place in April 1977. Following the sexual assault, I was at an office on base, and there was this guy who I was told was being discharged because he was gay, and I went crazy trying to kick his ass. His supervisor a YN1 reported the incident, and there was an Naval Investigative Service investigation, where they were trying to prove I was gay because of the assault. The YN1 told me I needed sensitivity training and he brought me to a gay bar. In addition to the head injury, I ended up with an anal fistula. After an honorable discharge, I went to the VA, and they gave me a barium enima in 1978. I got tired of reliving the situation and discussing it and remembering it, but the anal fistual persisted and I ended up in the hospital -- not the VA, and it had to be removed. This had been caused by bruising -- the whole time from 1978, I thought I had some sort of cancer and I just endured the pain until one day I just dropped because of the pain. I just distanced myself from the VA and the truth as far as possible. In about 2003 the VA granted a totally unrelated 10 percent disability for hearing loss, which I had initially filed in 1978. They sent me to a shrink, and she asked me directly about the sexual assault, I wondered how she knew about it, but I told her, and she diagnosed PTSD. I filed a claim in 2007 that was denied. I appealed it to the DRO and it's been ongoing and boring with lots and lots of depression medication and no sleep. What you mentioned sounds so familiar; I have been to private counseling and even have a letter from a private practice MD but they still disapproved it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Carl,

Welcome aboard. I am a male MST survivor as well. You will need a VA Mental Health provider if you ever intend to go to the Center for Sexual Trauma Services at VAMC Bay Pines. Unfortunately, that means putting up with the BS at VA.

There are a definitive lack of services for us. There are no MST groups here for me. I understand the pain you are going through.

Stick around and keep asking questions.

Brian

I am new to this site out of frustration I am having with the VA's process and as you and Carl mentioned lack of services. I made a post to Carl's post, please read it. There is so much more to my experience then what I mentioned.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Carl:

Welcome to Hadit.

I got a copy of my C-file, let me tell you those files can be purged. As a matter of fact, there was a lot of stuff in my C-file that belonged to other vets, which I consider a breach of confidence. However, as I mentioned in my post to Carl, I have one visit to Sick Bay that showed the head injury I experienced. I just don't know if that will do the trick. There are many other circumstances that have hinged on my sexual assault, or I would not even be pursuing it because I can't stand the bull they have and continue to put me through.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Carl, welcome to hadit. My name is Destia and I was also a victim of MST/PTSD, and because I never reported it back in 1991 I was discharged with a general discharge under honarable conditions, because after the trauma, I didn't care about anything or anyone, my DD214 states pattern of misconduct because to be honest I didn't give a shit. After years of thinking I was going crazy, someone at the VA started to asked me if I endured any form of MST while I was in the military, and ever since then my world has felt like it was crumbling down. I recieved help and counseling and decided to submit a claim but already I knew that it would be an up hill battle because I never reported the incident. One important thing that I did do was write my story. A very kind soul that I had chatted with online told me to write everything down on a sheet of paper since my memory was getting worse because of the PTSD and it took a couple of days but I managed to write my life from before I joined the military, during the military and my life after the military. I used my story along with a letter from my parents and husband stating the changes they had seen develop in me and of course the Phychologist's notes and by the grace of GOD, they approved me @ 30% in 2005, almost 14 years to the date of my incident. I recieve 30% for a neurological problem that a Dentist did to my mouth. So, anything is possible. It may take longer then others but PLEASE do not give up. :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Guidelines and Terms of Use