tdiu Ssdi For Bipolar, Applying For Va....comments / Helpful Answers?

[ZenLife]

Hi everyone. I'm Jay, long time viewer, first time poster. I've been wading through these forums for a while, as well as dozens of other sites, and I have a couple of questions / concerns. Maybe someone can give me an idea if I have a claim or not, and if so, what to expect. Sorry if this post is a little long, it's hard to sum up 6 years in a paragraph!

Here's my Sit. Rep.:

Served USMC '99 - '04

• Didn't know it at the time, but I'm Bipolar, then and now, it's life long.
  
  • Had several disciplinary actions throughout 5 yr. service, nearly got discharged 2 months before my EAS because of repeated infractions. Got lucky, and squeaked out with a "General Under Honorable". Discipline / poor impulse control is common for Bipolar people in general, especially having the first episode after a major lifestyle change or around age 20 (i.e. entering the military at 18). I'm not certain if this would help or hurt my claim.
    
    • Diagnosed and treated one time by MACG28 BAS for Depression / sleep disturbance in 2003. Bipolar disorder is often initially misdiagnosed as Depression. Medications were ineffective and worsened my situation - I didn't want to be discharged, so I did what a lot of us do - dealt with it as best I could until my EAS to preserve the benefits I'd worked my butt off for.
      
      • I'm not certain if either of the above could help provide service connection or not - input would be most appreciated.
        

      Currently I recieve SSDI for Bipolar , the only condition I intend to apply for w/ VA

      [*]
      I bean receiving treatment early 2005.
      [*]
      Applied for SSDI in Dec. 2005.
      [*]
      Awarded Benefits May 2008.
      [*]
      Award states that I've been disabled since June 22, 2004, the day after my last day of active duty.
      [*]
      Three evaluations with average GAF's of 55 from three Dr.'s were partial basis for this award.
      [*]
      Award included documentation from my military medical record concerning the diagnosis of Depression.
      [*]
      No other medical claims or job history.

      I currently receive care for my condition, and have been receiving care since Jan. 2007

      My questions are:

  [*]Do I have service connection based on the in-service diagnosis, since depression is the precursor to or misdiagnosis of, bipolar?

  [*]My Dr. is willing to write a letter for me to serve as a nexus. He is concerned over his legal liability - is there any in this case?

  [*]If his letter is disregarded by the VA, would my SSA award serve as a nexus, since it includes the early in service diagnosis?

  [*]Since the SSA considers me disabled, will the VA look at it similarly and give weight to my award?

  [*]Do I apply for TDIU with my initial application?

  [*]Would my effective date be that of my award letter in 2008, my last date of employment in 2004, or the date I file, in a couple of days?

  Any and all input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for taking the time to read this. And a special thank you to all the men and women who take the time to help others navigate the VA/SSA jungle!!!

  Semper Fi!

[Hoppy]

http://www.index.va....rch/va/bva.html

Go to the above link and type in the search parameter "Bipolar is granted" Include the quotations. Select all years. You will find 11,000 cases.

Start reading. There will be many cases similar to yours. The logic supporting the claims as developed by the clinicians will be discussed.

If you file a claim they should schedule a C&P exam. Sometimes the C&P will be favorable and you will not need an IMO. Some veterans who have previously posted on this board obtained letters from there treating VA doctors which stated that their bipolar is more likely than not related to service and some logic taken from the service medial records and personnel file to support the determination and were awarded service connection. This is hit and miss. Some VA doctors do not feel that it is there job to get involved in claims.

Service officers can be apathetic. I just helped a veteran get service connected for panic disorder. The SO was so convinced that the claim would not win that he was not even turning in evidence the veteran brought him.

Edited July 23, 2010 by Hoppy

[ollieee6]

Offering words of encouragement!

DON'T GIVE UP.

I am SC for PTSD, and recently requested to add BiPolar as a secondary SC. I have had positive feedback from those who have posted. I have an IMO that directly states my PTSD and Bi Polar are directly connected to my time in the service.

The VA is a BEAST, especially to us younger ones. Thanks to all the elders for their advice and guidance!

[john999]

Bipolar is one of those conditions where if you have anything in your SMR's stating your were dx'ed or treated for depression then getting SC'ed for bipolar should not be a major problem especially if you have been getting treatment since discharge. I got SC'ed for bipolar at 30% about 15 years ago. If you have anything in your SMR's for any mental health treatment the DX may change, but you can get SC. Bipolar is not like PTSD where you can go back 30 years after discharge with no record of DX or treatment in the military and win on a stressor. You usually need some record of DX or treatment in service or within a year of discharge. Most of the mental health disabilites are harder to SC the more time passes between discharge and filing for the claim. This excludes PTSD. This is where younger vets of recent years have it better since they have better records and exit physicals. I am speaking as one who went from 10% to IU over a period of 30 years. The military is light years ahead of where they were back in the day. Psychiatric treatment back in the day led to tag of "shitbird". I don't think that is so now.

[ZenLife]

Hello everyone. I don't know if this forum will alert those who have replied, but if it does, thank you all so much! I honestly thought that my questions were unanswered because it might have seemed frivolous. It took 3 yrs to get SSDI and I met many people with a "just get over it" sort of view. I nearly broke into tears when I came back to this forum and saw the replies. I can't express how much that meant to me.

Things went downhill after that post. The property we owned needed over $18,000 repairs, and we couldn't qualify for any loan to address the issue. Our choices were to fix it or find a new home. I managed to find a seller at the last minute willing to sell us a home on land contract & the total cost is less than than it would have cost to repair our old property! We cut off every bill we could, including internet. I sold the few things of value I had for the down-payment, and now my family is safe and sound in a much better place. Things are very tight, but at least we're safe.

I submitted an informal claim after posting here. The formal claim was just sent out. I didn't think I had a valid claim and put it off far too long. The date of the informal was 1/10/10 and the formal was sent 1/19/11. I did note that the cover letter the VA sent said that I have one yr from the date of the letter, 2/2/10, so the effective date might be preserved. I also applied for the pension part, since my income meets the requirements. It would only $78/month, but that's $78 closer to paying the bills.

To answer some questions that were asked for the benefit of anyone coming across this thread;

- No, I never had treatment for any mental health issue before service. The first DX was 1 yr before leaving service. It was treated with Zoloft and discontinued 4 - 5 months later. It was making me too tired to do my job. I worked with electronics, so 1 moment of drifting off + 240 volts = one unhappy day.

- No, I do not have a rep as of yet. I intend to get one if denied.

- I did submit the TDIU with the claim.

- My treatment resumed more than a year after discharge (EAS - 6/22/04, Treatment resumed 12/16/05). I really didn't want to be on disability, but by that time it was becoming pretty clear that the problem wasn't going to "get better". It would have been better for my family if I had simply admitted something was wrong with me sooner.

- The statement from my Dr. will be submitted with my medical records when they are requested by the VA. My access to those records is limited, given the nature of the treatment (they don't want to risk "harming" the patient, so all I have is summary notes). He said he can't comment on anything he didn't personally see me for so it may not be much help. If nothing else, it will show the extent of the condition(s) currently.

My treatment now includes Social Anxiety Disorder and treatment for headaches. I've always had tension headaches and migraines, I just never realized I could be prescribed something much stronger (Gabapentin). I had them in service, but never had any formal treatment. The tension headaches are noted on my separation exam, but I couldn't see any other reference to them. I usually just took Excedrin for them or over-the-counter Motrin from the base hospital and dealt with it. Since it was noted on the exam though, and headaches are often associated MDD / Bipolar, I included it on my application. I don't expect SC for it, but listed it just in case.

Again, thank you all!

[carlie]

Zen,

Welcome.

I'm so sorry it took such an extended period of time for members

to view your first post, some kind of internet glitch.

Glad you and your family are in much more acceptable housing.

You might also be eligible for mental health services at your

local Vet Center. I highly recommend the Vet Centers.

Other's will also chime in on your issues.

Here's the Vet Center's Info.

Vet Center Eligibility :

http://www.vetcenter.va.gov/Vet_Center_Services.asp

Vet Center Locations Pennsylvania:

http://www2.va.gov/directory/guide/state.asp?State=PA&dnum=ALL

[ZenLife]

Thank you for the helpful links. For now though, I think I might be better off staying with my current provider. I know I'm fully covered medically and I'm much more familiar with the staff. I've never been comfortable with new Dr's.I do have one question, perhaps someone will have an idea about this;Currently, my concern is the nexus part of proving a service connection, I'm expecting the need for an IMO.My SSDI award was based on Bipolar and the effective date was that of my EAS.I didn't restart treatment until 1 1/2 yrs after my EAS.In making their decision, SSA used two in-service treatments records, one for MDD and one for sleep disturbance.They also used treatment records from my current provider that listed MDD and Bipolar ranging from when I restarted treatment onward.Even though I was outside of the one year presumptive period, is there any chance that the award itself could be considered a nexus, as it clearly states that my disability began at my EAS using both in-service records and current treatment records for the same condition?Just curious. I'm still reading as much on this forum as I can, but it's a little slow-going with dial-up.