ptsd Anyone Had This Problem Before?

[Joe01]

:D

Hi: I'm a oif veteran. I just got my rating decision letter for my first claim in august 2009. I was rated 30% for PTSD, 10% for lumbar spine strain, 10% cervical spine strain and 10% for varicocele. My question is: can I ask for another c&p exam instead of appealing my PTSD claim? Since my c&p exam on feb 2009 I've been going down hill because of my PTSD. Increase in anxiety, panic, anger and haven't been working for the last 3 months due to my sc disabiliies, ie:neck and back pain. If not what are my options. I'm new in this and my memory is not good at all so please bear with me. I'm also a Purple heart recipient, don't know if that mathers. Any advice on what I can do.

Also on my claim it states that "a higher evaluation of 50% is not warranted unless there is reduce reliability and productivity due to such symptoms as: panic attacks more than once a week". Then somewhere in the next paragraph states that my records of the Va hospital I go to contain information about my panic attacks "reported as ocurring on average 3 to 4 times per week. Did they miss that part and granted me 30% instead of 50%? panic attack 3 to 4 times a week are also mention by my mental health dr on my Va records? Any help with this one too please!!!

 

[Pete53]

Joe:

If you are having 3 to 4 panic attacks a week and not able to work you should be 100%. I have major depression and panic disorder and I am 100% P&T.

Yes if you ask the VA to reconsider they do look at the claim over but you should be reconsidered cause you fit the criteria for 100% in some form or another.

Good Luck

Hadit is here to support and offer different view points about what can happen but its your job cause it is your claim to manage your it. You will be the one in the end who has to live with the results.

Good Luck

[carlie]

Joe,

KEY WORDS FOR 50 PERCENT

Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity due to panic attacks more than once a week

occasional

KEY WORDS FOR 30 PERCENT

Occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency due to such symptoms as:panic attacks (weekly or less often)

I feel that if you can get something from your employer that shows,

Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity

and submit as additional evidence that will certainly be good evidence

for the higher rating of 50 percent.

Maybe they have records of when you have needed to call in sick.

Maybe someone at work that is aware of your panic attacks, maybe someone there

has witnessed it and could write a statement on your behalf.

This could be used on either a request for reconsideration or a NOD.

Also, if you can get an IMO that makes statements referring to problems

at work or not being able to go to work, or problems with co-workers due to your PTSD, would be very good evidence to warrant an increase.

Here's a BVA case that shows some examples of a higher rating

from 30 percent to 50 percent that was granted.

http://www4.va.gov/vetapp09/files1/0905171.txt

" The Veteran's PTSD has been rated 30 percent under 38 C.F.R.

§ 4.130, Code 9411. To warrant the next higher (50 percent)

rating, the evidence must show occupational and social

impairment with reduced reliability and productivity due to

such symptoms as: flattened affect; circumstantial,

circumlocutory, or stereotyped speech; panic attacks more

than once a week; difficulty in understanding complex

commands; impairment of short- and long-term memory (e.g.,

retention of only highly learned material, forgetting to

complete tasks); impaired judgment; impaired abstract

thinking; disturbances of motivation and mood; and difficulty

in establishing and maintaining effective work and social

relationships. Id.

When evaluating a mental disorder, the rating agency shall

consider the frequency, severity, and duration of psychiatric

symptoms, length of remissions, and the Veteran's capacity

for adjustment during periods of remission. 38 C.F.R.

§ 4.126(a). The rating agency shall assign an evaluation

based on all the evidence of record that bears on

occupational and social impairment rather than solely on the

examiner's assessment of the level of disability at the

moment of the examination. Id. However, when evaluating the

level of disability from a mental disorder, the rating agency

will consider the extent of social impairment, but shall not

assign an evaluation on the basis of social impairment.

38 C.F.R. § 4.126(b).

It is not expected that all cases will show all the findings

specified; however, findings sufficiently characteristic to

identify the disease and the disability therefrom and

coordination of rating with impairment of function will be

expected in all instances. 38 C.F.R. § 4.21.

On longitudinal review of the evidentiary record, the Board concludes that a 50 percent rating is warranted for the

Veteran's PTSD.

It is reasonably shown in the record that his PTSD has negatively impacted his work, family, and social life;

in short, it has produced occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity.

Significantly, there is substantial evidence that due to his anxiety, depression, and recurrent flashbacks, the psychiatric disability has impacted the Veteran's life to the extent that he has lost interest in most areas of life and

caused him to be hypervigilant, and have increased anger and irritability.

This has negatively affected his relations at work and placed strains on his relations with his wife and children,

causing him to isolate himself from others such that he has no friends and limited interests apart from his work and home.

The Veteran's depression, panic attacks more than once a

week, impairment in memory, disturbances of motivation and

mood, and difficulty in establishing and maintaining

effective work and social relationships with his family and

co-workers present a disability picture reasonably reflecting

occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability

and productivity; consequently, a 50 percent rating is

warranted.

While records at various points in time during the appeal

period present a more detailed picture of the Veteran's

psychiatric disability, they do not show distinct periods of

time when reduced reliability and productivity due to

psychiatric symptoms were not shown.

Consequently, the Board finds that a 50 percent rating is warranted

the entire appeal period, and that "staged" ratings are not warranted."

[carlie]

joe,

Here's a link for more research.

http://www.index.va.gov/search/va/va_searc...d&UA=Search

carlie

[deltaj]

:D

Hi: I'm a oif veteran. I just got my rating decision letter for my first claim in august 2009. I was rated 30% for PTSD, 10% for lumbar spine strain, 10% cervical spine strain and 10% for varicocele. My question is: can I ask for another c&p exam instead of appealing my PTSD claim? Since my c&p exam on feb 2009 I've been going down hill because of my PTSD. Increase in anxiety, panic, anger and haven't been working for the last 3 months due to my sc disabiliies, ie:neck and back pain. If not what are my options. I'm new in this and my memory is not good at all so please bear with me. I'm also a Purple heart recipient, don't know if that mathers. Any advice on what I can do.

Also on my claim it states that "a higher evaluation of 50% is not warranted unless there is reduce reliability and productivity due to such symptoms as: panic attacks more than once a week". Then somewhere in the next paragraph states that my records of the Va hospital I go to contain information about my panic attacks "reported as ocurring on average 3 to 4 times per week. Did they miss that part and granted me 30% instead of 50%? panic attack 3 to 4 times a week are also mention by my mental health dr on my Va records? Any help with this one too please!!!

 

Be careful not to argue clear and unmistkable error. Remember you only get one notice of disagreement with each V.A. decision and it has to address all issues like percentage of rating, effective date, etc. I now know years later that V.A. had deliberately made a mistake in failing to rate service connection of varicose veins in one of my husband's legs because the rating schedule was changing on varicose veins and the new rating schedule would have brought my husband up to an additional rating of 60% in addition to another 100% rating. As to the issue of variocele there is another condition that veterans with varicose veins sometimes get which is varicose eczema. You can find photos of varicose eczema online. I think my husband gets it every summer when he's more active but all of his V.A. exams on his varicose veins have been scheduled in winter. Has your service-connected mental condition PTSD prevented you from working? If so, you need to file a claim for total disability individual unemployability (TDIU).

Edited March 9, 2010 by deltaj

[Joe01]

Be careful not to argue clear and unmistkable error. Remember you only get one notice of disagreement with each V.A. decision and it has to address all issues like percentage of rating, effective date, etc. I now know years later that V.A. had deliberately made a mistake in failing to rate service connection of varicose veins in one of my husband's legs because the rating schedule was changing on varicose veins and the new rating schedule would have brought my husband up to an additional rating of 60% in addition to another 100% rating. As to the issue of variocele there is another condition that veterans with varicose veins sometimes get which is varicose eczema. You can find photos of varicose eczema online. I think my husband gets it every summer when he's more active but all of his V.A. exams on his varicose veins have been scheduled in winter. Has your service-connected mental condition PTSD prevented you from working? If so, you need to file a claim for total disability individual unemployability (TDIU).

thanks for the info deltaj. On the tdui, I haven't been working for 5 1/2 months due to Ptsd, back and neck pain. I have 2 appeals, one for my PTSD and the other for back and neck. He advice me to not to file for tdiu untill I get my PTSD raiting raise. I ask him for advice on this tdiu thing about 1 month after filling my nod and he said we should waitfor my raiting to b increase, he said tha if we do it now??... Actually I don't remember what other reasons he gave me other than what I mention above.