tdiu I Took The Offer

[halos2]

VSO called within the last 2 hrs and DRO offered 100% IU PT Chapter 35 no future exams if I would drop all of my other claims. Thought about it, talked about it to my good friend Larryj, and to my daughter, and I settled for it today.

If not I was looking forward to 6+ new C&P exams...realizing 1 claim went back to 04, another 05, 2 more 07, and BVA remanded one , and knowing how dirty they have treated me, I asked the eight ball and rolled the dice and got "outlook looks favorable" so I decided I didn't want to risk them taking away what I already had, and took the 100% PT.

I am having second thoughts, but one never knows...it has been consuming me and engulfing me in its grip for all these years...and as we all know with them denying me/declaring me deceased/severing me/low balling me/remanding me...My great advisors said "Follow the yellow brick road to the bank now!"

So I just called my VSO and told him ok as the VA would not use my older TDIU claim dates as they said I was not meeting the criteria for these using those dates but did meet the criteria as of Nov last yr.

So within the last 4 1/2 weeks I went from 50% to 60% to 70% to 100%...

Come on fellow friends tell me you would have accepted this offer.

I am such a "RIGHT" person, and a strong one I was willing to battle on, but the system is not a fair one and they could last longer and hold out longer then I could live, so I accepted the offer also suggested by my VSO.

Why don't I feel great about it now though??

[chr49]

Halos

My personal opinion:

#1 Before you accepted the offer you took the time to think it over and talk to people that could help you weigh the pros & cons, etc.

#2 In the end, you most likely saved yourself several more years of waiting, wondering and fighting battles.

#3 100% P&T, Chapter 35 and no future exams....not much to complain about with that!

I'm sure I would have accepted this offer if I were in your shoes.

I think it's very normal to feel uncertain, worried that you made a mistake, or even a bit depressed after going thru the process for so many years and then suddenly having it over with.

Many Congratulations! You did GOOD!

[Testvet]

Halos "integrity" is not a word the VARO recognizes "honor" means nothing to them pay the claim or don't pay the claim it means nothing to them it is just another file on their desk they don't care about YOU or ME one way or the other just what do they HAVE to do to handle the mess they have in front of THEM right NOW that is all they deal with

they won't miss a meal or a vacation based on what you or I decide to do about a claim they have a job and benefits, medical care for themselves and their family not all claims with the VA are going to be 100% claims the majority of them are 30% or less and they will never become 100% issues during those veterans life times but for those of us that do become totally disabled those benefits mean the world to us and bottom line getting them is the WIN you got them now so you WON the VA didn't nothing will ever repay you for the hell they put you thru

now get even with them and live for decades and draw the benefits and enjoy them for decades that is how you win now help some other vets that are getting screwed over the same way you did that is the best satisfaction that you can get we get so wound up into fighting the VA we kind of forget how to enjoy a "normal life" if you aren't getting SS yet I suggest you file most of us live pretty decent on VA and SS benefits and depending on what state you live in you can get all kinds of tax breaks each state is different so you have to check you have nothing to be ashamed of they didn't WIN you did you got the P&T

[halos2]

john999,Berta,Josephine,kelly,chr49, Testvet, thanks for the posts however, andto one of my best friends Larryj,

I am having so much remorse without thinking more about taking THEIR offer without even trying to get 0% offering/offerings for 1 or 2 of my claims. I let them win by forgetting/covering up/ destroying all my other claims...I realize I won, but cannot see the joy of compromising my Value system.

I won, but lost what I believe to be rightous, my honor, my truth, my justice. Thew screw with your body, they screw with your mind, and when they screw with your soul, you loose your integrity.

Call it ptsd, mdd, post hysterectomy and loss of hormones , but I can't overcome these feelings...I have regretted many things in my life but not trying to seek something even if it was to be denied, makes me feel worthless.

Yes we all need $, unless some may be wealthy, but the win does not justify my giving up on myself to glorify them!

I emailed my vso 2 times already to double check, but I am sure it is a done deal. I do feel I sold my soul to the devil!

They will just do the same thing to someone else and deny, declared deceased,sever, deny, BVA remand, deny, grant and make you live/breathe to win and beat them, and to win like this feels dirty to me...

It is a blackmail way of doing this...you take it or gamble we won't F with you for the rest of your life and won't F with your claims and will set you up with "Our Examiners" we want now to do c&p's...wanna gamble...too fast too make the decision...but guess I am stuck with invalidating myself now that I let the VA win...just being real with my honest truthful emotions/feelings/regrets...

BTW Testvet, yes I got SSDI granted 2 weeks post my exam...almost 8 yrs ago and this is what the DRO used to grant me the PT my SSDI claim with one of my diagnoses being fibromyalgia.

I had no difficulty getting my SSDI at all. Fast start to finish, and on the exam, was my back condition too plus one other condition. That's how I won and they told me to file for va and I put it off...

Edited July 27, 2010 by halos2

[Wings]

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Congrats!!! The VA can not -ever- prohibit you from filing additional claims in the future . . . Take the 100% and take a break! I would! You can ALWAYS go back to fighting for another claim down the road. Just stay busy with "stuff" over the next few days or weeks; you have tied up all your vital energies in the fight, and when you stop your world will still be spinning!! It's very hard to sit still after all the time (years) you spent on guard 24x7. There will be other battles, but for now --feel the victory ;-) HUGS! ~Wings

[broncovet]

Congrats on your win.

I guess its too late in regard to the offer, but, as Wings pointed out, you can still file a NOD. I am talking about the effective date. I think that is the biggest thing, as that affects your retro. And, I am sure most on here know, the VA manipulates the effective date just like they manipulate about everything else.

[Cruinthe]

First off, a big CONGRATS!

That said, I think john999 nailed it. Once you have confirmed that you have Chapter 35 on paper, and you have requested and gotten a one page "letter of award" stating clearly and unequivocally that you are "totally & permanently disabled with no future exams", then you can file for the rest of your issues, one at a time. The deal is to drop current issues, but says nothing about filing for them again in the future, right?

In life, you are either on offense, or on defense. Only problem is, the VA loves a sitting duck. So first I got 100%, then T&P, then 3 T&P award letters from 3 different VARO's, then I put in for VocRehab ILP, then Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, then Housebound, now I am going for Fibro and IBS, and after that service-connection for my degenerative disks that were caused or exacerbated by 14 years in armored units. In my spare time I help other veterans get their claims squared away.

You ALWAYS have options, and NEVER allow yourself to be limited by the VA. And dont feel as though you gave up the good fight. You are just reorganizing your forces, thats all. Go ahead and lull the VA into a false sense of security, then when you are ready, leap up and hit 'em where it hurts. Thats exactly what the VA would do to you!

Good luck!