ptsd Ptsd

[mcoleman5]

My claim for PTSD has been deferred to go see a VA Doctor. What should I expect to see or be ask from this visit?

[Testvet]

when they ask you "how are you today"? do not say I feel GREAT that will be your first mistake if you had trouble sleeping the night before or was up half the night from nightmares tell them the truth of it you feel like chit you are tired and irritable and that today is like most days you do not dress up like you are going to church unless you dress up that way every day if you are telling the docs that you don't get along with people and isolate yourself and then sit in the4 waiting room talking to everyone and their brother or sister telling "war stories" then your claim to "isolate" will fall on deag ears be your self tell them what your days and nights are normally like if you tell the C&P doc that you don't get into crowded situations because of fear of crowds and then tell them about your recent vacation to Las vegas to gamble or to Disney World then again you are showing that you really are NOT afraid of crowds

before I leave my house I have to load up on Buspar clonazepam and percocet I shop at 2 or 3 am at 24 hr grocery stores or Wal Mart as there are not as many people out at that time of day I refuse to go to wal mart or any place like it on a saturday or Sunday afternoon I don't play well with people I haven't driven a car in 10 years my wife does all of the driving and people scare the hell out of me and I spent 17 years as a letter carrier and never had an accident but people talking on cell phones and doing their make up and reading the news paper while they are driving leave me puckered up for hours after I get home yes I leave the house occasionally but it takes a lot of pills and a lot of hibernating afterwards for me to get "over it" tell them the truth most examiners can see a snow job they have been doing this for years and they know PTSD when they see it they also can smell the BS they have heard it all the C&P examiner does not award your percentage they just confirm that you have it and how severe they "think" it is because a one time visit doesn't let them really know you they are just confirming what ever treatment notes your treating docs have been writing so the better treatment notes you have the better the outcome usually......

but your childhood was "normal" if you give them anything from your youth to blame your condition on they will your life was like Ozzie and Harriet or Leave it to beaver just not Eddie Haskell