tdiu What Are My Chances?

[W4LNY]

Ok here we go in June of 2012 I was working full time in Security for a major financial company the job required me to be on my feet the entire shift, I started having major issues with my feet, I always have had pain and walk with a very minor limp from an injury in the Army I had stress fractures in both feet that were misdiagnosed one turned into a full fracture of my metatarsal that is now deviated but anyway with this job my foot got worse and worse until I could not do the job anymore since than I had to work at another site with less pay and hours I had filed a VA claim with a line of duty form I was given when I left service I was granted Service Connection within 3 months and started getting treatment at the VA I was rated at 0% but appealed that to DRO who submitted an UI claim on my behalf I did not initiate the claim but anyway the doctor said I have flat foot b/l that is now service aggrevated, I had a mortons nuroma, bone spurs that have developed and I was given orthopedic shoes which the doctor noted are not working very well, they gave me shoes for work another set for just walking and now another set for driving, last month I had surgery to remove the nuroma since than the surgery caused a staff infection in my foot and severe blood clotting and hematoma I am waiting for an answer on my 100% TD for surgery recovery time anyway the regional office told me all the claims are held up because of my pending unemployability claim they also tell me it continues to be worked and they keep telling me I have a good chance of getting it although I don't believe them I found out today my claim was sent to Washington DC to the Under Secretary of the VA's office somethibg about a special circumstance let me just add for the last 2 years my inconme has been below 12,000 and I am a full time single father we are on Medicaid, food stamps etc, so far I have gotten nothing at all from the VA but today I filled for Financial Hardship now they tell me they can get me the TD 100% for the surgery within 30 days until the TDUI claim decision is made so should I really expect anything to come of this TDUI claim like they keep telling me?

thanks

[W4LNY]

I have never applied for SSI or Social Security Disability, although I have thought about it for other conditions other than my Service Connected issues, I was always able to work until my feet problems got worse, its hard to do Security work if you can't be on your feeet, walk, run, etc for most of your shift, I have done security work on and off over 22 years, hell I even wworked securoty while active duty, lol but now beca6se of my feet issues I basically lost my last job.

[carlie]

W4L,

JMHO

From what you have posted,

I feel you will receive the temp 100 % due to convalescence for

surgery recovery of your SC'd foot condition.

I feel you will be reevaluated about six months after this and might wind up with

a 10 - 20 percent evaluation for this condition.

I do not feel the inferred claim for TDIU will be granted.

JMHO

[W4LNY]

Here is an update my TDIU claim is still in Washington, Regional Office said it is being actively opened and looked at by someone there. In the mean time I saw the VA Doctor yesturday, he wrote a NEXUS statement and added new dx to my records his written statement is as follows:

While Active Duty had stress fractures b/l misdiagnosed one turned into a full fracture of 2nd Metatarsal (Current Service Connection) this fracture caused my metatarsal to be deviated which caused a neuroma the pain from the neuroma caused me to walk incorrectly causing Plantar Fasciitis b/l the surgery the VA did to remove neuroma caused complicatiins including hematoma and staph infection all of which has further aggrevated the plantar Fasciitis b/l.

As far as my treatment orthopedic shoes are not working they are adding night splints they said I also need to be on NSAIDs but I am allergic and cannot take them probably will need cortazone steroid shots in my feet.

So now my VA records now show active conditions as foot pain, lesion of plantar nerve, flat foot b/l, plantar fasciitis b/l.

[john999]

I don't think you have enough for TDIU unless you could show with medical evidence perhaps that you now have chronic severe depression due to your disabilities. You need to show the VA there is no work you could do either on or off your feet. I have foot problems and I also got a staph infection from botched surgery. I was operated on and was on IV antibiotics every day for six weeks. Did they have to cut out dead tissue from your foot? Three years later and my foot is still not normal. Do you have chronic pain now?

[W4LNY]

Yes I have chronic pain before and after surgery, which is why I cant walk normally and have not for years, it seems like the orthopedic shoes make the pain worse, I even started driving barefoot less pain that way now they gave me special shoes and inserts made for just driving, those are the only shoes they gave me that halfway work, although if I try to walk with them it is horrible so I have to switch to the walking shoes every time I get out of the car although those shoes really don't help much at all, that is part of the frustration just wearing the shoes causes pain.

I haven't had tissue cut out or iv antibiotics just oral ones, although the doctor sent me to the ER 2 weeks ago to get tests done, they thought the infection had spread to the bones in my feet, but the xrays showed I was good there, I have had severe swelling since the surgery so bad at times I cannot move any toes or even feel them last week could not put my shoe on swelling was so bad.

[W4LNY]

okay just posting an update I received a request to do another C&P exam and provide a list of my employers so they could contact them. the C&P exam was a little strange but seemed to go very well I say strange because I checked in and arrived earlier than my appointment time immediately after checking in the Dr called my cell phone and asked if I was still coming in and that he was waiting for me when I got to his office there was a lot of people waiting they had indicated that they had earlier appointments than me and had been waiting for quite some time and they all stated that the doctor had called my name and was waiting for me again I was actually early for my appointment at this point, why I was seen before everyone else is baffling to me, anyway the doctor agreed that since the VA surgery I have had a loss of flexicitity in my left foot he also asked about my work and seemed to agree that my problems would impact the type of work I do. He asked if I could walk a city block I said yes but I would probably be slow and would take a break during the walk he then replied it does not count if I could not do it without stopping he said several times that he was evaluating me for an increase at the end he did state I should have the answer within a few weeks but that I was good to go.

on the employer front all of my past employers responded to their requests my current employer did respond as the last to do so according to ebenefits this is the last piece of evidence that the VA is waiting for my company did return the form and indicated I did lose pay from the disability in the box where asked for accommodations the company wrote that they have restricted me to working locations where I can sit and observe and require no walking or standing at all they also stated this limitation has limited my work to 15 to 25 hours a week instead of my previous 40.

how this new information will effect the outcome of my claim is yet to be determined although it appears once they receive the form from my current employer they will have all the evidence that I have to provide them and that they have requested.