ptsd Sleep Apnea/ Ptsd

[7thsus3130]

First of all I want to thank all of you for your service to your country & to your fellow Vets. I'm a very frequent visitor to the site first time poster looking for any helping information. Had my initial C&P done on April 24th Followed By One For My Knee On May 8th & And One For Depression on May 15th. How long until I can receive a copy? I filed my initial claim 01/27/14 For Depression Sleep Apnea & Knee issues my questions are I was giving a sleep study on active duty at the Temple Va Hospital will I have any issue service connecting It? I also was prescribed Several Medications for depression and anger while on active duty after my deployment after my first session with the va the Psy told me I had PTSD even though I Didn't file a claim for it and I have been treated for it ever sense so will I have to file another claim for PTSD or will the one for depression suffice and which one will I be rated for in your opinion? And will I have any issues service connecting it even with my stressor being documented and me having a official diagnose from the VA. Last but not least will my rater be able to see my sleep study in my SMR because I was never asked to present it during the C&P. Thanks in advance for any help.

[Navy4life]

Welcome!

If you had the C/P exams through a VA medical center the results will be on MyHealthyVets. If you went to a contractor you will have to put in a FOIA request and unfortunately any contractor C/P exams are not available until after your claim has been decided.

The rater will have all medical documents before them but I would not rely on that! Make sure you provide all documents yourself. You are your own best advocate!

The PTSD C/P exam you had should have all your stressor's that the examiner feel you have regarding your PTSD C/P.

The SA should be a sam dunk - especially if you had a sleep test on AD. Is the initial C/P the C/P for SA?

You should be at the end of the road my fellow Vet! After I had my C/P for PTSD/MST & Eating Disorder I was finally done within 2 weeks!

Good luck!

[VetlawUS]

You can always check your C-File to find out whether the military put the sleep study in the records it gave the VA.

It is my experience that the branches don't always give everything to the VA in terms of Service Medical Records, and even when they do, the VA is selective about what SMRs it puts into the C-File.

So, if you ARE denied, my thinking would be:

1) Get your C_File and verify that the the Sleep Study was included.

2) Look at the C&P Exam to see if the examiner had the credentials to make the decision

3) Look at the evidence list in the VA Ratings Decision (the newer VARDs don't seem to have this sometimes) to see whether the VA even considered the Sleep Study from active duty

4) Make sure your in-service diagnosis and post-service Sleep Apnea are the same...there is a type of Sleep Apnea called "Treatment Emergent CSA". It presents as OSA, and when the Vet starts using a CPAP, the symptoms don't get better or worsen, indicating that you have CSA not OSA. The VA doesn't get this, and will frequently deny on the grounds that they are different conditions.

If you get denied for Sleep Apnea, here are a few ways to start figuring it out, from posts on the Veterans Law Blog:

Winning Sleep Apnea: A Lawyer's Case Study

What DRIVES Your Sleep Apnea Claim?

The Holy Grail: Is There an Easy Path to Winning a Sleep Apnea Claim?

Good luck and keep us posted!