AO good news

[Andyman73]

Got some good news to share.  Some of you may know, or recall, that I had written elsewhere on here, that my Dad(Nam combat, 24 yr career retired, 60% SCD) and I don't exactly communicate very well.  The grapevine tells me that it's my own lack of communication skills are the problem.  Anyway, while updating my folks after yesterday's 6 month foster child case review court session, Dad went off topic to let me know that the VA has opened an AO claim for/on him.  Said they initiated it(???)and that he has a bunch of appointments scheduled over the next few months.  I was quite surprised that he wanted to tell me about that...since I'm usually the last to know, and my wife is usually the one telling me.

So...is there anything I should tell him to tell them?  I don't know too much about his overall health, beyond his Nam related back injury.  Thanks.

Andy

[Buck52]

Good to hear your having a better relationship with your Dad Andyman, sure will relieve a lot of stress between the both of you! You can google Nehmer  And get sme good info..

If your dad is like some of us older Vietnam vets like me and Gastone & Asknod and some of the others  he will find that Nehmer Regs  will sure help out.

If you google it  it will bring up lots of reading about it.

I wish you and your father the Best and things start going good for you guys.

[Andyman73]

I did just that, and read up on Nehmer. I saw that "they" are seriously considering hypertension. While Dad is 68, he's been dealing with it since his early 50s or younger. 

Yes, I really do hope he and I are now making headway to a much better relationship.

[Andyman73]

Update, since my last post. Dad and I texted each other recently and I asked a few moderate questions about how things are going. 

He had no new news to share. So then I told him how the powers that be are seriously considering adding hypertension to the AO presumptive list. And that they would be voting on it in the new year. He was quite pleased to hear that. I'm slightly concerned what may be lurking in his veins. Some years ago he had a rough couple of years fighting the hbp that was resisting nearly all measures to control it.

I asked about his Malaria, which he said had hospitalized him way back when he was fresh out of Nam. And I told him I remembered a time when I was about 10 yes old and he spent a week in bed.  Was very different because Dad being sick enough to stay home just never happened, ever.  That was when we kids learned that Malaria was one of the gifts Vietnam had shared with him. 

I told him it was a 10% rating for inactive Malaria, to which he was pleasantly surprised to hear. 

So then he asked me where I am getting my information. I told him it was from here, Hadit.com. A website created by a Vet, for Vets to help each other in our claims battles with the VA. 

He wrote it down so he could come here when he had some free time.  So it looks like he is ready to begin seeking what he deserves.

I hope we can continue to move forwards in building a better relationship.