Working and PTSD claim

[jamesriley1990]

So I have recently begun my PTSD claim, it has been a few years since I have gotten out and I believe I meet the requirements for PTSD but I fear being deemed unfit to work. If I were to get a 50% or higher rating, does that mean I cannot work?

[broncovet]

No.  Continue working as long as you are able.  However, if you are "unable to maintain Substantial Gainful employment", then, if you apply for an increase, the VA could either:

1  Award you 100 percent for PTSD if you have "total occupationaal and social impairment".  

2.  Award you TDIU, which is similar in compensation to 100 percent.

3.  Delay, or deny you.  

     Number 3 is the most likely.  If you look at the criteria for 100 percent and 70 percent, they both have "significant employement impairment" with 100 percent being "total" impairment.   It is unlikely that you could work with 100 percent rating, but possible.  

     

[Guest L]

When I was at 50%  for PTSD I was making $65,000 yr so no 

[GeekySquid]

On 9/3/2018 at 12:34 PM, jamesriley1990 said:

So I have recently begun my PTSD claim

@jamesriley1990

You need to be honest with the doctor and I mean brutally honest about yourself, your actions, reactions, behaviors and the negatives they create in your life. People generally try to put their best foot forward, make the best impression and us vets do it as often as non-vets. Many of us have an image of our own masculinity that is exaggerated or at least strictly linked to the face we put on in public. Leave that guy at home when you do your C&P. The better you tell the doctor you can cope on your own, the less the VA feels it is necessary to compensate you for the damage you have suffered.

This link has all the DBQs (Disability Benefit Questionnaires) and I suggest you look at all the DBQ's that fit your conditions and please make note of any potential secondary conditions to your PTSD.

https://www.benefits.va.gov/compensation/dbq_disabilityexams.asp

There is no easy to read matrix of secondary conditions and combinations and the VA docs will generally not say to you "this is rateable". So it becomes up to you to figure out what might be what and make sure Med Records reflect that wherever possible.

What I mean by that is for example depression and anxiety can be secondary to PTSD, as can ED (which is a genitourinary DBQ) or ED can be a secondary to Depression or Anxiety or a dozen other Social Mood Disorders. If you have significant ED it can be classified under SMC-K and add $105.00 to your monthly compensation no matter what your PTSD rating ends up being. Having an occasional limp noodle doesn't cut it in this case. It is up to you to connect the dots for the C&P doctor and the raters. Lay persons statements can help support the problems ED causes in your life.

Do you have Acid Reflux/heartburn all the time? If you can document it and it occurs after your nexus events it might be rateable as a secondary to your PTSD as anxiety can cause gastric distress that could cause other things.

You should also note that SC rated problems can increase non-SC problems and that increase may be compensable.

Untreated PTSD and many of the secondary conditions become worse with age. Heck even treated PTSD can get worse as you age.

Never lie or exaggerate when you speak to the C&P doc(s), but also make sure that you don't try and make yourself look better than you actually are. For example if the day of the C&P you feel okay, not depressed or anxious don't use that day to answer the question. Remember the worst day you have had and report that day when asked. If you get depressed 3 or 4 times a week, report that. If you are depressed for weeks on end, report that.

If you get angry easily, even irrationally angry and know you are being irrational, let the doctor know. Figure out the worst thing you did over the dumbest issue that sent you into anger / irrational anger and relate that as well as how often it happens. If you can feel yourself get angry and leave the situation, tell them that and tell them what/how you work off the anger. Tell the doctor about work reprimands, losing friends, being shunned by others, not invited to or interested in going to social events, particularly special social events you skip.

If they ask you do you have periods when you feel like you can do anything and then periods that you feel like a dirty failure, they are looking at several possible things including BiPolar Condition or possibly Manic Depression. Know what that means in terms of the VA DBQ's since the VA has some relatively unique definitions that most non-medical people won't know off the cuff, it benefits you to know what the meaning of the questions is focused on.

Do you have days where you just don't shower or brush your teeth or don't want to but force yourself to because you have no choice in leaving the house? if so tell them that and the worst of those.

By some chance are you overweight? have diabetes? can't drag yourself to exercise because of your PTSD? tell the C&P doc. depression and anxiety can be significant contributors to overeating and not exercising. Overeating can lead to diabetes... you should see the pattern there.

Do you have night terrors? if so describe them and if you have a spouse or significant other get them to write letters documenting how you thrash, scream, wimper or whatever and how often. My night terrors have an odd component to them. I relive the nexus events, which is typical, but anyone who I am close to (as a friend, loved one, etc) or have had significant close contact with that day, will be incorporated into them. I can tell you that seeing the flesh burned off someone you love is not a good thing to experience, much less on a nightly basis. IT is really hard to tell people that, including doctors. It makes you sound crazy when it is actually a result of the nexus events.

Do you feel like people are to get you? even sometimes? Paranoia and PTSD have lots of linkage. The severity ranges to the occasional wondering if the boss/coworker doesn't like you for some reason, to Alex Jones of the Conspiracy Theory-Vitamin Hawking type that spews a continuous stream of "i am a victim" claims. Also know that if someone is out to get you, you may be legitimately paranoid about it, but you are still paranoid for rating purposes.

Do you suffer from urination problems? slow stream, weak stream, problem stopping or starting, frothy urine, odd color, etc. These can be part and parcel of several secondaries that are made worse by your PTSD. Make sure you tell the doctor. If they ask you how many "pads" you use a day they are referring to incontinence products, not something people normally feel comfortable talking about to friends much less strangers. The more pads you use a day, the worse your leakage is and that affects the negative impact of the condition as a secondary claim.

The term pads also applies to Adult Diapers, shields, etc. If you don't use them but should, let the doctor know. Not everyone knows "pads" exist for men, I certainly didn't and I was damned if I was going to wear a diaper so I dealt with it by having lots of drawers and doing frequent laundry. The VA will provide you incontinence products once you are rated and diagnosed.

My point is don't be proud and try to make a stranger think you have a grip on things when you don't really. The VA does not compensate you for struggling to make things look "normal", they compensate you for the degree that your disability takes you outside the norm for societal interactions or physical functions. Meaning if your PTSD, depression, anxiety and BiPolar conditions make you a jackass to be around and you have no friends/loss friends because of it, tell the doctor. IT matters.

To your direct question of can you work with a 50% (or greater) PTSD rating, the answer is yes, and possibly no under some circumstances. 

A veteran who is rated at 100% scheduler SC, even 100% PTSD, can work.

One things that would make is you could not work was if the PTSD was so severe you were filing for Aid and Attendance and or you were home bound. This would make it difficult to justify working with a typical 100% rating but it can be done. Severe Agoraphobia from PTSD does not mean you cannot work, however paranoid delusions with violent tendencies and psychotic rampaging episodes probably does.

The other time you could not work (or actually can only earn up to the Federal Poverty Level for your household size) is if you were to claim / be granted TD/IU which does not seem to be the case for you.

Under the TD/IU regulations what happens is a veteran who is chronically unemployed, fired, etc due to their service connected disability, and the VA knows about it, the raters can infer TD/IU and pay you at 100% even if your PTSD is rated below the 100% level. This means you don't have to actually file the claim for them to rate it as TD/IU but you would have to sign a form if they did grant that rating so by inaction you could avoid the TD/IU rating but you would not get the pay at 100%

The elder members here can choose to provide clarifications or amplifications of what I just said. But of all things be honest, have the documentation and try to make yourself look better than you really are.

Good Luck,

Please post your results and let others know your ratings, results and IDC codes if you can.