TDIU question

[capitan]

I have a TDIU claim active. 11 months ago I received a VA letter saying part of the claim is deferred. Then another letter saying they are working on my claim. I don't think they got the memo Leave No Man Behind. Does anybody know how long I will have to wait? Or if there is anyway to check and see what gives?  I am 77 with some medical issues. USMC combat Vietnam vet.

Edited July 1, 2022 by capitan

[pacmanx1]

15 minutes ago, capitan said:

I don't know if you are overweight, but I read that is a big cause and it can improve with losing weight. And of course lifestyle change if necessary, like quit drinking, smoking, and over eating. I eat a cancer friendly diet and I'm underweight. I finally got my weight down to what it should be, partly due to stopping sugar, junk food, eating only 2 meals a day, not 3. And reducing portions. Many people eat twice as much as they need to. If you have a big belly, that's a tell.

These factors may or may not change the fact that a person has sleep apnea. Good for you but everyone is different and yes, we can control our diets, but not everyone has a weight problem that contributed to their OSA. Mine is due to my spinal cord injury and my fibromyalgia. Most people don’t even think about if a spine injury could affect breathing, but the spine has nerves that controls the diaphragm and everything in the body including breathing. So, having a diet and weight issue may not even be the problem. 

P.S. if you are not rated P & T, yes, the VA could re-evaluate your rating if shown improvement but once again everyone is different, and this may not be the case for them, but it might be for you.

[capitan]

Yes, sleep apnea is complicated. Apparently the VA system more so. God bless you brother. And thank you for hanging in there with me. I will post any news here.

Edited October 19, 2022 by capitan
addition

[blahsaysme2u]

I have been using mine since 2008....i can tell you that after the first 5-10 years i couldnt sleep without it....even a short nap- i would wake up and feel terrible- like i just ran a marathon in my sleep....i wear mine religiously and couldnt live without it...tho now i am looking into other alternatives like the implant if i keep losing weight like i am. another 50lbs and ill be eligible for the implant.

[capitan]

I'm glad you're doing better. What is a CPAP machine and what does it do? It looks like yours was caused by overweight? It doesn't get better with weight loss?

[blahsaysme2u]

18 hours ago, capitan said:

I'm glad you're doing better. What is a CPAP machine and what does it do? It looks like yours was caused by overweight? It doesn't get better with weight loss?

no mine wasnt caused by weight unfortunately...i have had since i left service in 2008 when i was fit as fiddle...just the implant has bmi limits for effectiveness/elig to get....

i use resmed. its a good machine...its my second one...does all the fancy heated tubes etc...uploads via wifi...only thing i miss is my old machine had hepa filter..this one has a very crappy filter

hope that helps

 

[john999]

I use the "Inspire" system. The docs do an implant in your throat and chest.  It does a pretty good job for those who can't stand the C-pap.  I have Central OSA if you know what I mean.  I stop breathing at night and oxygen level crashes.