Hey All, Some Advice?

[tec]

Like the new site.

I have Physical in one week for a bunch of things I have listed, some secondary to current disabilities in knees and ankles and an increase in the knees. I had to retire from usps in AUg, and my dr is writing a letter that due to the disability in my knees and ankles I cannot maitain a job, etc, etc..

Only prob is I am 50 percent. So trying to get it upped with this other stuff that I should have filed for years ago, but put off saying I would file when it came time to retire.

I have been also diagnosed with depression/anxiety secondary to the current disabilities...with suicidal ideaologies. is that worth anything and is there a reference to read about it?

Any advice on filling out the QTC forms? Will they give me a new set, I messed up the ones I got....have to white out. Dont suppose there is access to these forms on the net?

MY physical is with a local dr. who is usually in a hurry to rush you thru and last time I went, I was told that he would write pretty much what you told him or wanted him to, he really does this lightly......when we were adding my ankles last time, he told me it looked like they wanted to give me those joints as secondary and i said ok and he did. So how much does his report count? My personal doctor will be writing a letter to show as likely as not several things are secondary and some are service related after 15 years.

I can list the things if needed, I have researched and researched each thing.

Another question. I had an xray in dec of last yr and said mild to moderate djd, now last month the xray shows mild djd...so how did it go from mild to mod to mild..these were all by the va. Have a lot of probs with the si joint and lower back...mri last month showed either a protusion or a rotary tear in one of my lower disc things. That protrusion won't show on the xray they send me to for this physical as they don't do mri, this mri was done by va, so will they automatically see it or will i need to bring it to their attention?

On the QTC forms they ask about how many times bedrest a year...for each my knees and ankles are a combination, one goes, usually all go, yet they want me to put how much bedrest a year for each knee and each ankle..sheez how to I do that one?

Another thing, I have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia and we traced it back to 88 when I injured my knee originally and almost died on the operating table at the start of arthroscopic surgery. I had no idea then or thru the years what fibro was until 2 years ago when I started seeing a dr and she diagnosed it. THo I did not put Fibro in as a condition I put several things that are symptoms, i.e. IBS, CFS, migraines and so forth, individually. My DAV rep said not to worry about putting fibro in now, because of the 22 or 23 things i have in they could prob be grouped into 3 or 4 major things, i.e. those symptoms 4 or 5 could be grouped as fibro...if this is true then who will name them as fibro if i have not put them in as fibro? VA?

If a list of things is needed i will post..thanks all...t

[tec]

one other note, they sent me a couple wrong forms..ie bilateral shoulder condition and they sent me right shoulder condition only. will they correct these? thanks..t

[Arch]

Like the new site.

I have Physical in one week for a bunch of things I have listed, some secondary to current disabilities in knees and ankles and an increase in the knees. I had to retire from usps in AUg, and my dr is writing a letter that due to the disability in my knees and ankles I cannot maitain a job, etc, etc..

Only prob is I am 50 percent. So trying to get it upped with this other stuff that I should have filed for years ago, but put off saying I would file when it came time to retire.

I have been also diagnosed with depression/anxiety secondary to the current disabilities...with suicidal ideaologies. is that worth anything and is there a reference to read about it?

Any advice on filling out the QTC forms? Will they give me a new set, I messed up the ones I got....have to white out. Dont suppose there is access to these forms on the net?

MY physical is with a local dr. who is usually in a hurry to rush you thru and last time I went, I was told that he would write pretty much what you told him or wanted him to, he really does this lightly......when we were adding my ankles last time, he told me it looked like they wanted to give me those joints as secondary and i said ok and he did. So how much does his report count? My personal doctor will be writing a letter to show as likely as not several things are secondary and some are service related after 15 years.

I can list the things if needed, I have researched and researched each thing.

Another question. I had an xray in dec of last yr and said mild to moderate djd, now last month the xray shows mild djd...so how did it go from mild to mod to mild..these were all by the va. Have a lot of probs with the si joint and lower back...mri last month showed either a protusion or a rotary tear in one of my lower disc things. That protrusion won't show on the xray they send me to for this physical as they don't do mri, this mri was done by va, so will they automatically see it or will i need to bring it to their attention?

On the QTC forms they ask about how many times bedrest a year...for each my knees and ankles are a combination, one goes, usually all go, yet they want me to put how much bedrest a year for each knee and each ankle..sheez how to I do that one?

Another thing, I have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia and we traced it back to 88 when I injured my knee originally and almost died on the operating table at the start of arthroscopic surgery. I had no idea then or thru the years what fibro was until 2 years ago when I started seeing a dr and she diagnosed it. THo I did not put Fibro in as a condition I put several things that are symptoms, i.e. IBS, CFS, migraines and so forth, individually. My DAV rep said not to worry about putting fibro in now, because of the 22 or 23 things i have in they could prob be grouped into 3 or 4 major things, i.e. those symptoms 4 or 5 could be grouped as fibro...if this is true then who will name them as fibro if i have not put them in as fibro? VA?

If a list of things is needed i will post..thanks all...t

Allways make copies first, fill out the copies, then check it over twice and once after sleeping on it! B) Thenfill out the original the way it should look. My handwriting is so spastic I have my wife fill it out from my chicken scratching.

QTC is a real piece of Sh^&^ to deal with,consider them 100% adversarial. Get a second opinion Immediatly as they Lie for the Govt. They are the Fox who is in charge of watching the hen house. :) They are The VA's dream come true, to poop on you :(

Arch Sgt. USAF

[tec]

ok, second opinion on what and about what? the dr report, or whatever QTC gives to VA? Is it possible to get a copy of either of these?

I have a doctor I see monthly that will back me on everything and has so far and is writing the 'more than likely" letters for the secondaries.....is that second opinion enough?

I thought Qtc just set up the appts gathered info and sent it to the RO and that QTC does not make any decisions....is that wrong?

Right now my DAV rep has told me that this will be easy...He spoke with RO about all my things and pointed where 70 percent could be gotten for IU, and we would drop this and that for that, type of thing. But the RO needed a physical to justify I guess...so not sure where I am at...I have to believe DAV rep right? He would not make such a promise if he could not back it up..kind of a bold proclamation to not be able to back up wouldn't you say? thanks..t

[carlie]

tec,

I would think the RO would want a C&P exam, not just a physical.

Some SO's are good -- some SO's probably know less about getting

claims SC than you do.

As far as an SO making a promise -- LOL on that one.

carlie

[tec]

Hi Carlie and thanks..

I am mixed up now...I thought what I was going to was a c & p exam? QTC just like the last request for upgrade sent the forms to fill out with symptoms and such for the dr. for the exam for all the conditions. So if I am wrong what is a C&p exam then? I live 2.5 hours from the district office in NC and everytime I have put in for upgrade, they have sent me to a contracted local dr. Boy am I mixed up now....

As for the promise from the RO...There was a little more to it than what I wrote but it was enough that I know I would not say all he said if I could not back it up for fear of serious repercussions from VA and DAV. thanks..t

[tec]

For what it is worth, my SO is asst to the head SO in the office that has a very good rating on the SO rating chart on this site. But he explained to me that the school the RO's go to is pretty tough and that VA likes to send their RO's to this DAV school. So he thought he could work with one or two and see if we could not get my 50 percent up to 70 percent, expecially since my 50 is in the left knee and ankles...they dropped the right knee to 10 noncompensatible. So this time it will go up, I guarantee that..if I have to have them replace it.....va already says i need that knee replaced but dont wanna because i am too young, but my dr at va said she could get them to replace it if i wanted...which may happen anyway with all the trouble...

but now I have mild to moderate djd in hips and mild in lower back plus a bulge or rotary tear in the lower spine. Hopefully get those residualized, and my cervical/neck...djd and significant narrowing....see my knees buckle and lock and ankles turn all the time causing falls and injury to other parts of the body and enough head bangs and whiplash to cause damage to the neck and shoulder area. Plus hitting the head when I fall over the years, now have migraines..a lot to residualize....but.....something surely will go thru...plus a few other things...t

PS one other question....on all my previous exams they ignored the pain, and the fact that my knees buckled and I fell and so forth. the ONLY way I could get a rating on the knees and ankles was due to loss of ROM....don't they rate on anything else?

Edited October 27, 2005 by tec