ptsd Combat Marine Needs Help Bad

[WILLY3521]

hey anyone that can answer these questions or provide me help, please do....

I am a former marine(presently30%) who while serving in the Sunni province in Iraq, took part in numerous IED attacks, small arms attacks, mortar attacks, as well as participating in the battle of Fallujah. I have a Combat Action Ribbon as well as a Navy Commendation Medal for my actions in combat as well as the documentation for all of the above in my service records. I have been diagnosed as having PTSD by one private psychiatrist, (two months after leaving the service), as well as one VA psychiatrist. But I have had two VA psychologists rule out PTSD (one being the C&P examiner), as well as a VA psychology intern. I am and have been in treatment since the C&P exam and have been on numerous medications for PTSD symptoms since then. This treatment is with both the VA psychiatrist who has diagnosed me with PTSD as well as one of the psychologists who have ruled it out (so far she is saying I do not have all of the symptoms), when my C&P exam was done they did not take into consideration any of my awards as well as the private psychiatrist's diagnosis of PTSD and I was not yet in treatment for mental problems with the VA yet and my claim was denied. These are my questions....

1) Does the psychologists' and the intern's diagnosis cancel out the psychiatrists' diagnosis or is it the other way around?

2) Is staying with this psychologist(she has ruled it out so far) hurting my claim?

3) Do I need more evidence, such as two more diagnosis', to outweigh the three rule outs?

I really could use all the help I get because I am lost right now and struggling financially,and I have a baby on the way and my current living conditions are not suitable for a child(no running water or gas)......Willy3521

[Pete53]

The CAR only means that Willy will be able to provide his own medical evidence and testimony and the VA has to accept it unless they have evidence to contradict it. He still has to show a stressor.

For example I said I had panic attacks. I would have to show proof like SMR's or a Morning Report. A combat Vet says he has panic attacks. The VARO has to accept it as a fact unless they can prove otherwise.

So being a combat Vet does not mean that there will be an automatic award.

If I am wrong I beg for someone to tell me.

Back to Willy. I think that the VA told him that he needs to provide a stressor. That would be an action that caused him to be traumatized.Being in Iraq is traumatic but not necessarily a stressor. Like Berta said being in a firefight and seeing people killed could be.

When you deal with the VA you have to be very careful. They will use anything that they can to deny a claim.

[Stretch]

Willy,

Welcome aboard. Thanks for your service.

"RULE OUT" does not mean what you think it does. "Rule Out" means that PTSD is one of the things that could be the cause of your mental illness.

They can not confirm your PTSD, until stressors have been verified. "RULE OUT" does not mean that PTSD diagnosis is thrown out, it means that PTSD is a possibility of your illness. Don't ask me why this seems backward, because I don't know. Hang in there.

[Berta]

Pete-you said it better than me or even the explanation by NVLSP-

The PH is an absolute proof of stressor on a DD 214-with a PTSD diagnosis- because it is proof of life threatening personal event that occurred inservice.

As you said having specific combat awards proves the veteran was in combat so if the stressor raises to a level that VA has defined as a stressful event-

the VA will concede the stressor occurred if it is consistent with the other information and cannot be contradicted-

Forget I said all that- you said it exactly the way it is-

It sems that the diagnosis is also in question here too in this new member's claim.

This is a good recent example of exactly what the VA needs for PTSD claims:

http://www.va.gov/vetapp07/files1/0702488.txt

[WILLY3521]

which of these would be more easily accepted by the VA as a stressor?

-watching an IED go off that left my best friend's face lacerated right in front off me

-or-

-being in a city engaged in full blown combat where there were dead bodies lying out on the street everywhere where I watched a dog eat someone's throat out while ducking sniper fire

because the latter has screwed with my head more than the first

Willy

[Testvet]

I was sent to the PTSD team in Feb 2003 to rule out PTSD, they put you thru all the MMPI tests, a lot of interviews and 3-5 muliple choice exams some have as little as 200 questions and one had like 537 questions on it, the process took a few months, they made me redo one of the tests, they ask the same questions back asswards 3-4 times it can be frustrating, but by April they sent the results of their interviews and their tests to my treating shrink and they diagnosed me with PTSD, and gave me a GAF of 35, I am still seeing the same pyschiatrist, he is the head of the clinic, and my case fascinates him, I am taking him the book that was written by the nut job at Edgewood that just released his version of the facts on the LSD experiments. rofl bet Dr P is going to love this one rule out just means they are checking to see if you have it or not

[Testvet]

when the IED went off did you think you were going to be injured by it like your friend? I would write both instances into your stressor letter, do you see both things in your dreams or recurrent thoughts duing the day? Or is only one of them bothering you? It's playing in your head we don't know I have a list of about 15 stressors but the VA likes to have one stressor to point to and say it caused it, doesn't make sense but it is a government agency we are talking about, and they want to be able to verify it, did your friend get sent to the hospital? Is the company or battalion records going to have a copy of the damage to the vehicle or your friend? The biggest thing is to have an incident that can be verified....