27 Jul 2023
Ask An Expert: Preparing For Your C&P Exam

Ask An Expert: Preparing For Your C&P Exam

PTSD
About Our Expert Jeffrey Garbelman is a licensed psychologist and co-operator of Watertown Psychological Assessment, LLC, which assists veterans in all matters of mental health and veteran benefits. As a former VA C&P Psychologist and consultant for the Milwaukee Regional Center, he has offered medical opinions on over 250 veteran mental health Disability Indemnity Compensation claims and over 1,500 mental health Compensation and Pension claims. He has also published two articles on mental health and veteran compensation examinations in the Journal of Psychological Injury and the Law. We asked him: "How should a Veteran prepare for their C&P Exam and…
Read More
27 Apr 2023

VA Unemployability for PTSD: A Comprehensive Guide

Individual Unemployability, PTSD, TDIU
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that can occur after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event. It can cause various symptoms, including flashbacks, nightmares, anxiety, and depression. For veterans, PTSD is a common condition that can significantly impact their ability to work and earn a living. Fortunately, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) offers an Individual Unemployability (IU) program that provides financial support for veterans who can no longer work due to service-connected disabilities like PTSD. This guide will explore the VA Individual Unemployability program, its eligibility requirements, the application process, and frequently asked questions. What Does…
Read More
06 Mar 2023
Is Sleep Apnea a VA Disability?

Is Sleep Apnea a VA Disability?

PTSD, VA Benefits, VA Disability Claims, VA Disability Compensation
For service members, the stresses of training, combat, and reintegration into civilian life can disrupt sleep patterns. Insomnia and nightmares may be the most common service-related sleep disruption, but sleep apnea also affects millions of veterans. Yes, it is a disability that can entitle a veteran to compensation.  Sleep apnea is a condition where breathing stops and starts while the individual is asleep. It may lead to snoring or gasping for air during sleep, drowsiness, dry mouth, and/or headaches during waking hours.  Service-related sleep apnea could be connected to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Though research is still being conducted on…
Read More
14 Feb 2023

Eligibility for PTSD-Related DIC Benefits

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, PTSD Disability, VA Benefits, VA Disability Attorney, veteran suicide
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a specific kind of brain injury that affects about 15% of veterans who served in the Middle East— specifically, operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. Veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan in the Global War on Terror suffer greatly from the effects of loneliness, isolation, combat, explosions, and various other symptoms of PTSD.  Like other brain injuries, PTSD is a severe condition that requires extensive treatment and care.  A study in the New York Times found that suicide rates among post-9/11 veterans were four times as high as the number of deaths in combat.…
Read More
31 Jan 2023

VA Disability Rating for PTSD

Military Sexual Trauma (MST), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, PTSD Disability
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a specific kind of brain injury. The nature of brain injuries with emotional or mental symptoms can make them difficult to detect. Therefore, many brain injury victims, including people with PTSD, downplay or fail to report their symptoms to doctors performing examinations as part of a disability claim (compensation & pension, or C&P exams). This is especially true among veterans. Many of these individuals are very independent-minded and tend to refuse to let an illness or injury get the better of them. To obtain maximum PTSD ratings for VA disabilities, a VA disability appeals lawyer…
Read More
29 Dec 2022

The Five and Five of VA Disability PTSD

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, PTSD Disability, Traumatic Brain Injury, VA Benefits, VA Disability Compensation, Veterans Disability Attorney
The Five and Five of VA Disability PTSD Despite the research being done to understand post-traumatic stress disorder better, many people may still be surprised to learn that PTSD is a physical brain injury in addition to a psychological disorder. Compensation and pension examiners may not be specialists or well-versed in new PTSD research. That’s especially true if they do not focus on these injuries in their everyday practices.  Many times, examination results and corresponding medical opinions don’t reflect the severity of the injury veterans with PTSD experience. So, in many cases, a VA disability attorney must overcome a subtle…
Read More
20 Oct 2022

PTSD and Substance Abuse

PTSD, PTSD Disability, veteran suicide, Veterans' Appeals
PTSD and Substance Abuse Can Lead to Early Death Researchers at Boston University have completed a study looking at the interplay between PTSD and substance abuse. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and external psychological markers like substance abuse predict early death in veterans. The study authors, who focused on veterans with PTSD, found a high risk of premature death beginning at the cellular level.  “Our study found that PTSD and comorbid conditions like substance misuse are associated with a cellular marker of early death found in DNA methylation patterns and referred to as ‘GrimAge.’” These are the words of the corresponding…
Read More
05 Jul 2022

Psychedelics Gain Momentum as PTSD Treatments

PTSD, PTSD Disability, VA appeals Attorney, VA Benefits, VA Disability Compensation, Veterans Disability Attorney
Psychedelics Gain Momentum as PTSD Treatments   It's a new era for PTSD treatments. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) was first identified in patients who survived concentration camps during World War II. It has also been called “shell-shock” pertaining to service members returning from combat operations. Doctors understand this condition a lot better today than they did 20 years ago. However, regulators have not approved any new PTSD treatment drugs since 1991. To this day only two drugs are registered to treat PTSD. Increasingly, it appears that existing psychedelic drugs may fill in the gap.   In the early 1960s, a…
Read More
10 May 2022

Determine If A Veteran Has PTSD

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, PTSD Disability, Veterans Disability Lawyer, Veterans' Appeals
How to Determine If A Veteran Has PTSD Learning how to determine if a Veteran has PTSD can be an intimidating task. Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is one of the most complex disorders treated by the VA, and one of the hardest to diagnose. It is a mental disorder that develops when the individual experiences or witnesses a traumatic event. PTSD is a separate condition from the more general feeling of “post-traumatic stress.” For example, Person A and Person B can both witness the same plane crash, but respond to it differently. Person A may experience “post-traumatic stress” for…
Read More
26 Apr 2022

PTSD Support

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, PTSD, PTSD Disability
PTSD Support From finding a PTSD support group to being evaluated by a mental health professional, or finding self-help strategies that work for you, in fact, there are many different things that can help with the symptoms of PTSD. -What is PTSD? -How can you get help for PTSD? -How do you know if you have PTSD? -What are the symptoms of PTSD? If you're reading this, then you might be wondering if you or someone you know has PTSD. PTSD is a mental health condition that's triggered by a frightening event. It can cause flashbacks, nightmares, and anxiety. It…
Read More