service connection for sleep apnea is granted
That is how I suggest you handle this situation. For instance, if you complain of being tired all the time your doctor may order blood tests to check for anemia, diabetes, and hypothyroidism all of which cause fatigue. yet assertive representation for our clients. Broadly, its defined as the occurrence of five or more breathing-related events per hour, measured by polysomnography (sleep study). Emerging research indicates a strong association between PTSD and sleep apnea.The link between sleep apnea and PTSD is likely due to the fact that many factors that aggravate PTSD also aggravate sleep apneaincluding sleep deprivation, insomnia, hyperarousal, and daytime sleepiness. PTSD can cause insulin resistance (fasting Blood sugar results above 100 prove you have insulin resistance) and insulin resistance causes sleep apnea. %PDF-1.4 % Brian isalso the CEOofMilitary Disability Made Easy, which is the worlds largest free searchable database for all things related to DoD disability and VA disability claims and has served more than 4,600,000 military members and veterans since its founding in 2013. See R. at 8-9. You are going to have to get a LOT of 5-Star Evidence. Hear from fellow Veterans just like you, with many of our Veteran Success Managers having gone through our programs. endobj 4 Common Scenariosfor Proving Sleep Apnea is Service Connected. * A good Lay and Medical presentation and assessment of the sleep apnea symptoms you have had from service, or service-discharge, to the present day. Your VA rating for chronic fatigue syndrome will be higher the worse, or more severe, your symptoms are. At one point sleep apnea was the most prevalent service-connected respiratory disability for which claims were submitted to the VA. Concerningly, it is also one of the conditions most rejected by the VA, as the vast majority are regularly turned down. How to Hire an Attorney For Your VA Claim or Appeal. You cut off oxygen to the brain and blood, and other body systems break down. application/pdf If you need a lawyer, fill out a contact form at the law firm of Attig Steel: https://www.attigsteel.com/contact-us/. Heres 4 lessons I learned that I want to pass on to you if you can really learn and understand these lessons, you will have the power to really improve and service connect sleep apnea claims and appeals. Sleep apnea can be your link or nexus for filing claims for: Sleep apnea is a high-value claim in the VA world of ratings. Dear Veteran, Heres the brutal truth about VA disability claims: According to our data, 8/10 (80%) of veterans reading this message right now are underrated by the VA. See our tips on how to obtain a credible nexus letter, Both sinusitis and rhinitis are linked to sleep apnea, Emerging research indicates a strong association between PTSD and sleep apnea, You Deserve It: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Veteran Benefits Youve Earned, 9 Secrets Strategies for Winning Your VA Disability Claim, Disrupted breathing in which a persons respiration can become labored or even stop for up to a minute at a time, Limited attention span or difficulty thinking clearly, Snoring, including snoring that is especially loud and involves gasping, choking, or snorting that may cause a person to briefly wake up, #1. Heres WhyMost Veterans are not proving Sleep Apnea is Service Connected. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. We share our top tips and a step-by-step guide to a successful claim for obstructive sleep apnea! Even without a definitive cause of the disorder there are noted risk factors including being between the ages of 40-50, difficulty managing stress, and women are more commonly diagnosed (possibly because they report symptoms more often). His frustration with the8-step VA disability claims processled him to createVA Claims Insider,which provides U.S. military veterans with tips, strategies, and lessons learned for successfully submitting or re-submitting a winning VA disability compensation claim. LIFETIME Subscription to the Veterans Law Blog, Quarterly Subscription to the Veterans Law Blog, Annual Subscription to the Veterans Law Blog, there are 39 medical conditions common among Veterans thatcan cause or aggravate sleep apnea, result of other disorders or medical conditions, Sleep Apnea is going to be as big an issue for our current generation of Veterans. Even if youve had a sleep study before, its important to get one done within the 12 months prior to your VA claim. This may cause dizziness, weakness, fainting while standing or sitting, as well as vision becoming blurry or seeing spots. Perkins Studdard LLC makes no representation that it can obtain the same results as reported in cases on this web site in other legal matters. How to Connect Sleep Apnea to Military Service. People with sleep apnea are four times more likely to have depression than people without a sleeping disorder. We cant possibly cover each of those and the ways to service connect all of them in this one article. I believe the two are connected. I dont want you to think about the EASY path to proving Sleep Apnea is service connected. endstream NOW ITS YOUR TURN. If youre experiencing any of the symptoms listed above, and suspect your sleep apnea arose from your time on active duty (or was or aggravated by a currently service-connected disability), you should consider seeking a diagnosis and pursuing compensation for this disability. Sleep Apnea Secondary to GERD - The Expert's Guide - VA Claims Insider case, my case has settled now, and I am very happy for all Jason and his office hard work on my case, he was always there to help me out with any questions that I had or help I needed. Will be some time before answer but getting all the info I can. Because of my PTSD meds and sleep apnea I have gained considerable weight as well as an underactive thyroid. I spoke with DRO via phone for 5min confirming she received my NOD and evidence. injury case. Thanks for your concern and the blog. If accepted into our ELITE membership program, youll get free up-front access and permission to use $13,119 worth of proprietary VA claim resources, including access to our network of independent medical professionals for medical examinations, disability evaluations, and credible Medical Nexus Letters, which could help you get a HIGHER VA rating in LESS time. I stated on my retirement physical that I sometimes have trouble sleeping at night. Our firm was founded in 1986 in Orlando, Florida. Broadly, it's defined as the occurrence of five or more breathing-related "events" per hour, measured by polysomnography (sleep study). As a matter of fact, it may be easier to substantiate with medical records that the sleep apnea symptoms started after the diagnosis of diabetes. The information contained on this web site is provided for informational purposes only and not legal advice. <>/Parent 3 0 R/Type/Page/Contents 8 0 R/Tabs/S/Resources<>/ProcSet[/PDF/Text]/Font<>>>/MediaBox[0 0 612 792]/Rotate 0>> endstream endobj 39 0 obj <> endobj 40 0 obj <> endobj 41 0 obj <>stream . %PDF-1.4 hTOo0| If you use a CPAP machine, then this should warrant a 50% rating. Joints and muscles can have a lot of pain during flare-ups, and, due to the fatigue, mobility may not be something a patient can easily do. Below is the schedule for rating disability for Chronic Fatigue Sundrome. document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Copyright 2016 - VeteransLawBlog.org - All Rights Reserved | Terms & Conditions | Legal Disclaimer, The Veterans Law Blog is NOT a law firm. Regulation Update: VA Ratings for Kidney Disease and Renal Dysfunction. The transmission of an email request for information does not create an attorney client relationship. Jessica Rodriguez has a degree in Health Information Management and has 15+ years of experience in patient care as a Nurses Assistant. Box 449, Deland, FL 32721, Orlando, FL: 605 E. Robinson Street Suite 635, Orlando, FL 32801 * Can Agent Orange cause Sleep Apnea? The criteria for entitlement to service connection for sleep apnea, to include as secondary to PTSD with major depressive disorder, are not met. Symptoms of CFS include thinking and memory issues, orthostatic intolerance such as dizziness, weakness, fainting when upright, and much more. The same can be said about service-connected mental health conditions. They denied extra physical therapy. HWnH}W#zx 8Fb$vhjKLdRCR6-kf$}9u/U(XVX= eX5e2by=t-V?l*_?,?C&{u&Q,E1[x3")KYdXD@Q2+x."]}0uLB!_ne\Ya)y,"k"Q>bV7mWnXQn ZDE(WQ 8mSNMj;vwWoDL-y9mxC~`S3t|4[& S/.TWGaxUtbw>Hk :LfNo`BYL2%*{6GuTP rzY9y+%Koa(+Ja.'Xg Give us a call at 800-477-9027 to see if we can help you. Can I Get a VA Rating for Sleep Apnea Secondary to Depression? Its almost as much work and it can often take as much dedication. If you want to learn how to implement these strategies to get the VA benefits you deserve, click here to speak with a VA claim expert for free. Otherwise, I would properly ended up in mental health facility or going insane!!! If you would like a free consultation with our Perkins Studdard veterans disability attorneys just click here or give us a call to begin the process. You may eventually get there on your own, but it may be after a series of decisions by the Regional Office and Board of Veterans Appeals. Tucson, AZ: One South Church Avenue, 12th Floor, Tucson, AZ, 85701 In our experience, if you did NOT have a sleep study while on active duty and you did not get a medical diagnosis of sleep apnea in the military, you should only attempt to service-connect your sleep apnea VA claim SECONDARY to another service-connected disability. These temporary breathing disruptions or lapses can occur from dozens to hundreds of times per night. I can teach you: * HOW toproveyour Sleep Apnea Claim for any ofthe 3 types of Sleep Apnea you have. Houston, TX: 2925 Richmond Ave, 12th Floor, Houston, TX 77098 * Many Vietnam Veterans exposed to Agent Orange suffer from sleep apnea. There are 3 things that the human body cannot live or function without: Blood/Oxygen, Food/Water and Sleep. See our tips on how to obtain a credible nexus letter. In recent years this trend has begun to turn around, but it is still one of the more difficult conditions to win a disability compensation claim for. 8 0 obj They denied injections the doctor recommended to ease my pain. This disorder can also lead to more complications like depression, social isolation, lifestyle restrictions, and an increase in absences from work/school. Winning a VA Sleep Apnea is much harder. By doing this your claim will have the best chance possible. if our guys/gals have SLEEP APNEA in the field THAT COULD KILL THEM.!! Or perhaps when they realize that Sleep Apnea is going to be as big an issue for our current generation of Veterans asAgent Orange related conditions are to Vietnam Veterans, they will take it seriously. The independent opinion of a private medical professional can also influence the C&P examiners medical opinion, as well as the VA rating officials final disability decision. One step at a time, one claim at a time, one veteran at a time.we vets are winning!! Veterans are assigned a 0, 30, 50, or 100 percent rating depending on the severity . Studies have shown that it is morecommon for Gulf War Veteransin the Southwest Asia theater compared to non-Gulf War Veterans to develop CFS, but the reason for this remains unknown. As a fellow disabled Veteran this is shameful and Im on a mission to change it. Check out the Sleep Apnea Field Manual. BVA Decision sleep apnea is not the kind of disability associated with a wounded warrior. Make sure to have your sleep study done. Required fields are marked *. Jason and his paralegal Lisa were on point and on top of their game when it came to handling my worker's comp. 201 Bankhead Highway, Carrollton GA 30117770-285-1198. Need a C&P exam for sleep apnea secondary to PTSD? FromApril 2013 to April 2014, the BVA denied 76% of Veterans Sleep Apnea appeals. ZB{hp!=Uds~$?4Af%E)L:va4Hc_?qaH }q?OFI>4 7Q3 My sleep apnea is worsened when I lie on my back and I still have loss of breath. I have sleep apnea diagnosed by the VA sleep study. Chills and night sweats as well as low-grade fevers. Brian is a Distinguished Graduate of Management from theUnited States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, CO and he holds an MBA from Oklahoma State Universitys Spears School of Business, Stillwater, OK, where he was a National Honor Scholar (Top 1% of Graduate School class).
