About 13 million people have been diagnosed with PTSD; despite the large number of people affected, PTSD is still widely misunderstood. Myths about PTSD create a negative stigma. These myths deter veterans from getting help, talking about their symptoms, and claiming their service-connected benefits. In order to break down the stigma and encourage people to […]
Veterans Disability Blog
Does the Mental Health Diagnosis Impact Your Benefits?
Mental Health Conditions & Veterans Many veterans suffer from a variety of mental health conditions because of their experiences in service. In fact, one study found that 20% of veterans who served in Iraq or Afghanistan suffer from depression or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Moreover, 19.5% have experienced a traumatic brain injury. While it is […]
Global Assessment Functioning: How Does Mental Health Affect You?
What is the GAF Scale? The Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scale ranges from 0-100 and measures the extent that your mental health condition affects your daily life. The higher your rating, the more functional you are to handle tasks in your daily life. On the other hand, the lower your rating, the more severe […]
8 Conditions Linked to Sleep Apnea
When a veteran has numerous conditions that are not all service-connected, it is important to consider whether the conditions without “service-connection” should be service-connected secondarily. A condition is service-connected secondarily when an already service-connected condition, or its medication, causes or aggravates another condition. If you have sleep apnea and any of the following conditions there […]
Sleep Apnea Secondary to PTSD
Studies show that people with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have a higher risk of developing sleep apnea. Additionally, there is a direct correlation regarding the severity of the two conditions; meaning, the more severe a veteran’s PTSD is, the more severe their sleep apnea will be. If you have both PTSD and sleep apnea, you […]
It’s Official: Vietnam Blue Water Navy Veterans Get Agent Orange Presumption
What has been going on? Blue Water Navy Veterans are sailors and Marines who were stationed and served offshore in Vietnam. Many of these veterans have developed health problems associated with Agent Orange. However, because these soldiers were not on the ground on the Republic of Vietnam or in the brown water, they have been […]