Please i need help with unspecified mood and anxiety disorder

kartelony

PEB Forum Regular Member
Registered Member
I'm a 10 yrs and 5 months active duty marine and currently on MEB who was found unfit due to Mental HEALTH. and the whole process makes me nervous. I have been suffering with depression and anxiety for about 6 yrs and have been in all kinds of medication. I was recently diagnosed with UNSPECIFIED MOOD (EFFECTIVE) DISORDER AND ANXIETY DISORDER UNSPECIFIED. And to mention i have sleep apnea using a CPAP machine and hashiomoto thyroiditis which all affects my mental health, my lack of libido (sex life) muscle pain and weakness, sever insomnia to mention but a few. Does anyone have an idea that i won't get screwed with my disability and what i should prepare myself for, for the unkown? your responses to my post will be highly appreciated.
 
I'm a 10 yrs and 5 months active duty marine and currently on MEB who was found unfit due to Mental HEALTH. and the whole process makes me nervous. I have been suffering with depression and anxiety for about 6 yrs and have been in all kinds of medication. I was recently diagnosed with UNSPECIFIED MOOD (EFFECTIVE) DISORDER AND ANXIETY DISORDER UNSPECIFIED. And to mention i have sleep apnea using a CPAP machine and hashiomoto thyroiditis which all affects my mental health, my lack of libido (sex life) muscle pain and weakness, sever insomnia to mention but a few. Does anyone have an idea that i won't get screwed with my disability and what i should prepare myself for, for the unkown? your responses to my post will be highly appreciated.
Welcome to the PEB Forum! :)

From an U.S. Army perspective and being diagnosed with PTSD & MDD with psychosis since 2010 timeframe, since your medical symptomology seems to be affecting your ability to perform your assigned military duties at this particular point in time, a referral with acceptance into the DoD IDES MEB/PEB was initiated.

Being found "unfit for duty" by the PEB means that your DoD IDES case file shall be forwarded the DoVA D-RAS for adjudication of ratings for all medical conditions; not just the PEB-referred medical conditions.

Hmm, are you actually in the PEB phase of the DoD IDES process at this point in time? :confused:

Thus, I quite often comment that "possessing well-informed knowledge is truly a powerful equalizer!"

Best Wishes!
 
I believe on the PEB phase and do you have an advice for me so I don't get screwed up and I'm hoping to get out with a disability rating. What experience do you have or know with such cases as mine?
 
It really depends on how severe your symptoms are

This is how the VA rates you:

General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders:


Total occupational and social impairment, due to such symptoms as:

gross impairment in thought processes or communication;

persistent delusions or hallucinations; grossly inappropriate

behavior; persistent danger of hurting self or others; intermittent

inability to perform activities of daily living (including maintenance

of minimal personal hygiene); disorientation to time or place; memo

loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name 100%


Occupational and social impairment, with deficiencies in most areas,

such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood,

due to such symptoms as: suicidal ideation; obsessional rituals

which interfere with routine activities; speech intermittently illogical,

obscure, or irrelevant; near-continuous panic or depression affecting

the ability to function independently, appropriately and effectively;

impaired impulse control (such as unprovoked irritability with periods

of violence); spatial disorientation; neglect of personal appearance and

hygiene; difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances (including

work or a worklike setting); inability to establish and maintain

effective relationships 70%


Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and

productivity due to such symptoms as: flattened affect; circumstantial,

circumlocutory, or stereotyped speech; panic attacks more than once

a week; difficulty in understanding complex commands; impairment

of short- and long-term memory (e.g., retention of only highly learned

material, forgetting to complete tasks); impaired judgment; impaired

abstract thinking; disturbances of motivation and mood; difficulty in

establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships 50%


Occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work

efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational

tasks (although generally functioning satisfactorily, with routine

behavior, self-care, and conversation normal), due to such symptoms

as: depressed mood, anxiety, suspiciousness, panic attacks (weekly or

less often), chronic sleep impairment, mild memory loss (such as

forgetting names, directions, recent events) 30%


Occupational and social impairment due to mild or transient symptoms

which decrease work efficiency and ability to perform occupational

tasks only during periods of significant stress, or; symptoms controlled

by continuous medication 10%


A mental condition has been formally diagnosed, but symptoms are not

severe enough either to interfere with occupational and social

functioning or to require continuous medication0%
 
Now take a look at this:

https://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/vba-21-0960p-2-are.pdf

Section 3a of the form will align with the bold type first sentences above. This will determine your mental health rating. Section 7 will go over all of the specific symptoms. If you are concerned about getting screwed, have your current treating doc fill out a DBQ for you and then if VA lowballs you, use it to submit a VARR.
 
Mental health rating will be a minimum of 50% if you are placed on TDRL.
 
Given you anxiety disorder, I suspect you are worrying exponential more than you should be. Try your best to relax, tens of thousands have walked this same road and survived. You will also!
 
I have a similar mental disorder rated at 70%, but my attorney advised me that adding the mental part is easy, but the trend is to place you on TDRL until it "stabilizes," then you're left with nothing, so it's better to try and add physical disabilities to bump you up to 30%... which is the strategy I'm pursuing. Something to consider if you want PDRL.
 
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