PTSD Affects More Than Your Mental Health. The VA Should Recognize That.
PTSD is one of the most common — and most misunderstood — VA disability claims. Many veterans carry symptoms for years before connecting them to their service: difficulty sleeping, hypervigilance, irritability, avoidance of certain places or situations, trouble maintaining relationships.
The VA rates PTSD under Diagnostic Code 9411 at 0%, 10%, 30%, 50%, 70%, or 100%, based on how your symptoms affect your ability to work and maintain daily life. A 70% PTSD rating, for example, currently pays over $1,700/month. Visit the VA Calculator
But here’s what many veterans don’t realize: PTSD rarely exists on its own. The chronic stress response it creates can cause or worsen physical conditions — sleep apnea, migraines, hypertension, gastrointestinal issues. Each of those can be claimed as a secondary condition with its own separate rating.
That means a veteran rated at 70% for PTSD who also has service-connected sleep apnea and migraines could reach 90% or 100% combined — and the monthly compensation changes significantly at those levels.
If you’re dealing with PTSD and other health issues that started during or after service, those conditions may be connected — and you may have earned more than your current rating reflects.
At Bluestein Attorneys, our VA-accredited disability attorneys help veterans build the medical evidence the VA requires and identify secondary conditions that often go unclaimed.
Free case review: (803) 779-7599
— Bluestein Attorneys | Columbia, SC | Serving veterans nationwide
