dealing with the VA and the C&P doctors - Military Health Issues Message Board

force · 08-01-2002, 11:56 AM

I was looking through some of the comments from Beckie99 and others. I've had my Gulf War claim going now for 5 years and is currently under appeal. I'm not confident that I will get the rating or even the acknowledgement from the VA that I'm looking for. But I won't stop fighting until those doctors get the picture. Some of these doctors are as old as the hills and are so closed minded to any possibilities of any Gulf illness. I suffer from headaches, joint pain, gastrointestinal problems (mainly constipation) fatigue and depression. But the tests that they have done in the past don't seem to prove anything. I've been dealing with these symptoms for over 10 years and like I mentioned in my previous message severe back pain. It hurts a little to think about when we all came back from the Gulf there were parades and pats on the backs but it seems nobody really remembers us anymore. But isn't that the way it is for all of this country's veterans? Where else can somebody go for treatment at no cost to themselves if not at the VA?

NavyJAG · 10-02-2002, 06:01 PM

My suggestion is that you sign up for every Gulf War study you possibly stand. They're always free. And the information you get from them you can present to the V.A. or free clinics.

Have you ever contacted a Reserve Medical unit of any service? They offer free help to the public because they have to clock a certain number of volunteer hours. Dentists and dental assistants in Houston TX treat the indigent. Air ambulance pilots rescue crash victims in Conroe TX. Air ambulance pilots and EMTs and paramedics pick up premature babies from their birthing hospitals and med-evac them to hospitals that can help them grow in Louisiana.

The key to getting treatment is seeking it on your own. And the Internet is worldwide. The key to getting free help is starting from whence you came: Your fellow service members in the Medical Corp.