Ihadanapostrophe

CJ, thank you for serving.

I left Iraq in 2011, and was diagnosed with PTSD (among other issues) in 2012. Since then, I've tried every option the VA has given me, and nothing worked. Many medications made things worse. I've been following the research, but have some questions about the process.

Did the VA help in any way, or was it all on your own? Were there any repercussions from them? How functional are you after? Meaning, were you able to work very quickly, or did it take time to get life together once symptoms decreased? Were there complications trying to start the treatment in a bureaucratic/legal sense? Did the VA recognize the change and adjust compensation?

The treatment shows huge promise, but I have had very negative experiences with the military/VA docs, and can't imagine them approving this. Medical marijuana is legal in my state and I have a prescription, yet my doctor (non-psych) will not prescribe me other medications while I have it in my system. It took them over 2 years to diagnose a hernia I have, stating that my legal prescription of oxycodone wasn't warranted. They would not focus on my pain levels or diagnosing what caused it, only on the potential for abuse. Additionally, my doctors have given false information on interactions, despite research from NIH/NCMB proving they are incorrect. I haven't been able to work in almost a year, and I leave the apartment less than 10 times a month. It's been almost 3 years since deployment and I am just starting to convince the VA to investigate these issues.

I believe in the treatment, but am very concerned that it will end up putting my overall care from the VA back to the start. What have you experienced?

Congrats on beating PTSD. It fucking sucks, and I've seen a few friends choose to give up. It feels like every day is a fight to keep going. Having the hope of a reliable, effective treatment could help anyone suffering to not give up, but only if it won't create bigger issues. Thank you for taking the chance, and for sharing the experience/results.

Nope, I'm lucky enough to deal with the Phx VA. I will definitely look into the trial, though. Recovery and losing benefits is better than stasis and keeping benefits. That's a good response, by the way; I might steal it.

Thanks for the response, and for the offer of support. I'm off narcotics, but the pain is not solved. That's more of a personal issue, though.

Your view of the VA lines up almost exactly with mine, and a ton of others'. There are some great doctors, but the policies prevent them from being as effective as they could be. My psychiatrist went out on a limb for me and prescribed ADD meds. I know it's counterintuitive, and it won't work for everyone. It can raise anxiety, but it actually lets me motivate/think clearly. It's a very low dose, but it lowers depression significantly by helping me start getting my life together at the cost of a mild elevation in anxiety.

I feel the biggest issue is treatment isn't specific to the individual many ways. I respond very negatively to SSRI/SNRIs, but can work towards healthy habits with other meds. Others will have a completely different response. Their policies that limit medication options are counterproductive in the long run. I was hoping that the MDMA treatment was gaining traction legally, but I guess it's still too early.

And yes, that phrase makes me feel weird. I hated having people thank me. Why should I be thanked for doing my job? Go thank a garbage man or a sewage worker. My job was probably way cooler with better benefits. However, after being out, I realized that it's a way of showing respect and appreciation for putting yourself at risk. It still feels weird saying it or being thanked, but I would rather be uncomfortably courteous than an asshole, even if it's just in my eyes. I just decided to work on expanding it to thanking others with critical jobs that are under appreciated.

There is a small chance his ISP could be the victim of a DDoS attack. My dad has been working with systems for 30 years, and a few years ago it happened to ours. He was actually on contract with them at one point during all of it (the attacks went on for quite a few months, sporadically) and managed to prove that one of their servers was being attacked. The ISP lost no data, but some of their hardware responded by cutting outside bandwidth to prevent breaches (more happened, but that's the only detail he gave me). So, I agree that almost nobody would DDoS a household, but shit rolls downhill. Just a possibility.

This AMA has been very interesting. I have a question about a tricky situation.

My parents purchased a house at the end of the last millennium. They had it inspected and have had constant insurance coverage from the beginning. Last year they found a large crack in the foundation. It will end up destroying the house if not fixed. The inspection didn't mention the crack and the insurance is saying they won't cover it since it might be from before the purchase.

Should a foundation check be part of an inspection? Where can I find a record of the inspection? Have you dealt with any similar situations? Any advice for where to start figuring out responsibility/liability?