The VA PTSD Claims Playbook
A Veteran's Plain-Language Guide to Stressors, the C&P Exam, and Building a Strong PTSD Claim
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About this book
The VA does not award compensation for PTSD on a diagnosis alone. It looks at the whole record: a diagnosis, evidence that the stressor in service happened, and medical evidence linking the two. What it takes to show the stressor depends on what happened to you. This guide walks through each stressor rule in plain language, from gathering evidence and preparing for the C&P exam to reading your rating decision and what comes after it.
Inside this book
- 1Understanding PTSD Claims
- 2The Stressor Categories
- 3Gathering Your Evidence
- 4Filing Your Initial Claim
- 5The C&P Exam for PTSD
- 6Reading Your Rating Decision
- 7After the Rating: Secondary Conditions, TDIU, and SMC
The book points you to its free field guide, Filing a PTSD Claim (a free download, no signup).
Pairs with
Free guides and worksheets need no signup and no book. Books and workbooks are coming soon.
Workbook · Coming soonThe PTSD Claim Workbook
Free guideFiling a PTSD Claim
Free worksheetBuddy Statement Pack
Free worksheetFive Ten Twenty
Free worksheetThe Frozen Record
Free worksheetThe Reason Underneath
Free worksheetTwo Week Record
Free worksheetVA Math Worksheet
Free worksheetWhich Door
Free worksheetWork History Record
J. Erickson
Author, educator, former veteran service officer.
J. Erickson is a service-disabled Air Force veteran. He served as a military firefighter and as a veteran service officer, where he spent years walking veterans through the same claims process he writes about now. He holds an MBA and writes plain-language guides for veterans who want to understand the system without a translator.
Read more about the author