Guide series
PTSD and Mental Health VA Claims: Complete Guide Series
Plain-English guides to PTSD and mental health VA disability claims: service connection under 38 CFR 3.304(f), stressor evidence, ratings under the General Rating Formula in 38 CFR 4.130, secondary depression and anxiety, and what permanent and total means.
Overview
Start here: ptsd & mental health basics.
Mental health claims raise several separate questions: whether a condition can be connected to service, what evidence establishes an in-service stressor, how the VA measures severity, and how depression or anxiety arising from another service-connected condition is handled.
The guides below work through each question using the VA's own regulations. Start with the overview, then read the guide that matches your situation.
PTSD and VA Disability: How Service Connection Works
A complete plain-English guide to PTSD VA claims: the three elements under 38 CFR 3.304(f), how stressors are established, how the VA rates mental disorders, and where medical evidence fits.
Read the main guideIn this series
Go deeper on your situation.
8 min readPTSD Stressor Evidence: What the VA Accepts
How an in-service stressor is established under 38 CFR 3.304(f): combat and fear-based stressors, corroboration requirements, and the alternative evidence allowed for personal assault claims.
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9 min readPTSD VA Ratings Explained: 0, 10, 30, 50, 70, and 100 Percent
What each PTSD rating level describes under the General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders in 38 CFR 4.130, why symptoms are examples rather than a checklist, and how mental health ratings combine with others.
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7 min readAnxiety and Depression VA Ratings: How They Are Evaluated
How the VA rates depression and anxiety disorders under the same General Rating Formula used for PTSD, why only one mental health rating is assigned, and what the diagnosis code does and does not change.
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8 min readDepression and Anxiety Secondary to Service-Connected Conditions
How secondary service connection works under 38 CFR 3.310 for depression and anxiety arising from chronic pain, physical disability, or another service-connected condition - including aggravation.
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7 min readIs PTSD Permanent and Total? What the Terms Actually Mean
What 'total' and 'permanent' mean in VA regulations, why a 100 percent rating is not automatically permanent, how individual unemployability fits, and when re-examinations are scheduled.
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9 min readWhat Evidence Supports a Mental Health VA Claim
The records, statements, and medical opinions that carry weight in a PTSD, depression, or anxiety claim - and the six weaknesses that most often undermine one.
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