Meeting Another Nam Vet, Or Maybe?

A market along Highway 1 about seven miles north of Danang 1968.
Someone on our truck fired a shot in the air and everyone in the market hit the ground in unison.
Moments later, they were all back up. Strange times. (Click picture to make it larger.)

I met a Vietnam veteran last time I was at the store. I saw him in the bathroom washing his hands. He had on a POW jacket and a Vietnam veteran baseball type hat. He was scraggly and had a long grey beard. He was still washing his hands when I left so I waited outside for him.

"Hi, when were you in Nam?" I asked him. 

I will usually ask if I see a guy wearing all that stuff. It's just my curious nature because I'm one of those Nam veterans who doesn't wear the patches and hats and all the other bells and whistles.

"I was there in 64 and 65," he said. "And 66, 67, 68, and 69."

So this guy pretty much had the entire active war covered. That means he would have had to have done five tours.

"I was there in 67 and 68," I said.

"Lots of combat going on then," he said. "The Tet Offensive."

"Yeah, I was there for Tet."

And then the guy took off so fast, I didn't have a chance to talk to him about anything else. He for sure wasn't a lifer. Old lifers don't dress or look like he did. You can always tell an old lifer because they still walk and talk and look like they are wearing starched utilities. Their entire bearing and haircut will scream old lifer. This guy wasn't any of those things. 

I've never heard of any on the ground in-country enlisted man doing the five complete tours that it would take to cover those six years. It's possible he could have been Air Force and flew in and out during that time or he could have been a Blue Water Veteran from a ship that came and went. But I guarantee you, he never served five tours on the ground in Nam. Of course, he never said what branch of the service he was in before he took off.

I have to conclude, based on that brief encounter, that he was a phony. The phony Nam vet will always add more tours for some strange reason, as if one wasn't enough. Those who were really there know that one tour was enough. That's why the phony vet has to embellish because they don't know how bad it really was over there. Some veterans did a six month extension and some did two tours and some may have done three because of unit movements where everyone in the outfit has to go. But five is probably creative science fiction.

The first thing I usually ask is what outfit a guy was with after I ask what years they were in Nam. I didn't have the chance with this guy. If he didn't want people to ask, then why wear all the stuff that announces Nam veteran? He probably did want people to ask, but just not another Nam veteran. All I can say is they are out there, and they have been out there from every war. I could be wrong about this guy, but I doubt it.

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PTSD Review

I am often asked why some veterans receive a “Total and Permanent” rating on their first application for PTSD compensation. I’ve also recently heard from a vet who got 100% P&T on his first claim attempt. There is no real answer to that question because receiving 100% the first time around is a rare event. But there could be several reasons in such cases when they do occur.
A veteran may have a history of never being able to hold a job or even function in society. This would warrant 100% T&P. A veteran may have been treated in the system for years without ever filing a claim, but has an obvious sporadic employment record and a diagnosis of severe PTSD. This could also possibly warrant %100 P&T.

In rare cases, a veteran could have had such a horrible wound to the head or face that no one would hire him. Although, the wound wouldn’t rate total disability, the psychological damage of having to face the war each day from the disfiguring wound and not being able to secure employment because of the wound would rate 100% T&P for PTSD. If you have had a long term history of employment and are currently employed, getting 100% on an initial claim is not going to happen.

Some veterans worry that their PTSD percentage will be cut during yearly Comp Exams. This is not likely because PTSD does not go away. It may improve on a temporary basis, but it will never go away. Once you have a PTSD percentage, it will likely go up, and never go down.
Another veteran wanted to know if it is necessary to attend therapy to receive a service connection for PTSD.

After you are service-connected, it is up to you whether you want to continue therapy. If you intend to go for an increase, therapy is important because it shows you are seeking help. If you are satisfied with your percentage, you do not have to attend therapy. Therapy is something that should be done on an individual basis according to need. If you feel further therapy won’t help you, then go only when you feel the need to talk to someone. Once again, your percentage isn’t likely to be cut because you don’t want to see a therapist constantly.

Another veteran wanted to know if Unemployable veterans can get same day treatment at a VA Medical Center for a bad tooth, ingrown toenail, or a painful boil. You can receive treatment for all these conditions, but it is different at each VA Medical Center as far as immediate treatment. It would be best to call ahead and make sure you can get in on an emergency basis, and make sure you let them know you are 100%, especially for dental work.

Also, if you are in a Voc Rehab program, you receive treatment the same as 100% while you are in the program. If this is your case, I would request documentation from the Regional Office to allow emergency treatment, because if you just go in and say you are in Voc Rehab, the Medical Center won’t treat you without an okay from the Regional Office. Since this could take a month or longer, a bad tooth won’t wait that long.

Also, if you have a dental emergency while in Voc Rehab, call your service organization officer and they should be able to help you get in right away or you may also try your Voc Rehab case worker.

Finally, for veterans filing an initial claim, it would be best before you file to go to a VA Medical Center Out-Patient Clinic and request to talk to someone about PTSD. This gets it on record that you are seeking treatment and puts you in the system. You may also be able to get an immediate diagnosis of PTSD.

(The picture above was taken at the wall by another Marine Nam vet and childhood friend, Bill Maag. Thomas W. Mills was our childhood friend killed by a sniper around May of 1968. We called him Bo. During visitor day in boot camp, the DI screamed at me that my brother was here to see me. I didn't have a brother but I kept my mouth shut and went to the visitor center. It was Tom, down from Pendelton and pretending to be my brother. He bought me smokes and I had about three chocolate malts before the visit was over. That visit allowed me to make through the last few weeks of boot camp. I still think of him each day.)