u/BrushDistinct3950

Is the appeal/reconsideration decision always via mail? It said they came to a decision but the website says nothing on it?

Edit Update

Denied. After submitting and requesting tons of documents they only utilized one record, didn’t receive my other records or utilized the documents I had submitted that is new evidence that was not present in my initial submission back in January. My total process was

January to May first application
From May to July 1st was my appeal/ reconsideration.

Why is my application going so fast as compared to others with minimal evidence despite what I submitted, nor do they seem to wait long enough for hospitals to respond with records before making a judgement.

The whole process is laughable and gives me literally no hope. Why even allow us to submit evidence if they won’t even utilize it?

Chill blessings my dudes,

If you’re like me, maybe perhaps you came from an institutionalized religion that may have had some deep psychological impact on you. Thinking about it some people like to throw out different verses and things like that to prove a point that their position is the one that’s most correct. This is my dude’s, it’s all just interpretation.

Consider this some people like surfing some people like snowboarding some people like skateboarding. Each thing involves you and a connection to an object. This thing is not every person is gonna have that same connection. So we don’t force people to get up on a board we don’t force people to go chase waves, and we don’t force people to go pound some fresh gnar. Instead, I think we recognize that each person is doing their own thing to try and chill and take it easy.

Now, if there was a certain dude, you remember from an institutionalized religion named Jesus and you still really like him I got some good news for you, you can still have him as one of your dudes, because no institution has legal rights over the representation of that dude. And Jesus being the cool dude that he was gave two important things that is to love God (whoever or whatever that may be to you, no judgment from me), and to love your neighbor.

If I were to put it into perspective. I think Jesus would say, “ love the highest dude (again however way you wanna take that whether you view as yourself as a benevolent being as nothing or everything it don’t matter), and love your fellow dudes as yourself, just take it easy and everything else to fall in line.”

So did that, question might be who’s your dude? Well there are some people that do some un-dude things, but they’re still part of humanity so we could consider them dudes and we should consider them dudes cause it would be really uncool of us to treat them how they were already treating other people because my dudes that just ain’t cool. So let’s just love each other dudes.

Strikes and gutters,
BJ

Chill blessings my dudes,

I have found myself in an interesting spiritual predicament, I am now an ordained dudeist priest. How did I get here you may ask? It actually came to me. For sometime in my life, I dealt with a lot of difficulties, understanding the way we make meaning as individuals and as being interconnected. Growing up I was exposed to a wide array of religions and ideas, some I don’t wanna say were consensual while others I did buy into.

Nonetheless over the years, and even after my undergraduate studies in Christian studies with a minor in philosophy, I find myself asking deeper questions rather than feeling certain of my beliefs. And it wasn’t until I seen the dude did something clicking me. See the issue I had with Christianity and other organized religions is the sticking point of certainty and needing to adhere to the strict rules and regulations in order to be committed, and within compliance of said religious institution, I found myself asking the question why? Simple enough, as some of us may recognize the stereotypical child constantly asking why to adult adults and adults not having a very valid answer for their reasons.

That is where I find my solace with Dudeism. It doesn’t matter what you believe in now some may beg the question of my stance in that and to say my guy you just need to chill out you dig. See we all want to find meaning and give understanding to life and religion. Just happens to be one of those things that tries to answer the questions. We really don’t have an answer to, and whether you’re shaking a magic eight ball wanting to get answers or your praying to a deity in hopes that like atm transaction you get what you want or to some extent something along those lines we place a lot of uncertainty into something that we propose to be certain. To be honest, we don’t really have an answer for most things, and the thing is dudes is that we can’t be so discombobulated when other people aren’t living the way we think they should live or how they should live based on our own personal beliefs because of our personal beliefs are contingent on other people following what we say with them we don’t really have certainty. We have compliance.

That’s the thing I like about Dudism, just chill the F out man cause all that apologetic mental gymnastics it takes in order to have certainty of a belief system in order to feel right in in order to direct other individuals, rights and behaviors based on your belief system, that just ain’t it dude. Anyways, the thing is dude’s life’s short instead of focusing on certainty and making sure that people stay in compliance with your belief system or if you’re not into that kind of thing just be mellow, smoke some herb if you got it enjoy a nice drink responsibly if you can or if you’re like me and riding the sobriety train enjoy a nice glass of chocolate milk and just go cruise on your longboard, ya dig.

Yours Dudely,
BJ

Back in January, I had my first initial application of SSDI. It wasn’t until the beginning of May that I had received information regarding their denial. During the time of the first application I had undergone several medication changes as well as having a status change in my VA disability. I understand that there is some nuance with VA disability as as well as the SSDI stuff however, part of the change in my VA disability rating in involves what I initially applied to SSDI for. I tried bringing this attention up with my SSDI examiner or caseworker whatever title they have and essentially they did not apply that information into their assessment.

My initial reasoning for reconsideration was that they had a medical exam scheduled for me and then immediately removed the appointment and within a day at least following what was on the ssa.gov webpage that they felt that they had all the information necessary to make a Medical decision and then I’m not kidding. You within two days after that I was a denial.

Now since applying for reconsideration, it was only I would say less than two months or about two months and I’m already on part four of five in the process so there is a medical determination I believe. It just seems very odd that the turnaround would be as quick as it is. So I’m anticipating that it’s going to just be denied in quite frankly I don’t know if I have the mental capacity to do the mental gymnastics to hire a lawyer and go through that entire process so, I appreciate the advice that some of y’all gave me just not sure if this is a normal thing more than likely we’re gonna see a denial but it’s the nature of the beast I suppose.

I am a Marine Corps veteran and former infantry machine gunner. I am trying to understand whether it is reasonable to keep pursuing neurological, neuropsychological, or autonomic evaluation after a very dismissive neurology appointment.

In June 2016, during a Marine Corps Combat Readiness Evaluation, I was on a prolonged movement/training event for approximately six hours while carrying a full combat load, including body armor, Kevlar helmet, ammunition, water, and an M240B machine gun system. Our water source was contaminated, so we only had what we carried, and that ran out before the event ended. During the movement I developed a pounding chest, severe headache, dizziness, feeling overheated, and confusion. When I reported feeling unwell, I was physically assaulted by my team leader and forced to continue. My memory becomes fragmented after that, but other Marines later told me I was acting intoxicated, stumbling, slurring my speech, singing, and speaking incoherently. I eventually collapsed and was medically evacuated. My documented field rectal temperature was about 107.5°F, and my temperature at the hospital was about 106.8°F. I was hospitalized for two days with rhabdomyolysis, with very dark urine and a CK level over 5,000.

About one month later, in July 2016, I had another heat-related incident during training. I became confused and disoriented, passed out behind my weapon system, and had to be medically evacuated again. My temperature was lower that time, around 101.5°F, but I again had elevated CK levels and felt like my body crashed at a much lower threshold. About a year later, I had another milder heat-related collapse while on limited duty.
Since those events, and alongside significant trauma and mental health issues, I have struggled with chronic heat intolerance, excessive sweating, poor sleep, panic symptoms, dissociation, emotional dysregulation, severe stress intolerance, and cognitive/executive function problems. I forget things shortly after being told, forget why I walked into rooms, and during periods of extreme distress I sometimes have trouble remembering exactly what I said or how I acted afterward. I also avoid going places alone because I am afraid of having a panic attack, becoming overwhelmed, or emotionally dysregulated in public. After stressful outings, I often come home exhausted, lethargic, and depleted.
I am already in treatment. I do psychotherapy, including ART, and I see a psychiatric provider for medication management. I have been treated for persistent depressive disorder with anxious distress, anxiety/panic symptoms, ADHD, and trauma-related symptoms. Some treatments help somewhat. Vyvanse helps with focus and feeling calmer. Therapy has helped. But I still have major episodes of overwhelm, panic, dysregulation, heat intolerance, and functional impairment.
I am not trying to claim that heat injuries caused everything. I understand my situation is multifactorial and includes trauma, psychiatric conditions, sleep issues, ADHD, life stress, and possibly other medical factors. I also understand that heat stroke is not the same thing as a vascular stroke. My question is whether repeated exertional heat injuries involving altered mental status, collapse, hyperthermia, rhabdomyolysis, and later persistent heat/stress intolerance could contribute to long-term autonomic or neuropsychological issues, even if it is not the sole cause.
I saw a neurologist recently and the appointment went very poorly. The neurologist seemed to focus almost entirely on sleep and excessive daytime sleepiness. I tried explaining the heat injuries and asking about possible long-term effects, autonomic issues, or acquired brain injury concerns, but I felt dismissed. He essentially said that because I could walk and talk, he did not think a neurological issue was worth investigating. He recommended sleep medications and suggested routine/employment as part of the solution. I became overwhelmed, told him I did not feel heard or comfortable continuing the visit, and left. My wife was present and agreed that the encounter was not handled well.

My questions are:

Does this history sound like it could justify further evaluation by a neuropsychologist, autonomic specialist, brain injury clinic, or a different neurologist?

What objective testing would be reasonable to ask about for symptoms like heat intolerance, stress intolerance, dizziness, panic-like body surges, cognitive issues, dissociation, and post-stress exhaustion?
How can I bring up possible dysautonomia/autonomic dysfunction or acquired brain injury concerns to my care team without it being dismissed as “just anxiety” or “just PTSD”?
I am not looking for Reddit to diagnose me. I am trying to figure out what type of evaluation would make sense and how to communicate my concerns more clearly to providers.

I am a Marine Corps veteran and former infantry machine gunner. I am trying to understand whether it is reasonable to keep pursuing neurological, neuropsychological, or autonomic evaluation after a very dismissive neurology appointment.

In June 2016, during a Marine Corps Combat Readiness Evaluation, I was on a prolonged movement/training event for approximately six hours while carrying a full combat load, including body armor, Kevlar helmet, ammunition, water, and an M240B machine gun system. Our water source was contaminated, so we only had what we carried, and that ran out before the event ended. During the movement I developed a pounding chest, severe headache, dizziness, feeling overheated, and confusion. When I reported feeling unwell, I was physically assaulted by my team leader and forced to continue. My memory becomes fragmented after that, but other Marines later told me I was acting intoxicated, stumbling, slurring my speech, singing, and speaking incoherently. I eventually collapsed and was medically evacuated. My documented field rectal temperature was about 107.5°F, and my temperature at the hospital was about 106.8°F. I was hospitalized for two days with rhabdomyolysis, with very dark urine and a CK level over 5,000.

About one month later, in July 2016, I had another heat-related incident during training. I became confused and disoriented, passed out behind my weapon system, and had to be medically evacuated again. My temperature was lower that time, around 101.5°F, but I again had elevated CK levels and felt like my body crashed at a much lower threshold. About a year later, I had another milder heat-related collapse while on limited duty.
Since those events, and alongside significant trauma and mental health issues, I have struggled with chronic heat intolerance, excessive sweating, poor sleep, panic symptoms, dissociation, emotional dysregulation, severe stress intolerance, and cognitive/executive function problems. I forget things shortly after being told, forget why I walked into rooms, and during periods of extreme distress I sometimes have trouble remembering exactly what I said or how I acted afterward. I also avoid going places alone because I am afraid of having a panic attack, becoming overwhelmed, or emotionally dysregulated in public. After stressful outings, I often come home exhausted, lethargic, and depleted.
I am already in treatment. I do psychotherapy, including ART, and I see a psychiatric provider for medication management. I have been treated for persistent depressive disorder with anxious distress, anxiety/panic symptoms, ADHD, and trauma-related symptoms. Some treatments help somewhat. Vyvanse helps with focus and feeling calmer. Therapy has helped. But I still have major episodes of overwhelm, panic, dysregulation, heat intolerance, and functional impairment.
I am not trying to claim that heat injuries caused everything. I understand my situation is multifactorial and includes trauma, psychiatric conditions, sleep issues, ADHD, life stress, and possibly other medical factors. I also understand that heat stroke is not the same thing as a vascular stroke. My question is whether repeated exertional heat injuries involving altered mental status, collapse, hyperthermia, rhabdomyolysis, and later persistent heat/stress intolerance could contribute to long-term autonomic or neuropsychological issues, even if it is not the sole cause.
I saw a neurologist recently and the appointment went very poorly. The neurologist seemed to focus almost entirely on sleep and excessive daytime sleepiness. I tried explaining the heat injuries and asking about possible long-term effects, autonomic issues, or acquired brain injury concerns, but I felt dismissed. He essentially said that because I could walk and talk, he did not think a neurological issue was worth investigating. He recommended sleep medications and suggested routine/employment as part of the solution. I became overwhelmed, told him I did not feel heard or comfortable continuing the visit, and left. My wife was present and agreed that the encounter was not handled well.

My questions are:

Does this history sound like it could justify further evaluation by a neuropsychologist, autonomic specialist, brain injury clinic, or a different neurologist?

What objective testing would be reasonable to ask about for symptoms like heat intolerance, stress intolerance, dizziness, panic-like body surges, cognitive issues, dissociation, and post-stress exhaustion?
How can I bring up possible dysautonomia/autonomic dysfunction or acquired brain injury concerns to my care team without it being dismissed as “just anxiety” or “just PTSD”?
I am not looking for Reddit to diagnose me. I am trying to figure out what type of evaluation would make sense and how to communicate my concerns more clearly to providers.

I have successfully cleaned my entire house (exception of bedroom) in one day. I did not become overwhelmed or distracted from the activity. It was actually amazing how I didn’t breakdown from such boring tasks. I feel I can function better, not 100% but progress. I know house cleaning is a basic task, however, given my trauma, depression, panic disorder, on top of my adhd I’d say it’s a huge win for myself.

So this is my first rodeo with the SSDI stuff. My first application was of course denied as it seems. That is the common theme for most claims especially those stemming from mental health. To say I’m annoyed as very mild. I am more confused than anything at the process.

I originally had a exam scheduled for this month, but they ended up canceling it after they received some, not all of my medical records and within a day of them receiving it, they came to a decision medically, and then within a day of that it was denied. I found all this information out when I called my states disability place where they make the appointments and everything.

As soon as I was able to, I sent in a reconsideration online however, today in the mail, I received something that has me even more confused because I know the form I filled out was for SSDI but now I’m having forms for SSI and SVB. I am a veteran and I am at 100% T & E from the VA. My percentage rating from the VA is as high as it is because of the same condition for what I’m applying SSDI for.

Is it that I filled out the wrong form and they’re sending me different information because there’s also a packet for a disability appeal and I don’t want to fill that out if I already filled out the reconsideration online. This process has also added so much more stress in my life than what I initially thought.

So this is my first rodeo with the SSDI stuff. My first application was of course denied as it seems. That is the common theme for most claims especially those stemming from mental health. To say I’m annoyed as very mild. I am more confused than anything at the process.

I originally had a exam scheduled for this month, but they ended up canceling it after they received some, not all of my medical records and within a day of them receiving it, they came to a decision medically, and then within a day of that it was denied. I found all this information out when I called my states disability place where they make the appointments and everything.

As soon as I was able to, I sent in a reconsideration online however, today in the mail, I received something that has me even more confused because I know the form I filled out was for SSDI but now I’m having forms for SSI and SVB. I am a veteran and I am at 100% T & E from the VA. My percentage rating from the VA is as high as it is because of the same condition for what I’m applying SSDI for.

Is it that I filled out the wrong form and they’re sending me different information because there’s also a packet for a disability appeal and I don’t want to fill that out if I already filled out the reconsideration online. This process has also added so much more stress in my life than what I initially thought.

It’s quiet. And it’s weird to me. I feel not indifferent but calm, not like zen but focused. The start I was very, spaced. But as I approach bedtime I realized how calm I was when normally I would have been hyper-fixated on something of be stuck in my thoughts.

I also have depression, which exacerbates my PTSD. All of this combined with ADHD, the fact I had a day where I could actually function was, surprising.

And I do not mean that as a shallow rejection of grief, veterans, or the dead. I mean that I cannot celebrate a system that takes human lives, damages bodies and minds, buries people, abandons people, and then uses their suffering as proof of its own righteousness.

Memorial Day is often framed as honoring those who died for freedom. But I struggle with that framework because I do not believe military death automatically proves freedom. A person dying in war does not automatically make the war righteous. A soldier’s sacrifice does not automatically make the cause sacred. Death does not become moral evidence simply because a nation places a flag over it.

For me, freedom is deeper than government, war, or national identity. Freedom is not something the state creates. Freedom is a lived reality. We are free beings who act, choose, resist, obey, disobey, love, harm, create, and face consequences. Government does not give us freedom in its fullest sense. Government organizes, limits, regulates, and defines freedom according to its own perception of order.

That is where morality and ethics become complicated. Morality begins at the individual level, in how a person understands right and wrong. Ethics develops later, when many moral perspectives are gathered into shared principles for a society. But once institutions gain power, ethics can become captured. The people with force, law, money, status, and military power get to define what is called order, what is called freedom, what is called deviance, and what is called sacrifice.

That is why Memorial Day feels so heavy to me. It is not just a day of remembrance. It is also a ritual of meaning-making. It teaches people how to interpret military death. It tells people these deaths preserved freedom, that the sacrifice was noble, and that questioning the framework is somehow disrespectful. But I do not think mourning the dead requires accepting the national mythology attached to their deaths.

My service is personal to me, but I am not trying to make this about myself. I am trying to name a system I saw from the inside. No, I did not serve in combat, but I served inside a military culture that trains people to accept a specific worldview: that violence can be moral when it is attached to freedom, that death can be meaningful when it is attached to the nation, and that sacrifice becomes honorable when the institution says the cause is worthy.

I served alongside people who had seen conflict, people who carried things home with them, and people who later died by suicide after service. That is not separate from Memorial Day to me. That is part of what I mourn. I mourn people who were formed, used, damaged, and then folded back into a patriotic story that calls their suffering noble instead of asking why the system needed their suffering in the first place.

I also mourn the fact that many people entered the military because society shaped it into one of the few respected paths available to them. A way out. A way to gain dignity. A way to escape poverty, instability, shame, lack of opportunity, family pressure, or the feeling that they had to prove themselves. Many were told to pick themselves up by their bootstraps without anyone admitting they were never given boots to begin with.

So when people say “remember the fallen,” I do remember them. But I remember more than the clean version. I remember the system that formed them, recruited them, used them, injured them, buried them, and then gave their suffering a patriotic meaning after the fact.

I do not mourn them as symbols of a national myth. I mourn them as human beings. I mourn those who died in combat. I mourn those who came home but never truly came back. I mourn the veterans who died after service because the war, the training, the programming, the identity, or the damage never left them.

I mourn the lives spent by a system that calls itself freedom while preserving power. I mourn the people who were told their pain was noble. I mourn those whose deaths became useful to the same framework that helped create the conditions for their suffering.

So no, I do not celebrate Memorial Day.

I mourn the people, not the myth.

I’m in a bit of a spout of irritation. On top of my mental health struggles (PTSD, Depression, and ABI), I find going to church difficult. My oldest daughter is Neurodivergent and can be a handful so I feel terrible dropping her off at the nursery when we did go. I’d also like to point out that I did go to school and have a bachelors in Christian Studies with an Emphasis in Philosophy, so I’m not oblivious to doctrine/ dogma but I’m also not an expert by any means, just an observer who questions deeply. With that being said towards the end of my course study, which was back in January I found that I’ve become more progressive over the years studying where exactly Christian theology picked up various ideas in the developments overtime. It made it difficult to stay in church knowing where all these theological ideas come from and nobody questioning it and through that questioning, we have these dog doctor that we are rectify and I just felt like I couldn’t be in a church that was so tied to their dogma. For reference I used to go to a global Methodist Church. I tricked that split from the United Methodist Church because of various issues with creeds as well as the main issue with homosexuality.

My thing is being in the Midwest and living in Indiana. It makes it extremely hard finding a more progressive style church and the closest town to me that is a larger city is Fort Wayne. And there’s a plethora of different progressive Christian churches such as Evangelical, Lutheran, Church of America, United Church of Christ, Episcopal Church, and a few offshoot, metaphysical and unity spiritual churches, these don’t really feel like they would fit me. I guess it’s just because I’m so scared to go into experience something that just feels inauthentic. When we first went to the United Methodist Church before it became the global Methodist Church the relationship we had with the people was how should I say, they didn’t care that we were there which I guess is better than the overly pushy style, but I don’t know. I guess my overall ran his. I’m just trying to find a church Community and it just feels like I can’t get that around where I live and I have to get myself my wife in our two kids up and out of the door driving about 50 minutes to Fort Wayne just seems daunting.

Has anyone gone through a spiritual awakening, where they realize that a major majority of the New Age spiritual things that are out there are really just Theosophy and I AM movements recycled?

I’m not imposing this to be contrarian or to cause a fight and argument. I have legitimate questions and I’m looking for engagement. I have a hard time, trying to understand individuals perspectives that seem to be either devoid of understanding or understand that a lot of of the modern terminology and thought within New Age spirituality it is based on these old premise ideas.

With that being said what’s the good that came out of these movements and that are beneficial for spirituality obviously some of the things that I’ve read such as area race and other aspects like that which actually aided as a specific regime and Germany during the 1930s to 1940s and a lot of other racist tropes that existed.

I guess I’m just exhausted of all these various perspectives and not having a concise answer, maybe it’s just my ADHD making me so hyper fixated on a particular subject matter but anyone else question things like this and so forth?

So I’m pretty open in my spirituality, I’d say I am a Christian but very progressive. Anyways, I was listening to a guided meditation by Neil Cooper (RIP), I listened to him many many years ago when I was a teenager exploring the chakras. In this video he talked about the violet flame, I also seen reiki practitioners talk about it.

I was doing some reading and it seems to be attributed to Saint-Germaine. Further digging revealed some foundation here in the states. Boy was that…interesting.. the rabbit hole I went down seemed to be about two people the Ballards. Apparently it was and still a racist theosophical offshoot, taking the teaching of Saint-Germaine to an extreme? Only English translations, white brotherhood (which I got two perspectives that say it’s about white magic and one about racial purity and people groups.)

I’m assuming, just like Christianity, the teachings of someone can be manipulated in a way to serve an agenda or what have you.

Does anyone have legitimate experience and understanding they care to share with me? Book recommendations? Is the I AM really the great I AM energy? I’m very fascinated by this phenomena I have seen thus far, but I can’t imagine this universal love being so.. racist.