Citation Nr: 18150819 Decision Date: 11/15/18 Archive Date: 11/15/18 DOCKET NO. 15-16 903 DATE: November 15, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to a total disability evaluation based on individual unemployability (TDIU) is granted. FINDING OF FACT Throughout the appeal, the Veteran has been unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment as a result of his service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). CONCLUSION OF LAW Throughout the appeal, the criteria for a TDIU are met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1155, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.340, 3.341, 4.3, 4.16(a). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from March 1966 to July 1970. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a May 2014 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). The Veteran was scheduled for a Board hearing, but he withdrew his hearing request in a January 2017 statement. 38 C.F.R. § 20.704(e). TDIU can be assigned based on individual unemployability if the Veteran is unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation as a result of service-connected disability, provided that he has one service-connected disability rated at 60 percent or higher; or two or more service-connected disabilities, with one disability rated at 40 percent or higher and the combined rating is 70 percent or higher. 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a). In this case, the Veteran’s only service-connected disability is PTSD rated as 70 percent disabling since August 14, 2012. Therefore, he met the percentage criteria for TDIU as of that date. 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a). The question is whether the claimant is capable of performing the physical and mental acts required by employment, not whether he or she can actually find employment. Van Hoose v. Brown, 4 Vet. App. 361, 363 (1993) (citing 38 C.F.R. §§ 4.1, 4.15, 4.16(a)). The Veteran asserts that he is entitled to a TDIU based on his service-connected PTSD. The evidence shows that the Veteran worked as an electronic salesperson from 1976 to 2000 and worked part-time as a high school assistant baseball coach from 2002 to 2006. The Veteran’s educational background includes a college degree. In his April 2013 VA Form 21-8940, Veteran’s Application for Increased Compensation Based on Unemployability, he indicated that the left his full-time employment because “I stressed a lot at work, and when the company was bought out, I really didn’t want to deal with it any longer.” The Veteran reported to the March 2013 VA examiner that he enjoyed working by himself for 23 years, never sought a promotion, and that his boss was in another state. The March and October 2013 VA examination reports describe the Veteran’s difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships; difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances, including work or a worklike setting; anxiety; suspiciousness; mild memory loss; panic attacks that occur weekly or less often; and chronic sleep impairment. Further, the October 2013 VA examiner noted mild impairment on the Veteran’s ability to work due to memory, concentration, mood, and motivation and moderate impairment with social interaction, adaptability, and stress tolerance. In a July 2014 private medical opinion, Dr. C.S. noted that when the Veteran worked, it was in the country, away from others, to include his boss. Also, she noted his difficulty adapting to new and stressful situations, so that when the Veteran’s employment sold and he was transferred to the city, he was unable to function. Dr. C.S. opined that the Veteran is unable to maintain substantially gainful employment due to his PTSD symptoms of isolation, inability to adapt to new circumstances, loss of control issues, and extreme anger. Dr. C.S. highlighted the Veteran’s suicidal ideation, sleep impairment, and concentration problems. In an August 2016 VA clinical summary, the Veteran’s treating clinical psychologist, Dr. R.J.T., reported that he began to see the Veteran in May 2014, in individual sessions due to his increase in anger and discomfort in group settings. Further, he noted the Veteran’s self-report of his inability to work due to his symptoms of anger, irritability, suspiciousness of people, and anxiety in crowds. Although, Dr. R.J.T. declined to render an opinion on the Veteran’s ability to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, he noted that the Veteran’s self-report is consistent with the medical evidence of record, to include the March and October 2013 VA examination findings. Additionally, the Veteran’s wife submitted statements in November 2012 and June 2016, describing the Veteran’s PTSD symptoms of anger, road rage, social isolation, and hypervigilance. She also reported that the Veteran “never likes to be told that he is wrong” and he prefers to be alone and live in the east mountains away from neighbors. Given these findings, the overall severity of the Veteran’s psychiatric symptoms, along with the Veteran’s competent and credible statements that his PTSD affects his sleep, ability to concentrate and social interactions, and resolving reasonable doubt in his favor, the Board finds that his service-connected PTSD prevents him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation consistent with his occupational experience. Hence, a TDIU is warranted throughout the appeal period. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1155, 5107(b). S. BUSH Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD K. Forde, Counsel