Citation Nr: 18160901 Decision Date: 12/28/18 Archive Date: 12/28/18 DOCKET NO. 15-14 834 DATE: December 28, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to a rating in excess of 70 percent for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is denied. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran’s PTSD is characterized by occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for a rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD have not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1155, 5107 (2012); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.159, 3.321, 4.1, 4.3, 4.7, 4.10, 4.14, 4.126, 4.130, Diagnostic Code 9411 (2017). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from February 1968 to January 1971. He received the National Defense Service Medal; Good Conduct Medal; Vietnam Service Medal; and, Vietnam Campaign Medal. In the April 2015 substantive appeal to the Board, the Veteran requested a videoconference hearing. He failed to appear for the August 2018 hearing; therefore, the hearing request is considered withdrawn. The Veteran’s appeal was certified to the Board in May 2015. In July 2017, the Veteran’s representative brought a Motion to Withdraw Representation of the Veteran. After an appeal has been certified to the Board, a representative may not withdraw representation in an appeal unless a motion is made in writing that sets forth good cause and complies with the requirements found in 38 C.F.R. § 20.608(b)(2) (2017). A copy of the motion was sent via first class mail to the Veteran in July 2017 and all other requirements were met. The Veteran did not file a response to the motion; the motion was granted in October 2018. The Veteran has not appointed a new representative and the Veteran now proceeds pro se. Increased Rating PTSD The Veteran’s PTSD has been rated under the provisions of 38 C.F.R. § 4.130, Diagnostic Code (DC) 9411. A 70 percent rating is assigned for occupational and social impairment, with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood, due to such symptoms as: suicidal ideation; obsessional rituals which interfere with routine activities; speech intermittently illogical, obscure, or irrelevant; near-continuous panic or depression affecting the ability to function independently, appropriately and effectively; impaired impulse control (such as unprovoked irritability with periods of violence); spatial disorientation; neglect of personal appearance and hygiene; difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances (including work or a worklike setting); inability to establish and maintain effective relationships. A 100 percent rating is assigned for total occupational and social impairment, due to such symptoms as: gross impairment in thought processes or communication; persistent delusions or hallucinations; grossly inappropriate behavior; persistent danger of hurting self or others; intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living (including maintenance of minimal personal hygiene); disorientation to time or place; memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name. The Veteran underwent a VA examination in August 2012. His symptoms included inability to establish and maintain effective relationships; irritability or outbursts of anger; hypervigilance; exaggerated startle response; isolation; and, difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances. The Veteran had been married six times; and although still married, he was currently separated and living in the home of an ex-wife. He reported a fair rapport with 3 of his 5 children, but was estranged from his siblings and had no close friends. He last worked in 2000 as a barber but had to quit due to back pain; he reported that he had problems in that job due to losing his temper. There was no evidence of delusions or hallucinations, grossly inappropriate behavior, obsessional rituals, impaired abstract thinking, gross impairment in thought processes or communication, a persistent danger of hurting himself or others, neglect of personal appearance and hygiene, disorientation as to time or place, an intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living, or intermittently illogical, obscure, or irrelevant speech. In various medical records, the Veteran has also reported depressive symptoms, impaired impulse control, poor sleep, difficulties with concentration, and nightmares. See August 2012 CAPRI, p. 1; October 2012 Request for Health Information, p. 5; August 2013 CAPRI, pp. 1, 4. The Board finds that the evidence preponderates against a finding of entitlement to a rating in excess of 70 percent. To receive a higher evaluation, the evidence must demonstrate total occupational and social impairment due to such symptoms as: gross impairment in thought processes or communication; persistent delusions or hallucinations; grossly inappropriate behavior; persistent danger of hurting self or others; intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living (including maintenance of minimal personal hygiene); disorientation to time or place; or, memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name, or symptoms of similar severity. However, the Veteran’s impaired impulse control, hypervigilance, difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances, isolation, difficulties with concentration, sleep impairment, and inability to establish and maintain effective relationships most closely approximate the severity of symptoms contemplated by a 70 percent rating. Moreover, the Veteran cannot be said to have a total social impairment as he has maintained a fair relationship with several of his children, and a relationship – albeit a strained relationship – with an ex-wife. Although the Veteran’s PTSD symptoms no doubt cause him significant distress, the symptoms do not rise to the type, frequency, and severity of those contemplated by a 100 percent disability rating. Thus, the Board concludes that the weight of the evidence preponderates against a finding of entitlement to a rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD. A. S. CARACCIOLO Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD W.V. Walker, Associate Counsel