Citation Nr: 18123769 Decision Date: 08/03/18 Archive Date: 08/02/18 DOCKET NO. 14-27 271 DATE: August 3, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with substance abuse, is granted. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran’s currently diagnosed PTSD is related to his in-service stressor surrounding serving on funeral details. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for PTSD, with substance abuse, have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 5107 (West 2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.303 (2017). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from September 1974 to June 1977. Entitlement to service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with substance abuse Service connection is warranted where the evidence of record establishes that a particular injury or disease resulting in disability was incurred in the line of duty in the active military service or, if pre-existing such service, was aggravated thereby. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131 (West 2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.303(a) (2017). Generally, in order to prove service connection, there must be competent, credible evidence of (1) a current disability, (2) in-service incurrence or aggravation of an injury or disease, and (3) a nexus, or link, between the current disability and the in-service disease or injury. See, e.g., Davidson v. Shinseki, 581 F.3d 1313 (Fed. Cir. 2009). Establishing service connection for PTSD generally requires (1) evidence of a current medical diagnosis of PTSD, (2) credible supporting evidence that the claimed in-service stressor actually occurred, and (3) medical evidence of a link between the claimed in-service stressor and the current PTSD symptoms. 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(f). The Veteran contends that his currently diagnosed PTSD is related to his claimed in-service stressor surrounding his service as a funeral detail. He testified in a September 2016 videoconference hearing that he experienced trauma serving as a funeral detail for two summers during active duty, as he regularly saw families distraught about the death of soldiers and had to constantly work near the dead bodies of soldiers. The Veteran was diagnosed with PTSD by Dr. W.C.G. in a September 2012 opinion letter. The first element of service connection for PTSD has been met. Military personnel records include a July 1977 Letter of Appreciation to the Veteran thanking him for his six-week period of cyclic post support, from May 22 to July 3, 1977, in an outstanding and professional manner representing his unit as a member of its funeral detail. This is credible supporting evidence of the Veteran’s claimed in-service stressor, and the second element of service connection for PTSD has been met. In Dr. W.C.G.’s September 2012 opinion, he indicated that, based upon his evaluation and treatment of the Veteran, he could state unequivocally that he meets the diagnostic criteria for PTSD, DSM-IV code 309.81. Dr. W.C.G. indicated that this diagnosis is based on non-combat trauma incurred when the Veteran served on multiple funeral details over the course of two summers while serving in the Army from 1974-77. He noted that the Veteran’s symptoms include fairly regular nightmares, rare flashbacks, almost daily intrusive memories/thoughts, hypervigilance/hyperarousal, avoidance (of funerals and death), and a long history of alcohol dependence. In a separate September 2012 VA psychology consultation noted, Dr. W.C.G. indicated that the Veteran’s experiences nightmares about serving on funeral detail, especially ones involving very emotional families, about one per month. The Veteran’s spouse submitted a note to Dr. W.C.G. reported that he has always avoided funerals and pretty much anything having to do with death. She noted that this has gotten worse recently, and that the Veteran has become more preoccupied with death, including his own death. He denied experiencing any other significant traumas either before or after his time in service. Dr. W.C.G. concluded that many service members who served on funeral details report PTSD symptoms, and it seems that the Veteran experiences symptoms consistent with PTSD to a mild to moderate degree. He indicated that these symptoms have most likely been masked by alcohol use. (Continued on the next page)   The above-noted symptoms largely supported the diagnosis of PTSD. The direct relationship between the Veteran's psychiatric symptoms and his in-service trauma is undeniable and thoroughly supported by mental health examiners. This establishes the third element of service connection for PTSD. Therefore, the Board finds the Veteran's PTSD to be related to his service. Service connection for PTSD, with substance abuse, is granted. 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. R. FEINBERG Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD I. Warren, Associate Counsel