PTSD Claims

VA Disability Claims for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), including PTSD due to Military Sexual Trauma (MST), work a little differently than other Mental Disorders.

For other mental disorders, the VA will look for evidence that those symptoms began during service. Since PTSD is only diagnosed if someone’s symptoms develop in response to a traumatic stressor (involving actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence), the VA will look for evidence that a traumatic stressor occurred during service. Therefore, even if PTSD symptoms were not documented during service, there may be credible evidence that you experienced an in-service traumatic stressor.

Learn more about PTSD → 

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PTSD due to Military Sexual Trauma (MST)

PTSD claims related to MST are handled differently than other PTSD claims. Similar to other PTSD claims, the VA accepts Direct Evidence. This includes statements or records, such as those from:

• Chaplains or clergy members
• Counseling, health, or military training facilities
• Family members, roommates, or fellow service members
• Rape crisis centers or centers for domestic violence assistance
• Civilian police reports
• Medical reports from civilian providers or caregivers who treated you at any time after the MST
• Personal diaries or journals

Direct Evidence isn’t always available, though. MST often goes unreported due to understandable feelings of humiliation, shock, emotional pain, worry about being blamed, fear of not being believed, concern about retaliation, and limits of confidentiality.

For that reason, the VA has adapted the way they process claims related to MST. If you don’t have direct evidence, you can submit Indirect Evidence of changes in your life or your behavior after the MST. The evidence doesn’t need to show a clear cause. You may hear the Indirect Evidence referred to as “markers.”

Markers include evidence of:

• Pregnancy test results
• Requests for transfer to another military duty assignment
• Tests for sexually transmitted infections
• Appointments at a health or counseling facility without a specific diagnosis or health condition
• Treatment for physical injuries around the time of the MST
• Changes in work performance
• Changes in eating or weight
• Relationship issues, like divorce
• Problems with sexual function
• Substance use problems
• Unexplained social or financial decisions or problems
• Mental health symptoms
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Previously filed a claim for MST?

If you previously filed a PTSD claim related to MST and it was denied, the VA encourages you to request a decision review under the new process. If you’d like to request a decision review, contact a Veterans Benefits Administration MST outreach coordinator at your local VA regional office.