I don't know exactly how to do it outside the VA. Just tell them you want a copy of your records, you will likely need to sign a release form but it shouldn't be a major hassle.

I understand about not learning how the system works. I have been in the VA system for almost 20 years and have learned more about how thing work in the past three months than I knew before. My VFW rep filled out the application for me in 1996, went to my exam, got a rating. Rating got increased 3 times over the years without me asking so I never bothered to learn how it works. There is lots of legalese and misinformation out there.

I recently learned that once I hold a rating for 20 years the VA can never lower it. July 1 is when the 20 years are up, but I have a claim in for an increase in my rating due to MH issues and for the unemployable designation because of MH issues. Once a claim is open anything is fair game, something else I did not know. The examiner only discussed my MH issues so I am hoping my other stuff is left alone, but I am a nervous wreck that they are going to try and drop me to 0% even though nothing has changed in my other rated things(tension headaches, epilepsy, shoulder damage from a seizure). If I had known about the 20 year rule I would have waited until this summer to apply. It is causing my paranoia and psychosis to really amp things up. Not too mention new medical issues, that cause me to consider extreme self-harm. My VFW rep assures my that 100% + unemployable is almost guaranteed and worse case is that they change nothing but rationality doesn't do much for me these days.

Moral of the story, even though learning when MH issues are taking over is difficult, knowledge about how things work is important and can help you avoid traps. It is a sick and cruel system but is even worse for us with sick and twisted minds. Society is slowly becoming enlightened about many things but MH doesn't seem to be one of them. Maybe it is my paranoia but it seems like the system is set up to make it harder for MH people.

Sorry for talking about myself so much in your thread. Trying to relate seems to be the only way I can get my point across. It makes me even more paranoid that I am leaking too much information and someone will identify me. But posting here helps me and I hope it helps the people I respond to.

It seems odd to me that non-compliance or even self-medicating is a stumbling block. Both are not that uncommon in MH and should either help your case or at the worse, be a non-factor in determining SSDI. Your doctors treat symptoms, not what you are diagnosed with? That seems like madness! Symptoms could be caused by lots of different things and attacking the symptoms leaves the root cause intact. How can a doctor ethically treat a patient without a diagnosis?

I am sorry you are going through this. It sounds like you have had a lot of bad doctors in the past.