Need help knowing if my condition will be service connected.

[SentientSword32]

At risk of doxxing myself, but ill try to be as detailed as I can, while maintaining anonymity.

While on leave I suffered an injury to my hand that was permanently debilitating. Before this injury my Army career was going quite well, but since this injury, due to the nature of how it occurred, and on top of the fact that it lead to me being on deadman profile for over 180 days, my leadership has basically treated me like shit, never losing an opportunity to basically throw in my face how dumb I was for said injury. For reasons I can only attribute to bureaucracy, I was not eligible for a medboard for this condition, on top of other physical conditions

This treatment, on top of the fact that I have permanent function loss in said hand, lead to me developing severe depression with alcohol abuse. Eventually a year of copius alcohol abuse landed me in the hospital, after which I was command referred to SUDCC. After completing SUDCC and having continued BH treatment, a referral has been made to MRDP for unspecified depressive disorder.

My problem lies in the fact that in the MRDP statement my provider wrote, she mentioned that my depressive symptoms and chronic suicidal ideation, made worse by substance abuse started in my adolescence.

Due to tough times and familial traumas I had been through growing up (that Im not willing to share) I confided in her the things I had been through growing up in our sessions, how I felt about them, and that I did cope with them through substance. These sessions are meant to be therapeutic right? However I did not expect her to put in the statement that this has been a chronic issue since before my time in the service.

I had tough times and tough feelings and ultimately I got through them and grew into a somewhat successful adult, and shared these things in confidence of it staying in that room.

With that bit of background info Im basically asking did I talk myself out of having my depression be service connected?

Before the circumstances above I was fit, going to army schools, and very optimistic about the future.
Now because of how life has happened the aspirations that I had for my military career are basically out of the question because of my injury, on top of the way my unit had ostracized me for it, are what caused me to spiral in the way I did.

But because of the way the referral statement was written (the info about the issues starting in adolescence basically being the first two sentences of said statemeny), Im worried Ill get little, if any rating at all.
I can post a picture of the statement with all PII removed if necessary.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

 

[DNIF]

a few things, existing prior to service depends on years in service, at a certain point all conditions are treated as exacerbated by service if you've been in long enough.

secondly, for your hand problem, here is DODI 6130.03 Vol 2:
"""
When considering the conditions listed in this paragraph, the condition must persist despite appropriate treatment and impair function to preclude satisfactory performance of required military duties of the Service member’s office, grade, rank, or rating. Conditions in this paragraph do not meet retention standards if medical clearance cannot be given for safe participation in Service-specific physical fitness testing.
a. Limitation of joint motion.
b. Amputation of any part of hand and fingers.
c. Intrinsic paralysis or weakness of upper limbs when symptoms are severe and persistent.
"""

not a doctor, but if your hand is bad enough to have qualify as an unfitting condition per this guidance, it should have initiated a MEB. seeing as you continue to have these problems, and if youre on a fitness test restriction, you could consider requesting it be added to your narsum as unfitting.

as for the issues with command, the only way you can substantiate this for a MEB consideration to solidify your claim of exacerbation would be by having an inspector general (or branch equivalent) investigation into hazing/improper command pressure or climate. such process requires substantiation/proof but depending on severity it may be worthwhile. base legal (or private counsel) may be able to point you in the right direction with this.

also it depends on how the specific verbiage is, for instance, if your therapist points out that you had a childhood problem with substances, but were fully recovered and high functioning, then you had the problem with your hand, and ideally a substantiated IG investigation showing improper command climate resulted in mental health problems which then resulted in substance use issues that could easily fit the bar for service exacerbated possibly.

also, assuming you had a solid stint of time prior to service, then during initial time in service with no SI / substance issues, you should have a strong argument for service aggravation