Type 1 Diabetes

[Dio]

Hello Everyone,

I am an Air Force Active Duty member who is about to go through the joy of a MEB/PEB, and stumbled across these boards, which seem to have a wealth of personal experience, and am asking for advice over the whole process.

Background. I am an enlisted aviator (AKA flyer) with 2 and 1/2 years of service stationed overseas. I had my anual physical in Jan 09 with no symptoms of anything wrong with me, and the doc said I looked good. About 3 weeks later, people comented on me losing weight. I also would wake up in the middle of the night and having to use the bathroom every 2 to 3 hours. I also could not quench a huge thirst I had. While on a two week TDY, I became dehydrated and was admited to an international hostipal with dehydration, ketoacidosis (blood PH of 7.1) and onset of Type 1 Diabetes (insulin dependant). All this was done by the hospitals doctor with a flight doc our squadron brought along agreeing. The time between my hospitalization and physical was about 2 months.

Now skip ahead to right now (about 2 weeks total). I have to take insulin 4 times a day, watch what I eat, and the two times I have tried to work out have both been pretty short work out sessions with me coming back with very low sugar levels. I am currently DNIF (duties not including flying) until the whole MEB/PEB comes back saying I can stay in the air force, and am on a profile restricting me to light duty work and PT by myself as needed.

The whole DNIF situation. Being on insulin will make me permantly DNIF, but it hasn't yet. Should the MEB/PEB find me fit to return to duty, I will then go through an Aeromecial board review to determine my status as a flyer. The flight doc as already said should I get that far, I will be permantly DNIF. Can the MEB/PEB find me fit to return to duty knowingly that I will just become permantly DNIF? Would I have to start the whole MEB/PEB again?

As much as I want to stay in, I don't see how I can. Being on Insulin makes me non-deployable, and it also makes me permantly DNIF, meaning the air force would have to cross train me to another job for me to stay in.
From a personel Air force website, I found this.

"[FONT=Arial, Helvetica]If you would like to return to duty, you will need to show that you are fit. There is no result of medical cross-training from the Formal Physical Evaluation Board (FPEB). Either you are fit to return to the job or duty you came from or you're not."

And on the same page, it states this.

"[/FONT][FONT=Arial, Helvetica]If your condition prevents you from being worldwide-qualified and deployable, returning to duty is not a realistic option. In today's Air Force, deployability is essential. Practically every job and every Air Force Specialty Code (AFSC) is subject to deployment."

Those two were taken from this website.
Answer

One of the questions I had is since medical cross train is not an option at the formal board level, would it be an option at the informal board or the secratary board level?
[/FONT]
Again, I don't see how I can stay in the air force. I also don't know if I want to stay in with available non-deploying jobs there are.

So with it looking like I'll be medically seperated, I found the schedule of ratings from another post.

7913 Diabetes mellitus

Requiring more than one daily injection of insulin, restricted diet,
and regulation of activities (avoidance of strenuous occupational
and recreational activities) with episodes of ketoacidosis or
hypoglycemic reactions requiring at least three hospitalizations per
year or weekly visits to a diabetic care provider, plus either
progressive loss of weight and strength or complications that
would be compensable if separately evaluated ................................................ 100
Requiring insulin, restricted diet, and regulation of activities with
episodes of ketoacidosis or hypoglycemic reactions requiring one
or two hospitalizations per year or twice a month visits to a diabetic
care provider, plus complications that would not be compensable
if separately evaluated ....................................................................................... 60
Requiring insulin, restricted diet, and regulation of activities ................................. 40
Requiring insulin and restricted diet, or; oral hypoglycemic agent
and restricted diet .............................................................................................. 20
Manageable by restricted diet only .......................................................................... 10

Worst case sceniro, I get 20%. Best case, I get 60%. Can I argue that the one instance of ketoacidosis should make me have 60% simply because I don't know what will happen to me in a year or two? If I can't work out like I used to, and still have to be on light duties, how do I document that? Just stay on profile? What should I NOT do to make this situation worse?

Outside of the MEB/PEB, what else should I be doing in regards to VA, social security, or any other government program or agency out there that could help me?

Here is a website that answered a lot of my questions, and I don't believe it has been linked on the boards yet.
AFPC - Air Force Personnel Center

I also have read that Anthrax shots might be a contributor to diabetes, and I fall into this catagory. I have recived 4 of the first 6 series of injections, all of them within the last year of my onset. My main concern is how do I go about reporting that to the correct agency (I think it's the CDC). I don't want to persue the "Anthrax caused my Diabetes" because there just isn't enough material on it yet. If in the future, it is proven that Anthrax vacine increases risk of diabets, would that entitle me to anything?

Sorry for the long post, there is just a lot going on through my mind right now. Any questions for me, or anything that needs to be explained better or more in detail, don't be afraid to ask. Any advice no matter how small it might seem would be greatly appreciated.

Dio

 

[Chinook]

Hi Dio and welcome to the forum. I can see from another post that you and Jason have already connected and it looks like you've really been researching. Good for you. I'm really sorry to hear about your condition. You have a lot to deal with in a short amount of time..
I just wanted to give you direction about the connection of anthrax and the diabetes. Yes, you can call the CDC and report it yourself. You can google the website and it tells you how to go about that. You can also go back to your hospital...and yes I forget exactly where to go ( and I've only been out of things less than a year...) but you can start in immunizations and tell them that you want to follow up the connection...now, if you get someone who is and idiot, you can go up the chain of command, or just go straight to the CDC then. Its very important. I personally had a reaction to typhoid pills. Had a system reaction that put me out!!! They had to report it and I was followed up...hey, I need to talk to our moderators...I think that should be put in my paperwork somewhere...

Anyway, I wonder if you'd be a candidate for TDRL...to wait and see how you take to the insulin and get things stabalized. Thats my guess & its just a guess, not even educated ...Take care of yourself, don't worry too much, eat right and walk ...its important. You bee good! TTUS.

 

[USAF_Vol]

Greetings. I too am a Type 1 Diabetic. I was diagnosed in Dec 08. MyMEB package was sent to AFPC about 2 weeks ago, I was told it will take 2-3 months.

I was told by my PCM that type 1's are not allowed to stay in,too much liability and ineligible to deploy. I have prepared myself to recieve the boot.

Here is my story/treatment: 11 yr AD TSgt with Security Forces. I was referred to an endocrinologist (Diabetes specialist) and put on MDI (Multiple daily injections) of Lantus and Novolog. After a month or so, the Endo prescribed a pump. Tricare paid for the whole thing (6-7K) so I highly recommend it. PM me and I'll give you the specifics.

Of course as they say around here, hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

I'll keep the board updated when I get my results. Good luck!

 

[BobbieJ4455]

Dio,

Did you ever get the results for you MEB?

BobbieJ4455

 

[rreed454]

I went through the MEB in the Navy and was given 40% and TDRL.....on my last eval on TDRL I was downgraded to 20%. I fought the results because I clearly met the 40% criteria in a formal PEB. Let me know what specific questions I can answer for you and help you out with. You clearly meet the 40% as all Type 1s do in my opinion.
The VSRD lumps Type 1s and 2s together and they should be seperate based on the different issues with each Type of Diabetes.

 

[Dio]

I got 20%. When I was down there, my council showed me the case where Regulation of activities is "avoidance of strenuous occupational and recreational activities" just like it says in the VASRD. What it doesn't say is that this must be a medical need. Keyword, need. It's not enough to say you can't do this, your doctor must determine that you must not do it. That is how my council explained it. So, if you can't do any part of your job, get the doctor to say you must not do it, get it in your medical records, and show the board. The question comes up "But I can't deploy, it's that a medical need??" Try as you might, the board did not find that enough to give me 40%.

Hope this helps.

Dio

 

[Centaurbn]

I was discharged from the Army as a Type 1 almost 30 years ago (O-3, FA) I can't believe that rating criteria are still the same for Type 1 and Type 2 together and that the language in the ratings is still very subjective between 20 and 40% (Severance pay discharge versus Retired pay and status). I was told that the PEBs were biased against Reserve officers on active duty stints versus RA officers and that strict interpretations of rating criteria were made for Reservists. Now I am starting to think that the PEBs are told to lowball everybody who is going to get a medical discharge because of financial reasons. Payments to medically retired troopers come out of the current DOD budget; VA disability payments are not a concern of DOD. I think the bullshit 20 year vesting for retirement needs to end. Too many 20 year REMFS who retire and then quickly get a DOD GS job; they sponge anywhere between $75K and $180K per year in combined retirement and GS pay. I feel that only disabled vets should get monthly pay before age 55.