Visit Your Local VA                            To get an assessment completed for TBI, you must make an appointment with your local Veterans Affairs (VA) medical center.  You may need to see your primary care physician so that he/she can make a referral for you to the trauma recovery program (TRP) or the Comprehensive Mental Health (CMH) unit.  Getting a referral to TRP or CMH requires a little finesse.  You don’t want to come out and tell your primary care doctor that you want to go to TRP or CMH, you let them make the decision for you.  You do that by informing your doctor of your TBI-related symptoms.  For instance, mention to your doctor that you have been experiencing a lot of headaches lately.  Random headaches that seem to occur for no reason.  You want to let your doctor know that the ringing in your ears is driving you crazy.  To tie all of this together, tell your doctor you have been experiencing ringing in your ears since you left the combat zone (or since the head injury you experienced when you were in the service).  Let your doctor know that you have been ignoring the ringing in your ears for years, but now, it is too much to take.  Also, mention to your doctor that you are concerned about your memory.  Let him know that you have had trouble with your memory ever since you were knocked unconscious by the rocket explosion in the combat zone.                               Hearing those issues above, your primary care physician is sure to schedule you to see a psychiatrist at TRP, CMH, or schedule you for x-rays.  Either one is fine.  Take the appointment, follow through, and play out your symptoms to the next doctor.  Make sure your story is semi-consistent (more on that later).  Remember, everything you tell staff members at the VA is recorded.                                                      Seeing the Evaluation Doctor       When you visit with the doctor who will evaluate you, be truthful, accurate, and detailed as possible about your head injury.  Keep in mind, lost memories of past experiences are oftentimes discovered and revealed in these evaluations.  Therefore, do not worry if your story is incongruent with the other stories you have told.  That is part of your problem.                                                        The Documentation Game                           In the VA system it is important to always develop a documentation trail.  Getting information from multiple sources is always helpful when pursuing a service-connected claim.  TRP is helpful in establishing a diagnosis for TBI. Vet Centers are helpful in showing that you are interested in working on your issues.  | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |