{"id":144,"date":"2026-01-17T14:37:03","date_gmt":"2026-01-17T14:37:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trackmysymptoms.org\/blog\/?p=144"},"modified":"2026-01-19T18:57:30","modified_gmt":"2026-01-19T18:57:30","slug":"30-years-of-ratings-what-progressive-disability-actually-looks-like","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trackmysymptoms.org\/blog\/2026\/01\/17\/30-years-of-ratings-what-progressive-disability-actually-looks-like\/","title":{"rendered":"30 Years of Ratings: What Progressive Disability Actually Looks Like"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

A Navy veteran’s journey from 30% to 100% P&T\u2014and why “maximizing your rating” is the wrong goal<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Timeline That Claim Sharks Don’t Want You To See<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

1992: 30% disabled | Age 22 | US Navy Submarine Force<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was serving aboard a U.S. Navy submarine when we pulled into Halifax, Nova Scotia. I went ashore with shipmates to buy the new Def Leppard cassette. Halfway through town, my right leg started dragging. I brushed it off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the way back, I couldn’t make it. My friends flagged down a taxi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next morning, I woke up paralyzed on my entire right side.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ship’s doctor thought stroke. The hospital knew better. CT scan, MRI, spinal tap: Multiple Sclerosis<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First VA rating: 30% disabled<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At 30% I adapted. I could work. I needed minor accommodations, but I could work. I separated from the Navy and rebuilt my life around this new reality. For twenty years, that 30% rating was accurate. MS was there, but manageable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2017: 70% disabled | Age 47 | 25 years later<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The disease stopped being so nice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What had been manageable became unreliable. Functional capacity dropping. Cognitive fog increasing. Symptoms no longer responded to treatment the way they used to. My reality no longer matched that 30% rating from 1992.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I requested a rating increase. I documented twenty years of progression. I submitted evidence showing genuine functional decline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The VA reviewed everything. 70% disabled<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At 70%, work was difficult. But I kept going. I built businesses. I taught college courses. I ran a consultancy. I refused to stop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2021: 100% Permanent & Total | Age 51 | 29 years after diagnosis<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After nearly three decades with MS, the data was undeniable. The disease had progressed beyond what 70% captured. Symptoms that used to be occasional were now constant. Good days were becoming rare. Bad days were becoming catastrophic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I documented everything. 347 pages of evidence. Medical records. Functional limitations. Patterns over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The VA agreed: 100% Permanent & Total<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But here’s what claim sharks won’t tell you: I kept working anyway.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What They Don’t Tell You About 100% P&T<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For four years after being rated 100% P&T, I continued working:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • Adjunct professor teaching business management<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Running my consultancy (No Borders Learning Design LLC)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Building TrackMySymptoms from scratch<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Taking contracts when my brain and body aligned<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    Was I faking it?<\/strong> No.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Was the VA wrong?<\/strong> No.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Was I in denial about my limitations?<\/strong> Probably.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Because here’s what 100% Permanent & Total actually means:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n

    You cannot sustain competitive employment over time.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

    Not “you can’t work on good days.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Not “you’re completely bedridden.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    But your body will not allow the consecutive functional days required for sustained employment.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What 100% P&T Actually Looks Like<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Recently, I got offered a Managing Partner role. Commission-only. Full P&L responsibility. Build a division from scratch. Uncapped upside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Everything my brain wanted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I was seriously considering it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Then I opened TrackMySymptoms\u2014the app I built to help others document their disability claims\u2014and looked at my own data from that week:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • 4 severe days out of 5<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • 53% average functional capacity<\/strong> (4.8 hours per day)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Zero consecutive days of sustained performance<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Multiple acute episodes<\/strong> requiring immediate cessation of activity<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Two hygiene failures<\/strong> incompatible with workplace standards (including one while at the grocery store with my wife – that was fun!)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      My own app told me what my brain didn’t want to hear:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      I cannot promise I’ll be functional tomorrow at 9am.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      After 33 years with MS and 4 years of trying to work while rated 100% P&T, I finally accepted what the VA had determined in 2021:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      My body doesn’t cooperate enough to sustain competitive employment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      What “Progressive Disability” Actually Means<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      Claim sharks want you to think VA ratings are about “maximizing” or “hitting” a target number.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      That’s complete bullshit.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Ratings track functional decline over time<\/strong>. These are not “achievements”. They’re not “victories”. They’re measurements of loss<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Here’s what my 30-year progression actually represents:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      30% (1992): Manageable Impairment<\/h3>\n\n\n\n