New Here - Looking for help for brother

Riyaa_411

Hi there—just wanted to say you’re doing an incredible job stepping up for your brother. It’s a lot to manage, especially with medical appointments, family coordination, and VA paperwork all happening at once.

From what you’ve shared, you’re on the right track. Once you have the formal dementia diagnosis (after the MRI), you can apply for Catastrophic Disability status through the VA. That designation is based on functional limitations—not service connection—and can open the door to in-home care, respite support, and a higher priority tier for services. Definitely worth applying for that as soon as you have documentation in hand.

As for service-connecting the dementia (especially given his nuclear sub duty and likely exposure), that’s where you’ll need a nexus letter. It has to come from a doctor and clearly state that it’s “at least as likely as not” that his condition is related to his military service. Radiation exposure can be tough to prove, but any duty records or technical logs could help support the claim.

You can definitely pursue both routes—Catastrophic Disability and service connection—at the same time. And if you run into challenges with writing up appeal letters or organizing the documentation, there are tools out there that can help. One I’ve come across is Counterforce Health—it’s free and walks you through creating appeal letters or supporting documents based on your situation. Might be useful if you find the VA process gets sticky.

Wishing you and your family strength and clarity as you move through the next steps—you’re clearly doing everything you can to support your brother, and that matters more than anything.