I’m prescribed lithium, which works great for my mania, but some of the side effects include diarrhea, sexual disfunction, and short term memory loss. I’m okay with all that right now, because the medication overall helps me manage my bipolar, but how does that factor into the VA exam? For example, I think the mania/bipolar is well managed with the lithium, but the lithium is causing things specifically listed under the criteria for 50% disability (“impairment of short- and long-term memory (e.g., retention of only highly learned material, forgetting to complete tasks”) amongst others.
Does the examiner take that into account?
Does the examiner take that into account?