ASK IT RIGHT: THE PROMPT PACK Boots To Benefits | The Navigator | bootstobenefits.com HOW TO USE 1. Start a new chat. Paste the GROUND RULES as your first message. 2. Wait for: "Ready. Paste your material." 3. Copy ONE prompt below, fill in the [BRACKETS], and send it as your second message. BEFORE EVERY PASTE: black out your SSN, VA file and claim numbers, date of birth, service number and DoD ID, your name, address, phone, email, other people's names and bank info. Check headers and footers. Ctrl+F the saved file for your SSN digits. Training off, or a temporary chat. Never give any AI a login. General education only. Not legal or medical advice. Not from VA. For your specific claim, see a free VA-accredited representative: https://www.va.gov/get-help-from-accredited-representative/find-rep/ ======================================================================== THE GROUND RULES (PASTE THESE AT THE TOP OF ANY CONVERSATION) ======================================================================== GROUND RULES FOR THIS CONVERSATION Who I am: a veteran working on my own VA disability claim. Your role: a careful research assistant who helps me understand and organize. You are not my representative, you don't make decisions about my claim, and you don't tell me what to file. 1. PRIVACY CHECK FIRST. Every time I paste something, scan it before you do anything else. Look for a Social Security number, VA file or claim number, service number, DoD ID, my full name or my family members' names, date of birth, street address, phone number, email, or bank details. (Doctors' and examiners' names are fine.) If you find any: STOP. Don't do the task. Tell me what kind of item you found and where (not the number itself), tell me to delete this chat, and ask me to black it out and paste a clean copy. 2. NO PREDICTIONS. Never estimate my rating, my chances, my effective date or any dollar amount. If I ask, remind me you can't know. 3. NO INVENTING. Never add a fact, date, symptom, diagnosis, document or quote that I didn't give you. If you need something, ask me. 4. QUOTE AND LOCATE. When you say what my documents say, quote the exact words and say where they are (document, date, page). When you state a VA rule, give the exact citation down to the paragraph, like 38 CFR 3.310(a), and quote it. If you aren't certain of the exact current wording, say "I'm not certain of the exact wording, check ecfr.gov" instead of guessing. 5. NO CASE LAW FROM MEMORY. Don't cite court cases unless I paste the decision. If one might matter, tell me what to look up instead. 6. NO STRATEGY CALLS. Don't tell me which form to file, which review lane to choose, or what to claim. If my question needs that, say it's one for a VA-accredited representative and help me write the question. 7. SAY WHEN YOU DON'T KNOW. "Not found in what you gave me" is a good answer. A confident guess is a bad one. 8. PLAIN ENGLISH. Short sentences. Explain any VA term the first time you use it. 9. CHECK YOURSELF. Before you give your final answer, re-read my text and confirm every quote you used appears in it word for word. Remove or flag any you can't find. If you understand, reply only: "Ready. Paste your material." ======================================================================== PROMPT 1: DECODE MY DECISION LETTER ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: Before you paste: black out your SSN, VA file number, claim number, name, date of birth, address and any bank details. Check the header and footer of every page. Paste only the pages you need. Turn off training in your settings, or use a temporary chat. TASK: Help me understand a VA decision letter. Below is the text of the letter, with my personal information removed. It may include the cover letter, the rating decision, or both. Tell me which one(s) you see. If the cover letter is here but the full rating decision (the part with VA's reasoning) is not, say so clearly. Under 38 CFR 3.103(f), a VA decision notice has to include: (1) the issues decided (2) a summary of the evidence considered (3) a summary of the applicable laws and regulations (4) any findings favorable to me (5) for denied claims, the element(s) not met (6) if applicable, the criteria for service connection or the next higher rating (7) how to get the evidence used (8) a summary of my review options PART 1. For EACH of the eight items: - Quote the exact sentence(s) from my letter that cover it, with the page number if the text shows one. - Explain it in plain English in 1 to 3 sentences. - If you can't find it, write "Not found in the text provided." PART 2. Make this table, one row per issue (each condition VA decided): ISSUE | DECISION (granted / denied / deferred / continued) | % IF GIVEN | EFFECTIVE DATE IF GIVEN | VA'S STATED REASON (quoted) PART 3. FAVORABLE FINDINGS. List every finding in my favor, quoted word for word, with where it appears. Include findings inside denials, for example "the evidence shows a current diagnosis of..." Under 38 CFR 3.104(c) these can bind later decisions, so don't miss any. If you aren't sure whether a sentence is a finding, list it separately under "Possible findings, check these." PART 4. WHAT WAS MISSING. For each denied issue, quote exactly what the letter says was not shown or not met. Then name which piece it is, using VA's words: current diagnosis, in-service event or injury, or the link between them (nexus). Don't add pieces the letter doesn't mention. PART 5. EVIDENCE LIST. List every piece of evidence the letter says VA considered, with dates. Then, separately, list anything the letter mentions VA asked for but didn't receive. PART 6. DATES. The date of the letter, if shown. Then: "A Higher-Level Review or Board appeal generally has to be filed within one year of the date of this decision. A Supplemental Claim can be filed any time, but the one-year mark can affect the effective date. Confirm your deadlines with a VA-accredited representative." PART 7. QUESTIONS for a VA-accredited representative, 5 to 8 of them, most important first. Do not predict anything. Do not recommend a review option. Do not tell me whether VA was right or wrong. LETTER TEXT: [PASTE REDACTED LETTER TEXT HERE] AFTER IT ANSWERS: Ctrl+F every quote in your real letter. Any quote you can't find, cross it out. If it said the rating decision is missing, request your C-file (Chapter 10). ======================================================================== PROMPT 2: FIND WHAT EVIDENCE IS MISSING ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: Don't paste your whole records. Describe each document in one line: what it is, the date, who wrote it, and what it says about your condition. If you paste a quote, black out names and numbers first. No name, SSN, file number or date of birth. TASK: Help me see which pieces of my claim have evidence and which don't. Don't tell me what to file. Condition: [CONDITION] How I'm claiming it: [direct / secondary to SERVICE-CONNECTED CONDITION / presumptive under REGULATION / not sure] Conditions VA already service connected: [LIST, or "none"] What my decision letter (or VA's notice letter) said was missing, quoted exactly. If I don't have one yet, I'll say so: [PASTE THE EXACT SENTENCES] Favorable findings VA already made, quoted (from Prompt 1): [PASTE, or "none found yet"] My documents, one line each: [TYPE | DATE | WHO WROTE IT | WHAT IT SAYS (quote if I have it) | PAGE IN MY FILE | DID VA ALREADY HAVE IT? (yes / no / not sure)] PLEASE 1. List the elements VA looks for in this kind of claim. Quote the regulation for each and give the paragraph: 38 CFR 3.303(a) for direct, 38 CFR 3.310(a) for secondary, or the presumption section I named. If you're not sure of the exact wording, say so. 2. Table: ELEMENT | ALREADY CONCEDED BY VA? (quote the finding) | MY DOCUMENTS THAT SPEAK TO IT (with date and page) | GAP? 3. Mark the element VA's letter said was not met. That's the main target. Everything else is secondary. 4. For each gap, list the general KINDS of evidence that usually speak to that element (for example: a treatment record showing the diagnosis, a statement from someone who saw it in service, a medical opinion on the link). Cite the regulation or M21-1 section where you can. Don't tell me what to get or who to get it from. 5. Which of my documents look new, meaning VA didn't have them, using only what I told you. 6. Questions for a VA-accredited representative, most important first. Do not assume any document says more than I told you. Do not predict anything. Do not recommend a review option. AFTER IT ANSWERS: check each regulation quote on ecfr.gov. Take the table to your VSO. ======================================================================== PROMPT 3: PREP FOR MY C&P EXAM ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: Describe your symptoms, not yourself. No name, SSN, file number or date of birth. If you mention other people, use "my spouse," "my boss," and so on. A blank DBQ from VA.gov is a public form and fine to paste. TASK: Interview me so I can describe my condition accurately and completely at a VA C&P exam. The exam is for: [CONDITION] How long I've had it: [ROUGHLY HOW LONG] [Optional: the public DBQ for this condition: PASTE DBQ TEXT] [Optional: the rating criteria for this condition from 38 CFR Part 4, copied from ecfr.gov: PASTE CRITERIA TEXT] HOW TO RUN THE INTERVIEW - Ask ONE question at a time. Wait for my answer before the next one. - Never suggest a symptom or put words in my mouth. Only ask. - If I say I don't have something, accept it and move on. - If my answer is vague ("sometimes," "a lot," "it's fine," "I manage"), ask for a fact instead: how many times, how many hours, how many days, what exactly I couldn't do, who noticed. - Ask about my typical day and my worst days as separate questions. Ask what my worst week in the last year looked like. - Cover: how often, how long each episode lasts, how bad, flare-ups (how often, how long, what I can't do during one), what helps, what makes it worse, medications and side effects, and effects on work, sleep, home life, relationships and getting out of the house. - For joints or the spine, also ask about pain on movement, weakness, tiring fast, losing coordination, and what happens with repeated use. - If I pasted a DBQ or criteria, make sure every topic in them gets asked about. Don't tell me which answers would match which level. - After every 5 questions, show a one-line count of topics covered and topics left. WHEN I TYPE "DONE" 0. If any topic above wasn't covered yet, list those topics first and ask if I want to go back to them before you wrap up. 1. My answers back as short bullet notes, in my words, under these headings: Typical day / Worst days and flare-ups / Work / Sleep / Home and relationships / Treatment and meds / Other. Fit it on one page. 2. A "facts to say out loud" list: my answers that include a number, a frequency or a specific thing I can't do. 3. Anything I said that seems to conflict with something else I said, so I can get it straight before the exam. 4. 3 to 5 questions I might ask the examiner, including: "Which of my records were you provided for this exam?" 5. A reminder: answer honestly, don't exaggerate, don't downplay, and write down what I said right after the exam. Do not tell me what to say. Do not predict anything. Start with your first question. ======================================================================== PROMPT 4: CHECK MY C&P EXAM REPORT ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: The report carries your name and file number on every page, usually in the header. Black out every page, not just the first. The examiner's name can go too. Keep the page numbers. TASK: Compare my C&P exam report to what I actually said and to what my records show. Don't tell me whether the exam was good enough or what to file. THE EXAM REPORT (personal information removed, page numbers kept): [PASTE THE REPORT] WHAT I TOLD THE EXAMINER (my notes written the same day, or "no notes"): [PASTE YOUR NOTES] RECORDS I KNOW ABOUT FOR THIS CONDITION (date | type | page | short quote): [PASTE, or "none listed"] DO THIS 1. EVIDENCE REVIEWED. Quote exactly what the report says about which records the examiner reviewed: every checkbox and any comments. Then list which kinds of records are marked as NOT reviewed. 2. HISTORY CHECK. One row for each thing the report says I said: REPORT SAYS (quoted, with page) | MY NOTES SAY (quoted) | SAME / DIFFERENT / NOT IN MY NOTES Then list anything in my notes the report leaves out. 3. FLARE-UPS AND FUNCTION. Quote what the report says about flare-ups, repeated use, and effects on work and daily life. If a section is blank, marked "no," or missing, say so. 4. THE OPINION. Quote the medical opinion and the full rationale word for word. Then list, one per line, each fact the rationale relies on. 5. FACTS VS RECORDS. For each fact the rationale relies on, list any record I gave you that says something different, side by side, with date and page. Don't decide who's right. 6. NUMBERS. List every measurement and number in the report exactly as written. 7. QUESTIONS for a VA-accredited representative, most important first. Do not say whether the exam is adequate. Do not say what my rating should be or whether VA will grant anything. Quote, compare and locate only. AFTER IT ANSWERS: open the report and find every quote. Highlight each "DIFFERENT" row on your copy. Bring the side-by-side to your VSO. Chapter 8 walks through a full example. ======================================================================== PROMPT 5: INTERVIEW ME, THEN DRAFT FROM MY WORDS ONLY (I CHECK EVERY LINE) ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: Your notes should say "my wife," "a shipmate," "my supervisor," never names. No SSN, file number or date of birth. You'll add your identifying details yourself on the actual VA form, which goes to VA, not to a chatbot. This one runs in two turns. Paste the prompt with your notes. Answer its questions. Then type DRAFT IT. TASK: Interview me about my notes, then draft my statement to VA about [CONDITION] using ONLY my words. I will check every line before I sign it. [Optional: what VA said was missing, quoted from my decision letter: PASTE SENTENCES] STRICT RULES - Use ONLY what's in my notes and my answers. Don't add any symptom, date, number, event, feeling or detail, even if it seems likely. - Keep my phrases. Reuse my exact words wherever you can. Don't "improve" them into formal language. - No stock claim language: no "significantly impacts my daily functioning," no "quality of life," no "debilitating." - Don't make anything sound worse or better than I said it. - Don't draft until I type DRAFT IT. TURN 1: INTERVIEW 1. Sort my notes under these headings, as my exact quotes: - When it started and what happened - What it's like on a typical day - What it's like on my worst days - Effects on work (or why I can't work) - Effects on sleep - Effects on home, family and relationships - What other people have seen - Treatment I've had and what happened 2. If I pasted what VA said was missing, show which of my notes speak to it and which parts of it my notes don't cover yet. 3. Anything in my notes that seems to contradict something else in my notes, so I can check it against my records. 4. Questions for me, for everything vague or missing. Ask for facts: "How many times a week?", "How long does it last?", "What exactly couldn't you do?", "Who saw it?", "What year was that?" Then stop and wait for my answers. TURN 2: DRAFT (only after I type DRAFT IT) 5. A first draft in the first person, short sentences, plain words, built only from my notes and answers. 6. After every sentence, in square brackets, the note or answer it came from, quoted. 7. Under the draft: "NOT FROM YOUR NOTES:" and list every word, number or detail you used that I didn't give you. If there's none, say "None." Then list anything I still didn't answer. 8. Remind me: check every line, take the brackets out, and end with the standard closing that it's true and correct to the best of my knowledge before I sign. MY NOTES: [PASTE YOUR NOTES HERE] AFTER IT ANSWERS: check every sentence against the note in its brackets. If a bracket doesn't match the sentence, or the "NOT FROM YOUR NOTES" list isn't empty, fix those lines first. Then take the brackets out, read it out loud, and change anything that doesn't sound like you. ======================================================================== EXTRA A: EXPLAIN A REGULATION, WITH THE QUOTE ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: No personal information needed. This one's just about the rule. TASK: Explain a VA regulation using its exact words. Here is the current text of 38 CFR [SECTION], copied from ecfr.gov: [PASTE THE REGULATION TEXT] 1. Break it down paragraph by paragraph: the citation (like 3.310(a)), the key sentence quoted exactly, then what it means in 1 to 3 plain sentences. 2. Define every term of art in it (like "proximately due to," "aggravation," "nexus," "competent") using the regulation's own definitions where it gives them. 3. List what the regulation requires as a checklist, in its own words. 4. List anything it does NOT say that people often assume it says. 5. Point out any other section it refers to, so I can look it up. Work only from the text I pasted. If something isn't in it, say so. ======================================================================== EXTRA B: BUILD MY TIMELINE ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: Dates and events only. No name, SSN, file number or date of birth. Other people are "my spouse," "Doctor A," "a shipmate." TASK: Turn my scattered dates into a clean timeline for [CONDITION]. - Sort everything oldest first, in a table: DATE | WHAT HAPPENED | SOURCE (document and page, if I gave it) - Use only the dates I gave you. Don't fill in or estimate dates. - Put events with no date in a separate "needs a date" list. - Mark these key dates if they're in my list: entered service, separation, first symptoms, first treatment, first diagnosis, date VA RECEIVED each claim, each decision. - Show the time between separation and the first claim or first treatment, if both dates are there. - List every gap of more than a year with no record, so I can check whether I have records for that time. - Don't explain or interpret the gaps. Just list them. MY EVENTS: [PASTE LIST] ======================================================================== EXTRA C: QUESTIONS FOR MY VSO APPOINTMENT ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: Summaries only. Nothing identifying. TASK: Help me use a short appointment with a VA-accredited VSO representative well. Appointment length: [MINUTES] Where my claim stands (no personal identifiers): [SUMMARY: conditions, what's granted, what's denied and why (quoted), the date of my latest decision, what I've filed since] 1. The 5 to 8 most important questions, in priority order. Put anything with a deadline first. 2. A one-paragraph summary I can read out loud in the first minute so the rep is caught up fast. 3. A list of documents I should bring. Don't answer the questions yourself. They're for the representative. ======================================================================== EXTRA D: INDEX MY RECORDS (C-FILE OR MEDICAL RECORDS) ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: This is your most sensitive material. Work in chunks of 10 to 20 pages. Before each chunk: remove your name, SSN, file number, date of birth and address from every page, including headers and footers, which repeat on every page. Use a temporary chat with training off. Never upload the whole file. TASK: Build an index of my records, one chunk at a time. This is chunk [NUMBER], covering pages [FIRST] to [LAST] of my [C-file / VA medical records download / private records from PROVIDER]. For every separate document in this chunk, give me one row: PAGES | DATE | DOCUMENT TYPE | AUTHOR OR CLINIC | CONDITIONS MENTIONED | ONE-LINE SUMMARY | WORTH A CLOSER LOOK? (yes/no and why, in 5 words) Document types to use: service treatment record, VA exam (C&P / DBQ), medical opinion, rating decision, decision letter, VA notice letter, VA treatment note, private treatment record, lab or imaging report, problem list, medication list, lay statement, buddy statement, form, other. Rules: - Use the page numbers printed on the pages if there are any. Otherwise number from [FIRST]. - If a date is unclear, write "date unclear" instead of guessing. - Flag any exam report and copy exactly what it says about which records the examiner reviewed (the checkboxes or the "evidence reviewed" section). - Flag any sentence that looks like a decision, a finding, or a medical opinion about cause, and quote it. - Don't summarize what you can't read. Say "unreadable." At the end, list the conditions mentioned in this chunk and how many times each one appears. CHUNK TEXT: [PASTE] ======================================================================== EXTRA E: SWEEP MY RECORDS FOR ONE CONDITION ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: Same as Extra D: cleaned chunks only, temporary chat, never the whole file. TASK: Find every mention of one condition in this chunk of my records. Condition: [CONDITION] Search terms (narrow ones work best): [TERMS, for example: lumbar, radiculopathy, L4, L5, sciatica, low back] Terms to ignore because they cause false hits: [for example: discharge, discussed] This chunk covers pages [FIRST] to [LAST] of [WHICH RECORDS]. For every mention, one row: DATE | PAGE | DOCUMENT TYPE | AUTHOR | EXACT QUOTE (the full sentence) | WHAT KIND OF MENTION (symptom reported / exam finding / diagnosis / medication / referral / test result / opinion on cause / on a problem list / other) Rules: - Quote the whole sentence, word for word. Never paraphrase. - Use the note's own date, not the date it was printed or signed, and say which date you used if both appear. - Include mentions in problem lists, medication lists and lab results. Those are separate sections and easy to miss. - Include mentions where I denied the symptom too, marked "denied." I need to know about those. - If the chunk has no mentions, say "No mentions found in pages [FIRST] to [LAST]." At the end, give: the earliest mention, the latest mention, and any stretch of more than a year with no mention in this chunk. AFTER IT ANSWERS: open every page it cited and confirm the quote and the date. Dates are the thing AI most often gets wrong in medical records, because a note can carry several. ======================================================================== EXTRA F: LINE UP MY RECORDS AGAINST THE RULE'S OWN WORDS ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: Paste the regulation text (public) and only short, cleaned quotes from your records, with dates and pages. TASK: Show me where my records use the same language as the VA rule for my condition. You will NOT decide which rating level I meet. The rule, copied from ecfr.gov: 38 CFR [SECTION], diagnostic code [CODE IF ANY]: [PASTE THE CRITERIA TEXT, ALL LEVELS] Quotes from my records (from Extra E), each with date and page: [PASTE ROWS] 1. Break the rule into its separate criteria phrases, quoted exactly, one per line. Keep the levels they belong to, as written. 2. For each criteria phrase, list my record quotes that use the same or very close words, with date and page. If none, write "none in what you gave me." 3. Separately, list criteria phrases where my quotes describe something related but in different words. Show both side by side. Don't decide whether they match. That's for me and a representative. 4. Point out any record quote that cuts the other way (for example, a note saying a symptom was denied or improved), with date and page. 5. Give me the list of criteria phrases with no evidence at all in what I pasted, as a question list for my VSO. DO NOT say which percentage or level I qualify for, or that I "meet" or "don't meet" anything. Organize, quote and locate only. ======================================================================== EXTRA G: CHECK MY CITATIONS BEFORE I SEND ANYTHING ======================================================================== PRIVACY FIRST: Paste your draft with your name, SSN, file number and date of birth removed. Add them back on the final copy yourself. TASK: Audit every citation and quote in my draft. Don't rewrite my draft. Here is the current text of every regulation and statute my draft cites, copied from ecfr.gov and govinfo.gov: [PASTE EACH ONE, LABELED WITH ITS CITATION] MY DRAFT: [PASTE] For each citation or quote in my draft, one row: WHERE IN MY DRAFT | CITATION AS I WROTE IT | DOES THE QUOTE APPEAR WORD FOR WORD IN THE TEXT I PASTED? (yes / no / close but different) | IS THE PARAGRAPH RIGHT? | NOTES Also check: - Every citation is paragraph-deep (3.310(a), not 3.310). - The format is consistent (38 CFR 3.310(a), 38 U.S.C. 5107(b)). - The condition is named the way the rule names it. - Every reference to my evidence names the document, date and page. - Any court case I cited. You can't verify cases, so list each one under "check this yourself on the court's own site." - Any sentence where I state something as a fact about my records but don't point to where it is. Don't fix anything. Just list the problems. AFTER IT ANSWERS: fix each problem yourself, then open each regulation on eCFR one last time and find each quote with Ctrl+F.