Aa
Disability
Anyone got any tips to getting approved for disability in a timely manner, timely for how long it normally takes for disability to approve you? My case manager says this is her first time trying to get benefits for someone so I was wondering if there were any pointers or tips I could give her from people who have been through the system.
Thanks. Yeah hopefully it does go well. I also got a family member to write a letter for me as well so hopefully that helps.
Make sure you write down that you get easily confused with paper work.
I know with my med Seroquel sometimes when I am trying to fill out paper work it feels like I am going to pass out. It gets overwhelming. That is one thing I wrote about when getting approved. I can't balance my check book or write out the bills like I used to. Luckily my hubby took that over.
I hope everything goes well for you with the disability. That is great that your psych doc is writing a letter for you.
I know with my med Seroquel sometimes when I am trying to fill out paper work it feels like I am going to pass out. It gets overwhelming. That is one thing I wrote about when getting approved. I can't balance my check book or write out the bills like I used to. Luckily my hubby took that over.
I hope everything goes well for you with the disability. That is great that your psych doc is writing a letter for you.
I hope you didn't have too much of a hardship while waiting that long for disability. I've got a case manager working on the case and they're going to get my psychiatrist to side with me in a letter and they're handling all that stuff related to it. I get easily confused with paper work sometimes so thankfully my case manager is handling that as well.
yes 99.9% you will gt turned down..a attn can help faster but you have to pay him..it wont matter if ur wayyyy out there..they have guild lines...#1 if ur in end stage renal failure#2 if ur unable to fushion due to mind issues #3 if your blind..those are the top protocols..
its even longer process now..people that arnt even disabled are signing up..and it takes more time for people that are..i signed up in 1995 but remember i did it on my own..10 yrs 3 tries..i got awared in 06..,,u can gt a social worker to help you..the best is your pdoc to help..some place go faster than others..if you have a socail worker in your area that your county will provide them to you to fight on your behalf..i new what i was going and faxed alot of info...but in ohio i know they have to let you no ya or Na in 6 monthes..but all this going on ***** for you people that need it to cope with meds and things..
That's what I was going to do was explain it to them in a brutally honest fashion. I don't know if they check in with you here either, I will have to ask one of my family members who are on it but it's not like I have anything to worry about because I don't do what I say I can't do anyway because I know what I can and cannot do, it's just more I want to know out of curiosity. I figured they were not on my side and are trying to find any reason not to give me benefits and I have to prove my case to them without a doubt. Everyone would probably be able to end up on disability if these people had any empathy at all, it's their job to try to deny people when possible. People tend to like me because I have charisma I guess so maybe that will help out. Thanks for wishing me good luck, my second interview with them is coming up soon.
I only have experience with Canadian companies. The biggest thing is to be brutally honest when telling them how life really is. Talk to them about how you can't get out of bed until 10am. How you don't do anything during the day. Don't just say 'I have social anxiety' instead say 'I am petrified to go to the grocery store because I may run into someone I know and have to talk to them'.
But be honest. I don't know if it happens there but here they will stop in and check on you. I know of one dentist who said he couldn't work because his hands were too sore. They caught him mowing the lawn and cut him off (now he was faking it and deserved to be cut off so no sympathy for him). You do not want to be caught in a lie.
And when talking with them remember they are not on your side but workers who are looking for a reason to cut you off. Answer all their questions but don't volunteer information. And always remember to thank them for their time. If they think you are nice they are more likely to look favorably on your claim.
Good luck. I applied for two types of disability. I got one the first time around and never did get the second one but that was because they considered it pre-existing.
But be honest. I don't know if it happens there but here they will stop in and check on you. I know of one dentist who said he couldn't work because his hands were too sore. They caught him mowing the lawn and cut him off (now he was faking it and deserved to be cut off so no sympathy for him). You do not want to be caught in a lie.
And when talking with them remember they are not on your side but workers who are looking for a reason to cut you off. Answer all their questions but don't volunteer information. And always remember to thank them for their time. If they think you are nice they are more likely to look favorably on your claim.
Good luck. I applied for two types of disability. I got one the first time around and never did get the second one but that was because they considered it pre-existing.
Yeah they were telling me they just needed a list of doctors and such.
My initial interview was also over the phone. I just didn't know more of it would be over the phone. I have trouble keeping my face shaved and teeth brushed for example and my facial hair looks like crap when it's grown out because I can't seem to grow a full beard.
I was well under the SGA limit in my last job but I was told I worked too many hours. I was told you have to be working 20 hours or less also.
We just gave them the date I was diagnosed even though I had symptoms of it nearly all my life and always had a bit of trouble working. It only matters when I became diagnosed however because that's when my functioning really went down the crapper and never came back nearly as much.
My initial interview was also over the phone. I just didn't know more of it would be over the phone. I have trouble keeping my face shaved and teeth brushed for example and my facial hair looks like crap when it's grown out because I can't seem to grow a full beard.
I was well under the SGA limit in my last job but I was told I worked too many hours. I was told you have to be working 20 hours or less also.
We just gave them the date I was diagnosed even though I had symptoms of it nearly all my life and always had a bit of trouble working. It only matters when I became diagnosed however because that's when my functioning really went down the crapper and never came back nearly as much.
You don't need to get your own records. Just give the names of all your providers (past & present) to SSA, sign the release and they will take care of all that for you.
I actually never spoke to an appointed doctor in person. SSA interviewed me over the phone. I think it is important to answer the questions honestly. If you have trouble with the interview, that shows them something in itself. Showing your grooming habits is important because if they are bad it shows SSA another reason you will have a hard time getting or keeping a job. It's all about the job.
The earnings limit for 2010 is $1000 per month. You need to stay under that amount or you won't be eligible for benefits.
I got back-pay for over 2 years, because I didn't apply for quite a while after I had to stop working (went back to school and lived off student loans for awhile), and it took so long for me to get through the process. It depends on the date you tell them you became disabled and stopped being able to work (below the earnings limit). You can get back-payments for even longer than that depending on the date you give them.
I actually never spoke to an appointed doctor in person. SSA interviewed me over the phone. I think it is important to answer the questions honestly. If you have trouble with the interview, that shows them something in itself. Showing your grooming habits is important because if they are bad it shows SSA another reason you will have a hard time getting or keeping a job. It's all about the job.
The earnings limit for 2010 is $1000 per month. You need to stay under that amount or you won't be eligible for benefits.
I got back-pay for over 2 years, because I didn't apply for quite a while after I had to stop working (went back to school and lived off student loans for awhile), and it took so long for me to get through the process. It depends on the date you tell them you became disabled and stopped being able to work (below the earnings limit). You can get back-payments for even longer than that depending on the date you give them.
rmevans:
I was told having an advocate or lawyer on your side helps speed up the process immensely and I'm not organized enough to do it myself so I will definitely be having my case manager and/or a lawyer handle my case when appropriate. I had 9 pages of crap and I didn't even go into full detail either when I wrote out a letter to get a proper diagnosis and I probably also didn't even realize everything going on with me which I wrote in the letter so I have plenty of stories to cite for them. I will have to go to work myself during the process because I have no one to support me fully here while I wait and I'm looking for part time because that's all I can handle anyway and even then I still have trouble. I wrote a brief letter out on my work ability and such and I'm going to get letters from people who know me about how my illness affects me so that part I was already planning on.
Athena_M:
I hope I don't screw it up talking to the appointed doctor because I have great difficulty talking about my illness in real life, especially around people I don't know and trust. I don't know how much it would help showing them one's normal grooming habits but I'll try that one out showing them what I normally look like. The cockroaches and monsters and stuff I actually saw and experienced that were really there for me, they weren't just delusions that I believed it was happening. I seem to have recurring hallucinations about giant cockroaches that just disappear eventually and I HATE HATE HATE HATE cockroaches, as Kefka from Final Fantasy 6 would put it. My medication helps but they are still there somewhat. I've also several times seen people who aren't really there as well but none of them actually talked to me yet. I had a voice for ten years or so in my head that was trying to steal my soul and the medicine made it go away but exchanged it for random voices instead. It seems like I relapse permanently easily until my medication is increased or changed.
I was told having an advocate or lawyer on your side helps speed up the process immensely and I'm not organized enough to do it myself so I will definitely be having my case manager and/or a lawyer handle my case when appropriate. I had 9 pages of crap and I didn't even go into full detail either when I wrote out a letter to get a proper diagnosis and I probably also didn't even realize everything going on with me which I wrote in the letter so I have plenty of stories to cite for them. I will have to go to work myself during the process because I have no one to support me fully here while I wait and I'm looking for part time because that's all I can handle anyway and even then I still have trouble. I wrote a brief letter out on my work ability and such and I'm going to get letters from people who know me about how my illness affects me so that part I was already planning on.
Athena_M:
I hope I don't screw it up talking to the appointed doctor because I have great difficulty talking about my illness in real life, especially around people I don't know and trust. I don't know how much it would help showing them one's normal grooming habits but I'll try that one out showing them what I normally look like. The cockroaches and monsters and stuff I actually saw and experienced that were really there for me, they weren't just delusions that I believed it was happening. I seem to have recurring hallucinations about giant cockroaches that just disappear eventually and I HATE HATE HATE HATE cockroaches, as Kefka from Final Fantasy 6 would put it. My medication helps but they are still there somewhat. I've also several times seen people who aren't really there as well but none of them actually talked to me yet. I had a voice for ten years or so in my head that was trying to steal my soul and the medicine made it go away but exchanged it for random voices instead. It seems like I relapse permanently easily until my medication is increased or changed.
Yes, the doctor was one appointed by the Social Security. When I went to see the doctor, I did not do my usual "grooming". I just went in looking like I do around the house with no makeup or done hair. I wore a grey shirt because it was the least flattering.
My medication side effect makes me sleepy too and that is something that can hinder one from working. I wrote in my paperwork that my medication makes me too sleepy to drive to and from work and that I didn't want to drive if I was too medicated.
Did you get all your hospital records yet? That is one thing I had to do when I applied. I came in with a huge stack of hospital records.
Your delusions of cockroaches and monsters sound frightening. Does the medication help? Do your delusions relate to anything you watch on TV or read? I know whatever I am doing around the time of my manic psychosis seem to come up in my hallucinations. One time I was watching a lot of Twillight Zone and then my "false beliefs" were about aliens invading my body.
I remember one of the questions was how do you spell "Music" backwards? I was so proud because I knew how to spell it backwards, then I thought "great now I won't get approved".
I told the doctor that I didn't want to tell her about my hallucinations and she pressed me to tell her about them.
There are a lot of lawyer commercials on TV that will help if you have been denied.
When you get approved you will get back pay for a whole year and the lawyer will get a percentage of that check.
My medication side effect makes me sleepy too and that is something that can hinder one from working. I wrote in my paperwork that my medication makes me too sleepy to drive to and from work and that I didn't want to drive if I was too medicated.
Did you get all your hospital records yet? That is one thing I had to do when I applied. I came in with a huge stack of hospital records.
Your delusions of cockroaches and monsters sound frightening. Does the medication help? Do your delusions relate to anything you watch on TV or read? I know whatever I am doing around the time of my manic psychosis seem to come up in my hallucinations. One time I was watching a lot of Twillight Zone and then my "false beliefs" were about aliens invading my body.
I remember one of the questions was how do you spell "Music" backwards? I was so proud because I knew how to spell it backwards, then I thought "great now I won't get approved".
I told the doctor that I didn't want to tell her about my hallucinations and she pressed me to tell her about them.
There are a lot of lawyer commercials on TV that will help if you have been denied.
When you get approved you will get back pay for a whole year and the lawyer will get a percentage of that check.
I went through the process on my own, and had to go through the appeal and the hearing. It took a couple years - part of it because I always waited until the last minute (or later) to appeal. Yeah, they almost always deny you both times, so don't get down about it. My mother and therapist just kept getting on me about it.
You should get a lawyer ASAP who specializes in SS (although that too I waited until the last minute on so he had about a week to prepare, and he had to get an extension before my hearing). There are several in MT that are free unless you win your case. They get a part of your back-pay so are definitely on your side. They -obviously- know much more than your case manager. I got on the internet to get a list of the free lawyers in MT. I can tell you who I used if you are in southern MT. Send me a message.
Just make sure when you apply, you tell SSA about all your doctors, therapists, hospitalizations, ect. They will try to contact everyone for their notes on your treatment, ect. Also tell them when you became ill and when you stopped being able to work - the earlier the better (but make sure your providers will say the same thing). I did have to go to work during the process, but it can only be part-time. You can find out on the internet the earnings limit. Also make sure you are ready to explain to them why you can't work. I had to explain how my part-time job worked around my disabilities and the reason I couldn't work full time. They don't really care about the rest of your life.
I think the most important things for me were a letter from my counselor of 5 years and testimony from my mother at the hearing. Through the whole process I was telling myself that I would never get it and that I was wasting my time, but I dd get it and it is totally worth it. I am still able to work part-time so that helps with the income. Medicare *****, but it does cover my meds. Good luck.
There is some good info about the whole process on the internet.
You should get a lawyer ASAP who specializes in SS (although that too I waited until the last minute on so he had about a week to prepare, and he had to get an extension before my hearing). There are several in MT that are free unless you win your case. They get a part of your back-pay so are definitely on your side. They -obviously- know much more than your case manager. I got on the internet to get a list of the free lawyers in MT. I can tell you who I used if you are in southern MT. Send me a message.
Just make sure when you apply, you tell SSA about all your doctors, therapists, hospitalizations, ect. They will try to contact everyone for their notes on your treatment, ect. Also tell them when you became ill and when you stopped being able to work - the earlier the better (but make sure your providers will say the same thing). I did have to go to work during the process, but it can only be part-time. You can find out on the internet the earnings limit. Also make sure you are ready to explain to them why you can't work. I had to explain how my part-time job worked around my disabilities and the reason I couldn't work full time. They don't really care about the rest of your life.
I think the most important things for me were a letter from my counselor of 5 years and testimony from my mother at the hearing. Through the whole process I was telling myself that I would never get it and that I was wasting my time, but I dd get it and it is totally worth it. I am still able to work part-time so that helps with the income. Medicare *****, but it does cover my meds. Good luck.
There is some good info about the whole process on the internet.
Oh yeah I knew someone else who was asked something random like if they talked to the dead and the person said yes and got denied because of that. I thought some of the questions I've heard they ask a person are weird and kind of random which I have to admit I'm nervous about that part of it. I'm not really laughing at the beliefs you've had as I've had ones just as strange like one time for a few months at least I thought I was losing the sensation in my fingers because I couldn't taste anything with them but then later I realized I could never taste anything with my fingers and my psychiatrist said it was probably a mistaken belief or a delusion. I've had intense hallucinations before that are weird like a cockroach burrowing into my leg and my leg actually bothering me until I beat the spot it had went in at. I am fairly certain it wasn't real because there was no hole left behind by it but my leg still felt like the thing was crawling around in there until I beat it to death. Even when I don't believe this stuff is true it still seems just as real and won't go away and I'm left to wonder if I'm wrong to doubt it. My leg still bothers me from time to time because of that. I've had plenty of other hallucinations where I saw monsters and bizarre stuff but that is another story. My life was getting to be like Silent Hill before I got on medication. You mention a doctor interview, was this doctor interview done by your own psychiatrist or one appointed by social security? I don't really have any medication side effects that I'm aware of except the medicine makes me tired enough to sleep all the time and it caused some weight gain which is virtually impossible to get rid of entirely especially with permanent injuries and feeling sedated all the time.
Could you possibly get another case manager? I was denied for SSI, but I got approved for Social Security Disability. It took about 3 months. I got approved because the psychiatrist doctor that interviewed me thought my hallucinations were strange. I'm embarassed to admit it, but one time I was reading the Bible so much, I thought I was Jesus. One time I thought I was Michael Jackson mom (my friends think that is hilarious). When you get the doctor interview, tell them everything that troubles you. One of the questions on the paper work was "Do you have strange fears?" I wrote about my fear of an airplane landing on my house while I am sleeping. Also talk a lot about medication side effects.
P.S. I know the process is going to take months or years and that I will probably be denied the first or second time or maybe even third time.
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