What NOT to say/do when applying for disability
As someone who once tried to get disability (and navigated the system for over five years as a result as a result,) I thought I'd take a moment to write this post about some things that I learned you shouldn't do when applying for the process.
I should note that this post isn't designed to show you how to scam the industry (the court requires documentation of notable disabilities that prevent you from working.) Rather, it is designed to help people navigate the process, which has undoubtedly been abused and oftentimes suffers from judges whose jobs is to completely rule out your disability.
Some backstory: I originally applied for disability based on both my HIV status, the fatigue that accompanies it, and the anxiety that accompanies my myriad of mental health diagnoses. At the time, I was very, very unwell mentally, and while I did not receive disability in the end (and feel I do not need it at this time,) I learned some things that you should not do.
So, with that being said:
Do not downplay your symptoms to your doctor. Given that your doctor is the one collecting information on your case, it is imperative that you do not, in any way, shape or form, say anything that would get put in your record that a judge can exploit. This could include things like "I don't always suffer this badly" or "I have good days." This could also include your severity of your symptoms, or the frequency of them. In that sense, you should also:
Never, when a doctor is asking how you're doing, say, "I'm fine / I'm doing okay." This is asked because it gets inserted into your chart as part of your "patient history/medical profile." How this is worded exactly depends on your doctor I imagine, but the judge who denied my disability case based a lot of their determination on the fact that I told the doctor(s) I was seeing that I was "doing okay." The judge even specified how many times I reported this by number, and claimed that, because I often said I was "doing okay" or "fine," that I had more good days than bad. With that said, you should also:
Never go into the disability process alone. Many disability lawyers work on the expectation that if you get paid, they get paid, and oftentimes will work with you on this arrangement. The paperwork to apply can be incredibly overwhelming, as can the process of gathering it. A legal team can help assist you in this process.
Never see a judge on your own. I had my lawyer/representative present with me, and they were able to argue my case by laws surrounding the way people are expected to behave in certain instances in the work environment.
Though I did not receive disability in the end (nor do I feel I will need it for quite some time,) I thought these tips would be beneficial to those of you who are applying for disability.
