Long Term Disabilities You Cannot See, And Proving That They Are Real

In the last twenty or thirty years, the SSA (Social Security Administration) has added dozens more qualifying disabilities.  Many of these disabilities are ones that other people cannot see. Having one of these disabling and qualifying conditions is not enough; you will need the assistance of a good disability law attorney to prove you have these conditions. Then check the following to see if you have an "unseen" condition that qualifies.

Mental Health Conditions

It was not until recently that people were able to show and prove that mental health conditions were, in fact, disabling conditions. Once it was proven that anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, bi-polar disorder, schizophrenia, and a few other conditions prevented people from living a fairly normal life conducting normal, everyday activities, SSA finally accepted these conditions as qualified disabling conditions. However, your lawyer still has to prove that your mental health condition is debilitating enough for social security benefits.

Body Conditions with No Tests to Prove Them

There are also body conditions that are very real, which some doctors used to think were "all in the hypochondriac's head." If you complained of all-over body pain, fatigue, night sweats, insomnia, etc., your doctor just told you that you were making things up for attention. Now, doctors know and understand that you have chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), fibromyalgia, Reynaud's phenomenon, etc. All of these conditions have NO physical way to test for their presence, but they are disabling to their sufferers all the same. They can only be proven to SSA via an extensive medical history showing how the disorder affects you, the medications you have taken, and the daily issues you have trying to keep house, hold down a job, take care of family, etc..

Proving That You Have One or More of These Conditions

The biggest issue with proving that you have an unseen disabling condition is providing a lot of medical record proof. You cannot go from your doctor's office, where you have just received a diagnosis, to applying for disability benefits. Even though you might have spent the last two years testing for everything under the sun and not feeling well, SSA only takes note of your official diagnosis date, and moves forward from there. Your lawyer would be hard-pressed to convince government representatives that you have an invisible disabling condition without a lot of medical history to back up the diagnosis. He/she also needs a poor employment history, which could support your claim, and/or documents attesting to imminent death from your condition.

For more help, get in touch with a professional like Scott E. Shaffman Attorney At Law.

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