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I would've rather been healthy and working. I even faked like nothing was wrong with me and would get jobs for a short time until the employer figured out I had a lot of problems and fired me. Then the problems have gotten worse as I get older. Not a thing I can do about it. I've had health problems since I was born. I've been in and out of hospitals having all sorts of procedures, surgeries, etc. for years.
I'm so messed up now I cannot even fake being normal anymore. I have to take pills just to be able to walk because I fall down without them. I'm on over a dozen pills for various ailments. I'm going blind and everything stays blurry. If I took an eye test for my driver's license for some reason I am half certain I'd fail. I worry about losing my license quite a bit.
The really insulting thing though is how I'm constantly being accused of using drugs/being a drunk because of how bad my coordination is. Treated like garbage over it. I don't drink or use any illicit drugs and never have.
I had trouble at interviews even, when I used to get one, because everyone was assuming I was intoxicated.
I am so sorry to hear what you are going through, it must be awful. My mother had a medical condition that affected her coordination and made he speech slur, she became so self conscious about it that she almost became a recluse.
I get SSI. $733/month. I have hard enough time trying to find a place to live with that. If they slash it I will basically be homeless for the rest of my life. I figured it'll be about $594/month I'd be getting. No landlord would ever rent to me again, ever. Nothing I can do about it.
I'm in the exact same boat as you. I'd either have to live with my parents forever and be like a monk, or live on the street. I am trying to start my own business since it's the only way I could ever be self sufficient with my disability but there's no way I'll be able to make enough money on a regular basis from it within a year and a half.
I didn't say mentally disabled. I said mental ailments.
Social anxiety, panic attacks, seclusion, and even passiveness are considered mental ailments that would qualify you for SSDI.
Anxiety and depression are anatomical and neurological diseases as much as a kidney or heart malfunction. I never heard of "passiveness" or "seculsion" as a mental health disorder, nor as a qualifier for SSDI. Panic attacks can be a symptom of an anxiety disorder, but is not a mental illness in itself. There are many different forms of anxiety, including anorexia/bulemia. There are scans, including PET scans which, can visibly distinguish different forms of anxiety and depression. When applying for SSDI for a mental disorder, one has to supply documentation, usually from someone with a MD, such as a neurologist or psychiatrist. Maintenance for some of these mental disorders often includes medications with some pretty heavy side effects that also affects the ability to fully function in the workplace. Cases are reviewed every few years. The media plays up the scams when fraud is uncovered, as well they should, but they really are a minority of the people who receive SSDI.
I am so sorry to hear what you are going through, it must be awful. My mother had a medical condition that affected her coordination and made he speech slur, she became so self conscious about it that she almost became a recluse.
They have already raised the age of social security retirement and now want to raise it again until age 70. What will they put in place to protect older workers from ageism in the workforce? If someone gets laid off at age 65 and needs to find a new job for the next 5 years, will that be possible? By that age, it's more likely a person will have genuine health issues and you can't expect many older people to take just "any" job that requires certain physical abilities. These people are going to end up filing for disability.
Well it had better happen, especially since there's been an ongoing raiding of the SS retirement fund to accommodate it.
There is no "X" funds these days - the government operates with a slush fund and write funny money checks when they need to spend it. I remember when ALGORE was running for POTUS and suggested monies earmarked for named funds be put into a "lockbox" and protected SS in particular. People thought him to be crazy at the time but I was in complete agreement with the sentiment. Would it ever come to pass? No, we still have a slush fund. An office kitty is more feasible as those who borrow against it are more apt to pay back when facing fellow office workers everyday. If your name is on a library book card and the book never returns it points to one person who is responsible. Same with an office kitty.
D'yer think congress could do so? The house holds the purse strings; Article 1, secton 8.
POTUS and senate cannot pass a law/bill forcing the house's hand without the house voting on it.
How would they vote?
They have already raised the age of social security retirement and now want to raise it again until age 70. What will they put in place to protect older workers from ageism in the workforce? If someone gets laid off at age 65 and needs to find a new job for the next 5 years, will that be possible? By that age, it's more likely a person will have genuine health issues and you can't expect many older people to take just "any" job that requires certain physical abilities. These people are going to end up filing for disability.
As discussed in work forums, if older individuals are laid off in later years, it will be less likely to be hired and becomes more difficult even in during their '50's. Also, though they may be more qualified, companies will begin replacing older workers with younger candidates. It was mentioned, that in employment seminars, they will be full of older workers who feel they were kicked out, having younger supervisors and co-workers. And true, as we age, not everyone remains as capable in ways as they once were. With work-related stress really taking its toll on some, it can ultimately leave one without any option than SSDI.
I get SSI. $733/month. I have hard enough time trying to find a place to live with that. If they slash it I will basically be homeless for the rest of my life. I figured it'll be about $594/month I'd be getting. No landlord would ever rent to me again, ever. Nothing I can do about it.
I'm sorry to hear your story. Do not move to CA, where it is very difficult to manage financially. I really feel for people, housing and everything else should be adjusted - there are too many in need.
If they would institute means testing removing the people that really don't need the money I'd guess that would help quite a bit.
Example: If a person is pulling in $100k a year from other forms of non-earned income do they really need that $1200+ per month from SSDI?
If a person has $5 million in assets do they really need to get payments from the government?
I see this confusion all the time. My adult son who has Down syndrome and functions at like a pre-schooler gets SSI. His disability is considered permanent and was genetically verified. SSDI is for people that have worked and have enough credits to get compensation when they become too disabled to work. I have heard that certain doctors will hook up your paperwork and if you "google", you'll get a list of ambulance chasers that want to help you get your SSDI one way or the other. This has been tough for me as I knew a girl in college that had been in an automobile accident and became a quadriplegic and was studying for a 2 year degree to work on computers and I watched her struggle just to hold her pen and she graduated and became employed. I was so impressed by her and she said the hardest thing she had to learn after the accident was learning to ask people for help. I have also saw people at the workshops for the people with developmental disabilities so my sympathies are not there for a lot of people who just "can't" work.
Also, I am sorry to those individuals that do have a disability and if not for all the cheats, people wouldn't be wondering if your disability was real. Really, the ones we see out working under the table end up representing the rest and that is just how things work. We have all seen the news stories and if we cut the fraud, cutting the amount of compensation would not have to be an issue.
Last edited by AnywhereElse; 07-25-2015 at 09:08 AM..
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