JOIN OUR ONLINE PEER SUPPORT COMMUNITY Schizophrenia Peer Support Community: www.schizophreniapeersupport.com General Mental Illness Peer Support Community: www.onlinepeersupport.com
I was a therapist for Community Mental Health Services in California for 35 years. Most of my clients applied for SSDI. My experience was that most (80% sounds about right) were denied the first time. When clients secured an attorney their chances of being accepted improved greatly. It almost seemed as if the process was made so difficult in hopes that folks would give up. Then, as soon as clients began to improve and took on a part time job, their benefits were discontinued. People in recovery from a major mental illness often struggle with maintaining stable employment. When they lost their jobs, they were forced to repeat the terrible application process. It was no surprise to me that clients were scared to death of getting well. We (U.S.A.) has a terrible system that creates unnecessary disincentives for working towards recovery.
Applying for SSDI was rough because I need it for my anxiety & depression, but both of those prevented me from actually applying for months because I was so overwhelmed. The same goes for refilling meds, especially my anxiety meds 🤦♀️ Refilling them makes me anxious, so I wait a little bit too long, thus running the risk of or sometimes actually running out of them, then the anxiety getting worse without them when the simple solution is to call a few days earlier. 😬😬😬
@@shadow.banned exactly! And even people with anxiety have looked at me like I’m dumb or made it sound like “duh you should just call earlier” and I’m like I KNOW 😖
Update: 2/13 Just went through their online quiz (super easy) and the representative was very helpful and kind. I should have my meeting with an approved disability lawyer in my area in the next couple days. If anyone else wants more info as I go through this process, please let me know! This is exactly what I needed. Waiting on my first denial letter. I literally did not know where to start…thank you!
This is why I spoke with an attorney from the get go. I'm not filing because of schizophrenia, but I have a host of physical issues and mental health issues that finally made working impossible for me. I'm in the second step of the process which is the review of my initial denial. After that, we start moving through the appeals process which can take several years (especially since my agoraphobia is going to necessitate a virtual hearing). It would have been way too stressful for me to try and do everything myself.
It took me a year and a half and three denials to finally get approved. And I was told it took so long because if my age despite my EXTREMELY long list of disabling diagnosis and all my medical paperwork. Worked with a lawyer the entire time
@@Highwizardd my lawyer just said that it was normal for them to deny me so many time cause I was young. After the 3rd time he requested a hearing and I was approved a month after the hearing
I live in Australia and I applied for the disability support pension in 2013, all I had to do was fill out some straightforward forms and get a letter from my gp then hand them in and I was approved in 3 days. It shouldn't be any more difficult than that
I live in Australia too and my claim won't be approved until March and I need proof of diagnosis from my psychiatrist. I think they have changed things a lot since 2013. Apparently you need to redo the claim every 2 years as well. Australia isn't as good as it use to be
@@eggcouncil629 yeah last time I tried working I ended up in a mental ward. My mental health really deteriorated from the stress. There will be nothing for me to fall back on when my son turns 8 and we will all end up homeless. So far I haven't found any medication that's going to miraculously make me better either.
@@AprilKristel I'm sorry to hear that, I've been in hospital twice this year and switched from invega to abilify because of dystonia and other things, they offered me clozapine, have you tried that yet?
Thanks Lauren!!!! I called Atticus this afternoon. I was medically retired in 2019 and have 100% disability with the VA. Thank you for your kind advice!!
I started working for a disability attorney in October and it's annoying the fact that even if the disabilities are CLEARLY visible (not just physically but also functionally), people still get denied 🙄
I was approved on the first try in 1993, my case manager at the time helped me with my application, and I got my benefits 3 months later. The amount was low because I had only 10 years of work on my record, but kept it until last year, when I found a job, and I make more money in my current position. I may not be considered disabled by SS standards, but am nonetheless. I know a lot of people who have to get a lawyer to get their benefit(my brother for instance), but it's worth it.
I have been on Disability since I was 17 and it;s is very important to get a lawyer. I got turned down the first time and at my second attempt i was in really bad shape, so I was not even at the hearing. I was in mental hospital because I had tried killing myself. My parents and the lawyer went to the hearing and I got my disabliy. I am now 44. THe money is really not the most important thing about disability to me it the insurance. I cannont funtion at all with my meds. I would be dead in a matter of mouths with my mental health meds. Thanks for the video. This is a great youtunbe channel. You are helping more people than you know and that’s really great of you.
Thank you for this. My daughter got a denial that was bogus. We applied and got a letter to call within 10 days to schedule a medical exam. We called and left 3 messages in 3 days and then before the 10 days were even up she got a denial stating that she was denied for not replying.
i was rejected my first time so im tryinn it again 5 years later. i feel like im better at talking and wont just cry and get rejected again. i was locked in a hospital for 2 months.
I'm currently going on two years since applying. I had my first hearing in front of a judge in February of this year and was denied. I do have a lawyer and we are appealing. The thing is not only do I have mental disorders I also have several physical chronic illnesses as well. I've even been diagnosed with two more since I was denied. The process is tedious and frustrating.
It was a huge deterrant for me to know how the low approval rate for disability benefits. It would have emotionally destroyed me to be declined, so I couldn't bring myself to apply. I couldn't work even part time for 6 years because I was injured in a car accident by a young, bad driver. Luckily I had friends that took care of me and let me live with them until I was finally well enough to go back to work. My older cousin was denied for years and very dejected. That's a person who definitely cannot work. Both physical and emotional disabilities. He made a threat on social media that implied he might hurt someone and someone reported him and he ran from the police when they came to talk to him. He finally, after years, finally got approved, thank goodness.
I used to be a SSDI paralegal. In the US, there is a cap on how much an attorney can get paid. There's a flat amount plus a certain percentage of any back-owed benefits that the government owes you. SSDI is very difficult to get on your own. I would strongly encourage anyone to get an attorney to help them. You do not pay the attorney up front and they only get paid if they get you benefits. The law firm will handle getting the medical records for you. The amount of work you'd have to put in amounts to one mega-long phone call (2-4 hours) with a paralegal asking you questions as the paralegal completes the paperwork for you. Then, you'll get an update call from the paralegal every month or two. The process can take years. I have not used this Atticus thing, but I definitely do not recommend trying on your own. It's one of those things that is very easy for someone who knows what they're doing (because they've done it so many times), but is very difficult for someone who doesn't have that experience.
How do you apply if you must work to live ? I have skitzoeffective and I was denied 3 times... they told me I can work so I don't need it but I'm tired of going into phycosis from stress
I am not a reprobate. I believe in God and do good everyday. I don't spread hate like you sir. I struggle everyday I am not perfect but I don't deserve this condition or what happened to me as a child. or the stress that puts me into sickness. Most of the time it is comments like yours or the way people talk to me that make me feel horrible.
I was only approved for SSA disability only because my parents were able to help because I was under 18 years old. I was having debilitating seizures and I couldn't work at the time, but I still have disability because I was diagnosed with several mental health issues plus schizo affective disorder.
I'm from the UK. Over in the United Kingdom you get Universal Credit which can be for disabilities and PIP (Personal Independence Payment) for those living with an illness that affects day to day activities. It's interesting hearing the other side of things in the US.
Just to add variety to these comments. I was on social security for 10 years. I got the maximum for paranoid schizophrenia which at the time was $771 a month. I couldn’t afford an apartment and because of my paranoia I was against living with other people. I couldn’t afford food and not even food stamps would cover a month of groceries. I finally got fed up and got a job and owed them money even though they weren’t paying me. So my fiancée got s lawyer to fight the frivolous fines and now I’m not on social security. I went crazy being stuck inside doing nothing. Not having a job made my schizophrenia worse.
Watching your videos puts me back in that space where I was still struggling with psychosis. I've more or less overcome that, not by fighting against it but embracing it. Accepting that it took me a longer time to figure out reality, allowed me to create space for me to figure out the things I was curious about and having that space stopped me from making stupid rash decisions since I already knew I needed time to figure things out. I do miss it a bit, the sense of wonder and curiosity about things. I try to create that for myself. Love your videos Lauren, and I hope you can excuse the unrelated thoughtdump.
I have bipolar,complex PTSD, depression,general anxiety & social anxiety,I’m in Perth Australia & put my application for disability allowance 2 weeks ago,everything had to be uploaded and submitted online,it was a bit of a nightmare,also the percentages of people actually being accepted is similar to which you mention in the video,I’ve been told I will have an answer by 31 January next year,keeping my fingers crossed 🤞
Thanks for talking about this. It has been a major issue for me. I am very scared of how life might be on benefits. But l don't need it because of skizophrenia and my med resistens.
But it doesn't stop after a hearing! You are going to continuously have your disability reviewed every 3 to 7 years chosen at random depending on if Social Security thinks you will recover or not. I hope you got a good deal on attorney's fees because retention costs alone would bankrupt most claimants!
I had an attorney and was approved the first time. The maximum amount of back pay they can take by federal law is $7500 in Texas the maximum is 6000 by state law, my lawyer only charges if you are approved and I think many SS attorneys work the same way.
Schizophrenia has affected me. Somehow my medication made my schizophrenia worse. For a year I went from excruciating visually hallucinations every other day…too not hallucinating at all; after changing my medication dosage, thankfully, I don’t see stuff much anymore. Still I have some problems though. At the time I could barely work, I was really considering going on disability.
I had a SPOA case manager ( their job is to help with phone calls paperwork linking to services finding an apartment) help me with the prosses. My recommendation when you go for the interview bring as much supporting documentation from as far back as you can and when your filling out the application think about how you are on your worst days.
@@xevsetter1201 it is but they require a ton of stuff of me and I just don't have the stamina for that, or the appropriate support to offset enough of the load (although I'm still going to at least try to attend their webinar or whatever its called; its the first step). Thank you for mentioning regardless💓
i was approved the first time, since i had 4 different doctors talk to them and had years of taking meds, they even said i should have signed up sooner
I know you married, but your so pretty. No offense to your husband. I went through the ringer as far as applying for SSDI and my military pension. I was so fed up that when I got help from the county veteran rep got a well know Senator Herb Kohl involved. I was very lucky and got a call back with a verbal apology for taking so long on my military and social security benefits since so much happened to me. I won't get into whats wrong too much, but I feel so so so upset because I know I can contribute, but need to make money to save something for my son if something would happen to me.
Hi Lauren! I am wondering what your stance is on NYC mayor Adams’s new policy of forcibly hospitalizing unhoused people who are deemed too ill to care for themselves. I feel this he is essentially backpedaling to a time of institutionalization, despite the fact that this is providing housing, albeit in a distorted and over controlling way
Oh, it’s an advertisement. But thank you for letting us know that and telling us about a resource. Any chance you could tell us how you got approved on your first application? But you’re in Canada right? I’m in the US and had to abandon it bc it was going to take too long. I was already in financial trouble bc of my illness and the process was going to make it so much worse on me. I can get jobs (bc of experience before onset) but they unfortunately don’t last long anymore. Working part time while not needing to live out of my car would be really nice.
In the US it’s pretty much common knowledge that you will be denied (unless you have a disability that is very clearly always approved, blindness for example). Getting a lawyer is pretty much the only way to get approved if you have to do anything extra to “prove” you’re disabled.
I went to work and became an RN, so, SSI isn't for me, I choose to contribute rather than just suck tax dollars. I know we are eligible, but I'd rather work, I want to make a difference through health care.
@@mac1291 classic snob move, while saying " you don't have to shame others ", when you know full well that there are able-bodied people who simply refuse to remain on their meds and once gaining the SSI benefits, simply cease to try anymore. My comment isn't directed toward any truly disabled individuals.
My daughter, who is now 31, got approved on her second try when she was 17. Yes, it helped her, but she is now in the system and they don't want to let go of her. She has no control over her life or being able to see family and loved ones. Why should they let her go if there's a way to make a buck off of her disability?
SSI doesn’t control your life. It only gives you money through the state to help you live. SSI does not stop you from seeing your family. Are you talking about that your daughter is awarded to the state due to a learning disability? Or at a institution?
Sounds like she is a ward of the state, which is entirely different & separate from SSI disability benefits. The issue there is the state having control, not SSI payments. My advice would be to contact her treatment team & appointed guardian/caseworker.
lucky you. I got denied ssi ssdi medicare and medicade. actually going into inpatient right now because im trying my hardest not to kill myself. helps that i dont have a gun.
@@AnnaBulaklak369 I'm not an atheist or a non believer of Jesus, but I would ask Jesus to help you find an attorney, specifically that specializes in this.
Hi, I'm just curious how long we are supposed to wait for a response from the website? My Boyfriend applied at atticus the day this video came out and still hasn't heard anything.
This ad is misleading. First of all, that success/failure rate at the beginning is not broken down by diagnosis. People diagnosed with schizophrenia and with hospitalizations - like this channel caters to - are much more likely to be successful on first application than other disability categories. In fact, there is a study by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) from 1997-2007 that says the statistic is just the opposite of what is stated in this vide (80% approved, 20% denied for “Schizophrenia/Paranoid Functional Disorders”). Secondly, Atticus isn’t really “free”. They get to claim such because they imbed their fees in the legal teams they refer you to instead of just charging you directly. They are more like a legal market team, scanning for individuals who could win disability cases, and then skimming those benefits from successful cases to be able to continue to operate. Thirdly, the “initial payment” that the lawyers/Atticus will draw their fees from may include years of back-pay which may be considerable compared to future monthly payments (Say, $25,000 vs $700). In fact, in this model - without retainers - is it not incentivized to draw out cases to allow more back-pay to build up and thus create a greater lump sums for their 25% cut? Legally up to 6k, which could mean 6 months to a year+ of income for disabled individuals. She makes it seem like it’s no big deal to give up this 25% since you’ll have ongoing payments. But, that back-pay is awarded because the government is saying that individual needed that money to support themselves (and them alone) and probably incurred large amounts of debt before finally receiving their benefits. It may not be well-known (in part because of capitalistic ads such as these), but one can find social services in the US - like she received in Canada - that will provide assistance without needing payment. Your local chapter of National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI.org) may be able to connect you with someone close by. Sometimes Commissions on Aging have specialist that help people with disabilities of all ages. Perhaps a lawyer/Atticus is the right route for you. But, wanted to relay these counter-points to this heavy-handed, imbalanced ad. Lastly, it seems very unethical for a Canadian youtuber - who so passionately tries to resonate empathy with viewers - to be dipping into those same American viewer’s disability benefits for her own profit.
Atticus' services are entirely free. If you choose for them to connect you with one of their vetted legal teams, and you end up winning your disability application, the legal firm takes 25% of the first payment. (which feels pretty fair to me - plus if you lose, you pay nothing, so there is very little risk to you) This video is marked as a promotional video at the beginning. Sorry you feel that way. This felt like an important resource for us to let our audience know about.
If it’s such an important resource, then why not share it without profiting from it yourself, by skimming your viewer's US disability benefits? Is Atticus not getting kick-backs from their legal teams? And thus not really free?
Once you get approved are the disability payments permanent or are they income based supplemental disability that can be taken away if a spouse makes over a certain amount?
I think it’s supposed to be just the money and you can’t work, but the money isn’t going to be enough to live off (so I’m told) I’m not sure if that’s true
It’s not that easy. If you get a job right after, then you’ll risk the chance of losing your disability benefits. And if you still can keep your benefits with a job you can only work and make so much.
@@georgewashingmachine1 I think that is the point. People are so afraid of losing the free money, that they don't go out and get a real job that pays more than the tiny amount of money disability provides. It's classis. My niece was on disability and, due to fear of LOSING it, she did not work, had nothing to be proud of, was lonely, and eventually died. Same with my nephew, same with my dad's cousin. ALL were on disability, all are dead. Disability DISABLES people. Even Christopher Reeves worked after he fell off his horse and broke his spine. It's about your attitude.
@@anonymousanonymous-cy6ut Although not all disabled people agree with you I agree with you. Temple Grandin complained the same thing about those getting disability. I know full hand that Schizophrenia is most likely an automatic qualifier for disability and I have Schizophrenia. However, I don't think this will stop me from getting an associates degree and possibly becoming a scientist someday. I want to do something that I'm proud of.
@@AnnaBulaklak369 Awww... Thanks, Che! You SHOULD do something that makes you proud! Nothing will stop you if you believe in yourself! You got this!!!! :) Go big, my friend!
The only disability I notice in this video is the inability to correctly pronounce the word “process”. Not sure if that qualifies one for disability benefits. It is “proc-ess”, not “pro-cess”.