Back Pain Support Group

Sorry, maybe I should have put this on a different group but it has to do with my tremendous back pain, so thought here would be a good place to start, maybe someone else has been thru this. Thanks, T.

I would appeal it.
I had to twic3e to get disabity.
The first time they denied cause they said i could at least an hour a week of work.
The second time i tried for disabitly i got it.

Definately appeal. Most everyone gets denied at least once if not more. It is their way of weeding out the people that can work, and will give up and get a job. Just google social security and you will get plenty of leads to lawyere that will take your case for a percentage of the settlement amoung, and not a dime before and only if you win. I did my application alone and have a lawyer lined up for appeal with the expectation I will be denied. It is just part of the process. Hope you are still healing well. That was a very major surgery you went thru!!! Hugs to you! :) Julie

First thing! Has your Dr. given you any type of disability rating? 2nd! You need to get someone who is very well versed with filing these papers to scrutinize your application and all documentation with it. 3rd! Get a lawyer to get some advise from. There are many out there that give a free consultation to you and it would be a good idea to have an attorney on stand-by in case you need one. 4th! DON'T GIVE UP! Try, try and try again. Call your Governers office, get your elected officials involved, that's what they are there for, right? Apply for a job with them and see what they say! You are really getting the shaft! Maybe send a copy of your X-Ray with your next application. Hope you get to feeling better and that everything works out for you. Peace!

Get you a lawyer you will get it next time and it shouldnt take so long.

I would definitely appeal. I suspect your age is the reason for the denials. I am 59 and got approved in 3 months. My sister was 49 when she first applied and it took 2 appeals and 5 years to get approved. I would make sure your doctors are on your side and know how to fill out the forms. I would also include only those doctors that treat the condition for which you are applying for disability. If you give Social Security unnecessary information, it could distract the people evaluating your application, and might even give them an excuse to deny you. When you fill out the function report, make sure you DON'T say you are doing anything that you aren't "supposed to be" doing. You don't want to stress what you can do, but rather what you CANNOT do. If you have had the same caseworker both times, see if you can get a different one the next time. They seem to like an attitude that says " I would much rather be able-bodied and working". Be very careful if you hire a lawyer--they will take a big chunk of your benefits and many of them don't do very much. Most of all, don't give up!

I would appeal since you have nothing to lose from doing so, but what I have recently learned is that if you have the ability to earn $665.00 a MONTH, doing ANYTHING, you will be denied. Those are the new standards for 2009. I was told by a very experienced law firm that specializes in disability that if I could lay in my bed and hold the phone then I could work as an at home customer service rep or for an answering service and therefore, I could work. It doesn't matter that those jobs are impossible to find - I have the ability to lay and can handle the weight of a phone therefore I can work. Since the economy has plummeted and unemployment rate gone through the roof, there are millions more people applying for disability and they have really tightened the standards. Basically unless you are dying with a terminal disease, they expect you to find some type of work.

Maybe you could do something online. Fill out surveys, do data entry. That way you could get up and do what you want and rest, move around, etc. I am 3 weeks post cervical fusion surgery and am a little apprehensive about going back to work, as I sit a lot and have to hold my head down to look at papers, etc. Hope you can find something!

Maybe a good disability lawyer could help too!

yes ,no get a lawyer they pull the same thing with me ,and you read my profile i don't have the trouble you have . i got less less and i got i lawyer John Keefe .Cost you nothing. until you approved and then think my check i wrote to them in the end was less 300.00