I don't know why you would need a letter from a psych doc. FM is a physical illness not mental.

It's great that you have a doctor to support you but to win your case you need to have a lot of medical records to back up your claim. Is your doc a PCP or Rhuemy? I had records from more than one PCP, a Rhuematologist and a Neurologist. I also had records from pain clinics.

I went out on Short Term Disability from work and it turned into LTD. My LTD insurance carrier told me I had to file for SSD.

Generally, I found that an attorney will not take your case until you get denied twice. The next step after that is a hearing before an administrative law judge that just hears SSD cases. That is when you will need an attorney.

It's important that when you initially file that you have all your ducks in a row and are very careful about your wording on the initial application. You can file on the internet, in person, or by mail.

If you go to the SSD office and file in person they will interview you and take note that you were able to drive to the office and even sit through the interview. Those little things will make a big difference. If you file by mail you can include supporting medical records that you find important and they will become part of your file. If you go in person or file on the internet they will not accept any records from you because they will ask your doctor directly for them. Giving them permission to obtain your records is part of the application process.

Allsup are not attorneys they are advocates. If you won your case but the judge decided to not give you back pay Allsup could still come after you for their payment. Attornies are different, in that they are bound by laws of your state and only get paid if you win and are paid directly by SSD.

My judge randomly changed my disability date to 2 yrs after I became disabled to a date that I had a medical procedure done effectively cheating me out of most of my back pay and making me wait to be eligible for Medicare.

I did a lot of studying on the subject before filing. disabilitysecrets.com was very helpful and so was the CFIDS Association for information on how to win when you have an invisible disability. I also listened carefully to others who had gone through the process and what their experience was in both winning and losing.

The reason why he suggested getting a psych doc write a letter is because I am bipolar as well. He also said that being in constant pain from FM has an effect on our mental health especially the fog aspect.

My doc is a PCP. When I went to a Rhuemy, he "doesn't deal with stuff like that" and said just said if it gets worse to go ahead and come back or better yet just call my PCP and he'll handle it. My PCP has treated others for FM in the past so I just stuck with him.

Thanks for your advice. I will check out the website you listed.

I didnt use Allsup, so I cant help you with that. When I first applied I had to sign a release for social security to obtain my records. When I was denied I got a lawyer that specializes in disability claims that doesnt get paid unless you do and I did get the disability with the lawyer. The lawyer also obtained my records after I signed a release.

I believe there are others on this site that have used Allsup- so hopefully you can get info from others.

It does take a long time the whole process - when I received it in 2007 it took 2 years and I hear it can take even longer now. Also, it wont look so good to a judge if you are not seeing a Dr consistently - so I would look into getting help with medical costs. Medicaid or other services your state or county have. Plus, you have an illness you need insurance to be able to get medical care for your fibro and whatever else life may throw at you. With no income you should be able to qualify for something.

Yeah I applied online - you can take your time with it plus I was really ill so better option for me.

All of what I say is from what I have learned from others and not personal experience


You have to get copies of your medical records
You need an income statement
You need a copy of your social security payment statement.
You can go through allsup, but I would go through a disability lawyer. They both get paid when you do, but from all that I have heard from others, a lawyer has more incentive to win for you. Their clientele comes from word of mouth, while allsup gets referrals from gvt agencies and are often overwhelmed.
The amount of payment is a percentage of what you are awarded

Captain,

I see now that with your other diagnosis that the psyce eval may be helpful for you and your case.

On getting your medical records, I'll just say that I spent a lot of money on getting my medical records as doctors charge a lot for this service, especially if your chart has not been entered into a computer. As it turns out it was a big waste of money because my attorney asked for my records as well as SSD. My attorney informed me that they cannot accept records from the individual because they could be incomplete or altered.

I didn't know this at the beginning of the process. But I also was enlightened to find out what some doctors wrote in my chart.

I don't think you need to go see other doctors. There is no reason why your PCP can't handle everything although a Rhuemy is considered still the specialist for FM by the courts so as it get's closer for you in a year or so you may try to find a good one. My Rhuemy took the time to fill out a Functional Capacity Evaluation form me the day before the hearing and since it was so recent it carried a lot of weight.

HELLO, WHEN I SIGNED UP FOR SSD I FOUND A LAWYER THAT ONLY CHARGED ME IF I GOT A RETRO CHECK-WHICH I DID. YOU CAN USUALLY FIND A SSD LAWYER IN YOUR LOCAL PHONE BOOK. THEY USUALLY CHARGE A CERTAIN PERCENT OF YOUR RETRO CHECK. SOME WILL GIVE A FREE CONSULTATION TO LET YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE A GOOD CASE AND WHAT TO DO AND SOME WILL HELP YOU FILL OUT YOUR PAPER WORK. I HOPE THINGS WORK OUR FOR YOU. HAVE A BLESSED NIGHT. HUGS, CHRIS

I used Allsup and was approved in 8 months. They take part of your first check but they have a maximum amount, very reasonable and worth every penny. There is soooo much paper work that needs to be done and they help at every step. Please call them.

Thanks for your advice and encouragement.
I don't want to go to a different doctor but since I'm not going to have any money from working, I don't think that I will be able to afford to keep seeing my current one!!
I will definitely be looking into getting a rep and asking for a quote on what their cut will be. My father said he is willing to try to help me and said he helped my uncle and grandmother fill out theirs (which I didn't know).

I had a screening interview with Allsup and they told me they wouldn't accept me if I wasn't seeing a specialist. One of the reasons their success rate is so high is that they are very selective about what clients they accept. Nothing wrong with that...it's just something to know.

Good luck. I hope you win your case.

I went through Allsup and highly recommend them, based on my own experience. You have nothing to lose by calling them and asking your questions and seeing if they will take you on. Or, as others suggested, you can probably do the same with an attorney and determine which you prefer to deal with. It is a ton of paperwork. One thing that will help you is if you keep a daily report of how you are feeling and what you cannot do each day, due to how you are feeling. Best wishes...

I would recommend a psychological evaluation to help set medical evidence of the way pain affects your well-being.
I used an attorney after two denials. Turns out that what I wrote on my original application on-line was finally proved by the medical records, the tests, the reviews, and after the disability was approved, I still had to do the psychological evaluation, the disability assessment, and it is a lot of paperwork.
Definitely worth your time to keep a daily journal.
Best wishes!!

I also used Allsup and highly recommend them. I was approved in 6 months on my first try. You can find them online. They have a 98% success rate. They legally can not take more than a lawyer which is 25% of your back pay once you are approved. I think lawyers are not the best way to go. They don't appear to be very focused on getting anyones case settled. That is just my personal opinion. I had a very good experience with Allsup.

Call your local hospital and United Way and see what they can do to help you. The hospital should have reduced fee and/or no fee clinics. United Way may be able to help you with that as well in addition to seeing psych too.

Good luck and take care.

I'm going to see if I can move up my appt with my PCP and see if he can refer me to some free clinic for a psych eval. This week has seemed like a month on laying face down in the mud. To top it all off, last time I tripped and landed on my laptop so now I have a cracked screen.

I have been on medisal leave for 5 months now and was just laid off due to not being able to work at all right now. I see 3 docs. My rheumy, my PCP doc and my pain mgmt doc. All 3 are amazing and very supportive of me filing for Social Security disability since my State disability lasts only for a year. I have retained an attorney who only get paid a percentage of whatever back pay I will receive. My Rheumy said that I should have NO PROBLEM getting approved at all. I have both RA and FM as well as depression. I am curious if anyone knows if I could receive unemployment while receiving State disability?