Applying For Disability Benefits With A Mental Illness
Mental and psychological disabilities are among the conditions that can qualify for benefits from the Social Security Administration . You may qualify with severe depression, bipolar disorder, an anxiety disorder, or another mental illness that prevents you from maintaining gainful employment.
Social Security disability benefits can cover everyday living expenses, medical bills, and other financial obligations. Benefits are paid monthly and can alleviate many of your financial worries, making it possible for you to get by without income from employment.
Disability Tax Credit For Depression
The disability tax credit is a type of benefit that lowers your taxable income. To qualify, you must have a severe and prolonged impairment as defined by the program. But, this program has a higher standard than others.
Qualifying for this credit can get some of your previous taxes refunded. It depends on the timeline of your condition. You apply by filling out a T2201 form and sending it to Revenue Canada.
If Revenue Canada denies your claim, you can request an internal appeal. If that appeal fails, then you must go to the Tax Court of Canada to appeal again.
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How To Get Social Security Disability For Depression
April 8, 2014 By Renee Borage
Ever felt a little down in the dumps? Imagine if you felt that way all of the time: your passion gone, your desires muted, your zest for life whittled away to nothing. People suffering from clinical depression arent just having a lot of bad days their condition is greater than that and is often combined with fatigue, despondency, hopelessness, difficulty concentrating, and a lack of interest in life. In severe cases, people suffering from this crippling condition may be unable to work. However, due to the nature of the condition and the fact that it is not as clear-cut as some physical disorders, many people suffering from depression mistakenly believe that they will not qualify for disability benefits. That isnt true. So if you are disabled and unable to work due to depression, read on to learn how to get Social Security disability for depression.
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Medical Opinions About Your Depression Or Bipolar Disorder
You will need a statement from your treating doctor or a psychologist regarding the severity of your depression. For example, your doctor might give an opinion that you would miss several days of work each month due to your depression. Make sure the doctor provides an explanation for this opinion.
Continue to see your doctor or therapist during the waiting process for benefits so that you can amass a long treatment history in your medical records. The SSA cannot easily deny the opinion of a therapist who has consistently found you to have a severe mental disorder and who has clinical signs supporting this opinion. If you cannot afford to see a doctor or therapist on a regular basis, the SSA may send you to a consultative examination with a psychologist. For more information, see Nolos article on getting a doctors report for disability.
Is Depression Classified As A Disability
Yes, depression is a disability if it significantly limits your ability to function in everyday life and treatment isn’t working. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, Major Depressive Disorder is a leading cause of disability in the United States for people aged 15 to 44.
As defined by the Social Security Administration , disability means the inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity because of a physical or mental problem.
In order to qualify, you must not be able to work at all in the next 12 months and have a disability that’s expected to last for more than one year. However, it can sometimes take several months of trying before you’re approved for disability benefits, but you will receive retroactive payments based on your application date.
The SSA has strict requirements for receiving supplemental security income and disability benefits. Although having treatment-resistant depression is a disability, you won’t automatically qualify for benefits. Your depression must substantially limit one or more significant life activities.
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How Can I Prove That I Qualify For Disability
If you apply for disability benefits under Anxiety-Related Disorders, you can prove your case through medical records, letters and reports from your doctor, and your own testimony.
Typically, there are two approaches to proving you qualify for disability:1. Using Social Securitys list of medical conditions and the criteria that prove them .2. Showing that you experience a severe impairment or a combination of impairments that prevent you from working a full-time job.
Medical Qualifying With A Mental Illness
The SSA conducts a detailed review of your medical records to determine your eligibility for benefits. During this review, they try to match your records to a disability listing in the Blue Book. The Blue Book is the SSAs medical guide that is used to evaluate every disability application.
Disability listings outline the severity level requirements and the specific medical evidence needed to support a claim for benefits. Mental illnesses appear in Section 12.00 and include:
- 12.06, Anxiety-related Disorders you may qualify under this listing if you have a severe phobia, post-traumatic stress, a panic disorder, or another anxiety-related condition.
- 12.08, Personality Disorders this is the listing under which you may qualify if you have severe, clinical depression.
- 12.04, Affective Disorders if you have bipolar disorder, your application will be reviewed under this listing.
Extensive medical records are necessary to qualify, including:
- Information on your diagnosis, ideally from a psychiatrist or psychologist
- Brain scans or other evidence of physical abnormalities that document an organic cause for symptoms, if applicable
- Treatment records, documenting medications, therapy, and other management methods used and their effects
- Thoroughly documented episodes of increased symptoms or periods of decompensation
- Well documented affects of your symptoms on your everyday abilities or activities of daily living
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What To Know Before Filing Your Disability For Depression Claim
Every person who applies for Social Security disability benefits must meet certain basic eligibility rules. This is true regardless of whether you have cancer, depression or several different health problems. So, before you apply for disability benefits, answer these questions first:
Its normal for people to feel down or blue from time to time, especially during stressful periods or events. However, real depression is much more than temporary sadness and most people need help to manage its symptoms. If depression interferes with your ability to complete basic daily living tasks, then you likely qualify for SSD benefits. Next, lets look at what criteria the Social Security Administration uses to evaluate disability for depression claims.
Warning: Ltd Policies And Mental Illness Limitations
One thing to keep in mind when filing for long term disability is whether your long term disability insurance policy includes a Mental Illness Limitation.
Policies that contain a Mental Illness Limitation typically limit your benefits to two years if you are disabled due to a psychiatric condition such as depression or anxiety. Of course, each policy is different, so the prescribed maximum period may be shorter or longer depending on the terms of your particular policy.
Some policies with Mental Illness Limitations contain exemptions for certain mental conditions occasionally, bipolar disorder is exempt, though most other depressive disorders are not.
If you are solely disabled due to depression and your policy contains a Mental Illness Limitation that does not exempt it, your benefits will most likely stop when the maximum allowable period expires. Unfortunately, the severity of your mental illness will become irrelevant after the maximum allowable period expires.
However, if you can demonstrate that you are disabled due to objective cognitive problems, your benefits may extend beyond limitation period. A neuropsychological evaluation, as discussed earlier, can provide this evidence.
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What Does How To Get Disability Benefits For Depression Do
Most of these reactions in severe bipolar depression have actually been small, as well as possible long-lasting safety effects call for further study. Of note, valuable effects in bipolar depression are not a class-effect of all SGAs . In reliable dosages, antipsychotics run the risk of adverse effects that consist of excessive sedation as well as stressful uneasyness . Moreover, dangers of weight-gain, type-2 diabetic issues, as well as various other functions how to get disability benefits for depression of metabolic syndrome are run into with some SGAs, in some cases quickly . These medically vital unfavorable effects have a tendency to limit the potential worth of SGAs for prophylactic treatment versus recurrences of bipolar depression . A person may have bipolar affective disorder also if their signs and symptoms are much less extreme. As an example, some individuals with bipolar affective disorder experience hypomania, a less extreme form of mania.
How To Prove A Depression Disability Claim
Because depression is largely an invisible illness, doctors cant verify the seriousness of your symptoms. You will have trouble getting approved for benefits.
No one but you can say how serious your condition is. Disability benefits providers may view your claims with skepticism. After all, you could exaggerate or lie to appear more disabled than you are.
Many people with depression can manage their symptoms medications and continue working. So, you need to focus on proving that your case is different. Lets go over how to do that.
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What Is A Severe Impairment
Social security defines a severe impairment as one that significantly limits your ability to do any of the following: walk, sit, stand, push, pull, lift, and carry hear, speak, and see understand and follow simple directions, and interact with co-workers and supervisors, and adjust to changes in the workplace.
In contrast, a non-severe impairment impacts your ability to work only minimally.
How Do You Prove You Cannot Work Due To Depression
Anyone who has suffered clinical depression understands that it can ruin your career and relationships alike. However, you should never assume the insurance company will understand how your individual symptoms impact you and your job. To increase your chances of claim approval, you must explain why each of your symptoms prevents you from performing your job duties.
For example, during a depressive episode, you be unable to get out of bed due to your severely depressed mood and fatigue forcing you to call in sick. You may be preoccupied with your debilitating symptoms and unable to focus, concentrate, or pay attention during an important meeting or telephone call with your biggest client. Or your lack of interests, low energy and feelings of hopelessness may make routine tasks seem overly stressful or cause you to procrastinate and miss a strict deadline.
There are many ways depression symptoms can impair your ability to work. These need to be explicitly outlined in your evidence when submitting your claim.
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Meeting A Disability Listing For Depression Or Bipolar Disorder
The Social Security Administration will automatically grant disability benefits for depression or bipolar disorder if you can show you have the symptoms and limitations listed in its official disability listing for depression or bipolar disorder. The SSA will consider treatment notes from your doctor or psychologist, mental status evaluations, psychological testing, and any reports of hospitalizations.
Symptoms. To qualify for either disability benefits on the basis of depression, you must show you have at least five of the following symptoms:
- depressed mood
- distractibility
- involvement in risky activities with painful consequences that are not recognized, and/or
- increase in physical agitation or in in goal-directed activity .
Limitations. For either disorder, you must show that you also have a loss of abilities, either an extreme limitation in one of the following areas or a “marked” limitation in two or more of the following areas:
- adapting to change or managing oneself
- concentrating on and finishing tasks
- interacting with others using use socially appropriate behaviors, and/or
- understanding, remembering, or using information .
The Role Of Nurse Professionals And Primary Care Providers
They were intrigued, and also responded by developing a lightbox to deal with Kerns depression. Kern really felt far better within a few days of treatments, as did various other clients treated similarly. Greater melatonin degrees cause a person to really feel sleepy and can i get a ssi check for depression much less energetic. The brain makes extra serotonin when a person is exposed to sunshine. Higher levels of serotonin increase feelings of happiness as well as wellness. Seasonal depression is caused by the brains response to shorter daytime hours.
Bipolar illness is a severe brain disorder in which an individual experiences severe variations in reasoning, mood, and also habits. Bipolar affective disorder is additionally sometimes called manic-depressive health problem or manic depression. People that have bipolar disorder typically go through periods of depression or mania. The therapy of bipolar affective can i get a ssi check for depression disorder is directly pertaining to the stage of the episode and the extent of that phase, and also it may include a combination of psychiatric therapy and medicine. Always assess clients with mania, hypomania, or blended episode, and those with bipolar depression, for suicidality, homicidality, acute or persistent psychosis, or other unpredictable or hazardous conditions.
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Can I Get Social Security If I Have Depression
Depression is a type of mental health disorder that can impact your mood, thoughts and feelings, weight, sleeping habits, energy level, and ability to function. If you have depression that interferes with your ability to work, then you may be eligible for Social Security disability.
In order to qualify for Social Security for depression, you must experience at least five of the following:
-
Depressed mood
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Suicidal thoughts
You also must meet at least one of the following two conditions:
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You experience problems comprehending information, interacting with other people, maintaining attention, or caring for yourself. You must experience limitations in at least two of these areas.
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Your depression is considered serious and persistent and you have documentation showing that you have been suffering from the condition and receiving treatment for at least 2 years. You also have a hard time adapting to changes and new demands to your routine.
Determining Your Residual Functional Capacity
If the SSA finds that your anxiety disorder is not severe enough to meet listing 12.06, the agency will review the evidence in your file to analyze exactly what limitations you have on your ability to work. The SSA will then give you a mental residual functional capacity statement explaining what types of work tasks you can perform and how often. If you have been diagnosed with a panic disorder, for example, you will likely have some problems with concentration. You might have the following RFC: an inability to do complex tasks but you can perform short and simple tasks that can be learned in 30 days or less, no contact with the general public, and only superficial contact with coworkers and supervisors.
To be granted disability benefits, your mental RFC generally must limit you from working any of the jobs youve in the past fifteen years and from performing any simple unskilled job in the United States.
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Mental Residual Functional Capacity
As stated above, qualifying for disability benefits with depression alone is very difficult and quite unlikely. However if you believe your depression is severe enough to still qualify, your best chances for approval is to have your doctor fill out a mental residual functional capacity form. This form describes what tasks you are capable of in a work environment such as your ability to:
- Communicate properly
- Focus and retain attention
- perform tasks in a timely manner
The mental RFC is important because it tells the SSA why your condition prevents you from performing unskilled work from a doctor’s perspective. If your doctor finds you are capable of unskilled work while filling out a mental RFC, your condition of depression will most likely not qualify for disability benefits by itself.
When Does Depression Qualify As A Disability
People who suffer from depression will often become overwhelmed, feel blue or in a lousy mood for hours. Depression makes it impossible to enjoy activities you once did and could cripple your productivity. Feelings of reduced self-worth and hopelessness plague depressed individuals. It also has physical symptoms, such as regular headaches and insomnia.
Symptoms of depression also often build upon one another. Chronic low energy will elicit feelings of worthlessness. Clinical depression often renders individuals functionless, making it impossible to perform routine tasks or make rational decisions. When depression reaches a debilitating state, it could qualify as a disability for Social Security benefits. Three specific forms of depression are recognized as debilitating conditions.
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How Do I File A Disability Application Due To Anxiety Or Depression
The easiest way for most people to file for social security disability benefits is to complete an application online. The second easiest way is to call Social Security and complete an application by telephone.
When you apply, you should be ready to provide with the following information: Your basic information Your work and education history Your medical diagnoses that prevent you from working A list of your doctors and your medications The date you believe you could no longer work due to your impairments