Sister has BPD and Complex PTSD - what, if any, benefits can she get?

camellia_c

My sister is incapicitated due to Borderline Personality Disorder, Complex PTSD and also psychotic episodes. She might be able to function normally for up to 24 hours but then without warning she will have problems with uncontrolled behaviour, memory lapses, sheer terror (we've found her huddled in a corner sobbing or screaming like a child) etc. She is being given medication and is on the waiting list for therapy. She sees a psychiatrist every 3 weeks and when things get really bad, the local Home Treatment Team CPNs visit her daily. Because she is in such a state she has begun seeing a psychiatrist privately while she waits for the NHS to move her up the waiting list. At present I am giving her the money for the therapist because she has no money but I cannot continue to help her out for much longer as I can't afford it. The therapist is brilliant and my sister is able to call her or email her or her text her when thinks get out of control and the therapist is usually able to calm her down quite a bit over the phone.

My sister is on ESA and has just passed the 13 week assessment period. She is getting £64.30 a week. She has not had any medical examination yet. She applied for DLA but has just been turned down and the letter said the reason for the refusal is because she is only unable to care for herself SOME of the time, and some of the time she is functional. Can she appeal? What sort of information goes in the appeal? Can her therapist, who knows her symptoms so well, write a letter/report? What sort of info needs to go into it?

My sister also can't use public transport because of the panic attacks, paranoia etc. She does not own a car and she can no longer afford mini-cabs so she basically doesn't leave the house. Would this come under the "mobility" component of the DLA? Could she pay the therapist under the care component of the DLA?

Thanks for reading this!

Any tips on how the appeal letter should be worded would be greatly appreciated. I've also read that there is a Disability Enhancement that can be paid alongside ESA??

jazabelle

Yes she can appeal DLA. When I appealed I went to my local CAB for help.

I don't think that would be the mobility section, no. From my experience I'm physically disabled and can only walk a few metres without severe pain, and they said I didn't fall under that category, so not sure who does!! I think the care part is the way you want to go.

jennilb

Hi

I get lower rate mobility because of my BPD, depression & generalised anxiety disorder. The reason I get it is because I am not safe to go out on my own - when I get distressed I don't take care when crossing the road and I will walk for hours (7 hours is the record) in the middle of the night if I am upset.

So I second Jazabelle - get the CAB to give her a hand to appeal, and appeal both. When I applied I'd hoped for lower rate care and nothing for mobility *so £18.55 a week) and I ended up with middle rate care and lower rate mobility (nearly £65 a week) which has really made a difference to my quality of life.

I hope this helps
Jenni

sunnyone

camellia_c wrote: »

My sister is incapicitated due to Borderline Personality Disorder, Complex PTSD and also psychotic episodes. She might be able to function normally for up to 24 hours but then without warning she will have problems with uncontrolled behaviour, memory lapses, sheer terror (we've found her huddled in a corner sobbing or screaming like a child) etc. She is being given medication and is on the waiting list for therapy. She sees a psychiatrist every 3 weeks and when things get really bad, the local Home Treatment Team CPNs visit her daily. Because she is in such a state she has begun seeing a psychiatrist privately while she waits for the NHS to move her up the waiting list. At present I am giving her the money for the therapist because she has no money but I cannot continue to help her out for much longer as I can't afford it. The therapist is brilliant and my sister is able to call her or email her or her text her when thinks get out of control and the therapist is usually able to calm her down quite a bit over the phone.

My sister is on ESA and has just passed the 13 week assessment period. She is getting £64.30 a week. She has not had any medical examination yet. She applied for DLA but has just been turned down and the letter said the reason for the refusal is because she is only unable to care for herself SOME of the time, and some of the time she is functional. Can she appeal? What sort of information goes in the appeal? Can her therapist, who knows her symptoms so well, write a letter/report? What sort of info needs to go into it?

My sister also can't use public transport because of the panic attacks, paranoia etc. She does not own a car and she can no longer afford mini-cabs so she basically doesn't leave the house. Would this come under the "mobility" component of the DLA? Could she pay the therapist under the care component of the DLA?

Thanks for reading this!

Any tips on how the appeal letter should be worded would be greatly appreciated. I've also read that there is a Disability Enhancement that can be paid alongside ESA??

She hasnt a hope in hell of getting HRMC, but try if you think she can.

sunnyone

camellia_c

jennilb wrote: »

Hi

I get lower rate mobility because of my BPD, depression & generalised anxiety disorder. The reason I get it is because I am not safe to go out on my own - when I get distressed I don't take care when crossing the road and I will walk for hours (7 hours is the record) in the middle of the night if I am upset.

So I second Jazabelle - get the CAB to give her a hand to appeal, and appeal both. When I applied I'd hoped for lower rate care and nothing for mobility *so £18.55 a week) and I ended up with middle rate care and lower rate mobility (nearly £65 a week) which has really made a difference to my quality of life.

I hope this helps
Jenni

Good for you and thanks for your reply. Did you have to supply loads of doctors reports and psychiatrist reports? Were the CAB really helpful?

jazabelle

Yes, you need to supply as much medical evidence as you can get your hands on. Write or ask as many people that your sister sees as you can. The higher up they are, the better. For example a consultants letter looks better than a GPs.

The CAB gave me the wording for the appeal, and then wrote to all my doctors and other people that had dealings with my care. To be honest, the lady I saw wasn't that helpful - but other people have found their local CAB very helpful.

Do you have a local DIAL? A lot of people say they are very helpful, but I don't have one near me so have no personal dealings.

As for the appeal, first you apply for a tribunal hearing. They then automatically look over the claim once again, and give you a second decision. If they turn the claim down again, you will then go on the list for an oral hearing. You then go in front of a panel, made up of a GP, a disability specialist and the person that runs the panel. They then ask loads of questions. Your sister can have a representative, or go to this herself. They will then make a final decision.

If again, they turn her down - you can just start the process again, particularly if she's got worse during this time.

LimeLight

Do you have a local MIND office?

They're brilliant at all that.

jennilb

Hi Camellia_c

Jazabelle clearly knows more about the help the CAB can give when you need to appeal, I got my DLA first time and filled the forms in by myself. But to be fair, before I got sick I was a housing officer and I used to help people fill these forms in so I just waited until I was 'sane' enough and then filled them in online.

I agree with what Jazabelle says though, the DWP wrote to my psychiatrist and clearly he must have written a letter that confirmed how sick I was. As a result I wasn't required to have a medical or anything else. So I would stress the importance of talking to the most senior doctor your sister sees and asking them if they will support the application.

I hope this helps
Jenni

purplecatlover

i would suggest tying a local dialuk before cab if there is one in your area, i have had much more accurate info form them than from my local cab. but try cab, or a welfare rights worker (council) rather than complete the forms/go through appeal alone. alternatively join benefits and work (18ish quid for a years membership) and download their guide to claiming dla on mental health grounds...its invaluable.

it is possible to get dla on mental health grounds, but only low rate mobility. it is impossible to get high rate mobility on purely mental health needs. the anxiety and ebing unable to go anywhere unfamiliar (they dont ask about familiar places) alone would help towards entitling her to low rate mobility, and needing supervision to prevent self harm, needing reminded or nagged to do things like get up and washed etc (even if its only when she is depressed and not all the time) would help towards care needs entitlement.

it is helpful to ahve support fomr doctors/cpns etc, ask her therapist for a supporting letter too, but it is possible to get dla without support from doctors. u

is there a pd network in your area? they set up pilot projects a few years ago, though unfortunately i ahve heard that some ahve since been closed down due to lack of funding. i know some are still up and running, so worth asking for a referal if there is one in your area.

waiting list for therapy on the nhs is long, in my area i waited 3 years after assessment for therapy to commence. so id suggest if the private therapist si helping and you can in any way afford tokeep it going do so.

other beenfits, again dial uk or cab or welfare rights officer are best placed to advise specific to your sisters situation.

and yes she could use the money form dla however she wants, the requirement is that you would benefit form care/supervision, not that you actually get it.