Benefits Help Please!!

Marisco

Found this, it seems to be related to panic attacks.

http://www.normalbreathing.com/refer-mackin.php#.UEhubJGhDFY

BigAunty

PippaGirl wrote: »

MUMZ, none of your conditions will entitle you to employment support allowance. ...

You gave good advice on how to complete the forms for ESA - a claimant can't simply list their conditions and automatically get an award.

Also, forum members are very aware that many long-term IB claimants will truly believe that they can't ever work so don't adapt very well to the focus on capability when they've had years of being told they are INcapable under the previous system.

And the majority of claims for ESA do not succeed.

But I really don't think posters here can advice what conditions will be automatically rejected as part of the assessment (though it's true that a diagnosis itself is not always the main criteria for receiving ESA if that's what you meant).

PippaGirl_2

Yes the diagnosis itself is not the criteria, as I said I know people working with all of the conditions the OP posted so I know that the conditions itself will not disqualify her, it is how the conditions affect her that might. The only conditions with automatic entitlement is a terminal illness with an expected life expectancy of 6 months. Other symptoms can provide automatic entitlement but not the conditions iyswim.

Mara69

I was born with a heart condition and I work full time. Sounds like you need to start planning for the future OP - I think things are gonna get tough.

ETA: I suspect your £14k debt isn't helping your situation - is that separate as well or does your 'partner' share that as well?

OldMotherTucker

My son has a serious thyroid issue - diagnosed at age 14.

Happily he has been able to work full-time since leaving school - and pursue his hobbies and interests.

Its called 'illness management' as opposed to 'benefit dependency'

Muttleythefrog

Yes... just to clarify... ESA is awarded based on whether you meet descriptors (statements of disability) sufficient to meet the benchmarks set out. Except in exceptional circumstances the benefit isn't awarded for diagnosis. But the conditions reported by the Op definitely could lead to descriptors being triggered sufficient to qualify for ESA. Whether they do or not is well beyond the scope here.

Whether you can work or not is irrelevant to determining entitlement... that's not what is tested except perhaps in assessment phase where a doctors sicknote is required to qualify.

To the Op... letters from hospitals could be helpful if they generally support the claimed problems... ideally though evidence would be corroborative (and recently so) of descriptors. If you lookat the descriptors for Support group, WRAG and also the non functional (exceptional circumstances) ones then you can determine if in theory you should get ESA and at what level.

MUMZ2BEE

Thanks Lisa, I put that in by mistake!! I just read my medical notes and dysponea is shortness of breath and not biploar!! Sorry for that error!! My fault!!