ESA re-assessment worries
KESmith_2
Forumite 4 Posts
Hello All,
In summary:
Should I hand in a letter from my psychiatrist that makes mention of my failed attempt at trying to get back into work, stopped the second day as I wasn’t able to continue working due to a humiliating incident resulting from bowel issues. Also, the letter mentions going abroad, for a networking event to meet up with work colleagues back in March – my work coach knew of my holiday, as well as my permitted work. This letter can help my case as it makes mention of other issues, a recommendation of medication etc. however, I’m worried that the assessor will find me fit to work. Is it illegal, to hand in a photocopy, with the section redacted?
Apologies in advance for this very long post.
I’m a graduate professional, and have had steady employment until 2014, soon after that things have started to go downhill, as a result of chronic illness (IBD), depression and anxiety, both as a result of the chronic illness, and unresolved childhood trauma. I persevered working odd jobs, and freelance work until Aug 2015, when I was admitted in hospital with Septicaemia, after taking immunosuppressant treatment to induce remission and ease my physical ailments. Soon after that, I have begun suffering from extreme fatigue, and was in no position to even work freelance from home (graphic design/website development). Even when I wanted to work, my body was failing me on all accounts. My life became my bed, and the bathroom. I would sleep days on end, only getting up to the toilet. This was my worst time ever, even though I live with my parents, I felt alone and isolated.
Having extinguished my savings, and maxing out my credit cards, I was told by a friend about ESA. In Dec 2016 I applied, awarded March 2017 post WCA, and placed in WG. I claimed for depression, anxiety and bowel issues. I supplied ample evidence and letters of correspondence from the psychiatrist. My first interview left me feeling terrible and degraded. It played on all of my insecurities of being worthless and other negative feelings, resulting from the depression and anxiety.
On the form I mentioned that I had suicidal ideations (however I would never act upon them); on the day of the first WCA, a) when I arrived on the day, I was informed that there is a delay of an excess of 45 minutes b) a few minutes into the interview, the assessor in a very abrupt way asked if I’m feeling suicidal, and that if I were, she would need to call an ambulance immediately (I later found out from my Job Centre Plus advisor that this is a scare tactic/intimidation ploy to have you answer no – he was genuinely appalled ). Anyhow, other than this negative start, the remainder of the interview went as expected.
From April 2017 – Present
-I’ve had several diagnostic procedures
-after a 13 month wait, in Oct 2017 I saw a psychotherapist (referred by NHS psychiatrist who can only see me periodically)
I was offered 6 sessions with the psychotherapist which I found very traumatic, as after each meeting, for a couple of weeks or longer I felt awful. I was upset that as we begun to scratch the surface, my sessions have come to an end in June of this year. The psychotherapist then suggested I could benefit from further treatment, and advised that she will refer me to Adult Mental Health in my area.
Fast forward to August, I had another meeting with my psychiatrist, and he also agreed that further therapy would help.
I received a letter soon after from the Adult Mental Health, inviting me for an assessment appointment. I was somewhat happy that I can finally get the attention needed to work on my issues, and hopefully kickstart my road to recovery. To my upset, I found out on the day, that I will have to be placed on a waiting list, and that it could take up to a year to be seen.
I need help, and can no longer afford to keep waiting, I decided to seek out private therapy, knowing that I cannot afford it and that I will get into more debt. My two sessions so far have been rewarding.
Soon after this, I receive another letter for reassessment after having filled out an ESA 50. I was told, that it could take 3 months for an appointment, it only took 3 weeks from the day of sending the form out. On the day of the appointment, I was advised that there is a delay of 30-45 minutes. After having waited for an hour and 10 minutes, the receptionist came back and advised that I can’t be seen, as the assessor is still busy. I insisted to be seen, however, she explained that it’s no longer possible, as the building closes at 5, and it was already 4.10 pm (I wasn’t convinced) but felt defeated. They rescheduled for 3 weeks after. I’m now so worried, and paranoid.
I feel having started on the path of therapy, I will hopefully get myself at a minimum to a functional state. I feel that going back for the assessment, will result in me regressing, and in turn, will impact my recovery. I’m so worried, that I have not left my room for 2 weeks, other than for the toilet. I feel terrible.
Thank you for reading.
In summary:
Should I hand in a letter from my psychiatrist that makes mention of my failed attempt at trying to get back into work, stopped the second day as I wasn’t able to continue working due to a humiliating incident resulting from bowel issues. Also, the letter mentions going abroad, for a networking event to meet up with work colleagues back in March – my work coach knew of my holiday, as well as my permitted work. This letter can help my case as it makes mention of other issues, a recommendation of medication etc. however, I’m worried that the assessor will find me fit to work. Is it illegal, to hand in a photocopy, with the section redacted?
Apologies in advance for this very long post.
I’m a graduate professional, and have had steady employment until 2014, soon after that things have started to go downhill, as a result of chronic illness (IBD), depression and anxiety, both as a result of the chronic illness, and unresolved childhood trauma. I persevered working odd jobs, and freelance work until Aug 2015, when I was admitted in hospital with Septicaemia, after taking immunosuppressant treatment to induce remission and ease my physical ailments. Soon after that, I have begun suffering from extreme fatigue, and was in no position to even work freelance from home (graphic design/website development). Even when I wanted to work, my body was failing me on all accounts. My life became my bed, and the bathroom. I would sleep days on end, only getting up to the toilet. This was my worst time ever, even though I live with my parents, I felt alone and isolated.
Having extinguished my savings, and maxing out my credit cards, I was told by a friend about ESA. In Dec 2016 I applied, awarded March 2017 post WCA, and placed in WG. I claimed for depression, anxiety and bowel issues. I supplied ample evidence and letters of correspondence from the psychiatrist. My first interview left me feeling terrible and degraded. It played on all of my insecurities of being worthless and other negative feelings, resulting from the depression and anxiety.
On the form I mentioned that I had suicidal ideations (however I would never act upon them); on the day of the first WCA, a) when I arrived on the day, I was informed that there is a delay of an excess of 45 minutes b) a few minutes into the interview, the assessor in a very abrupt way asked if I’m feeling suicidal, and that if I were, she would need to call an ambulance immediately (I later found out from my Job Centre Plus advisor that this is a scare tactic/intimidation ploy to have you answer no – he was genuinely appalled ). Anyhow, other than this negative start, the remainder of the interview went as expected.
From April 2017 – Present
-I’ve had several diagnostic procedures
-after a 13 month wait, in Oct 2017 I saw a psychotherapist (referred by NHS psychiatrist who can only see me periodically)
I was offered 6 sessions with the psychotherapist which I found very traumatic, as after each meeting, for a couple of weeks or longer I felt awful. I was upset that as we begun to scratch the surface, my sessions have come to an end in June of this year. The psychotherapist then suggested I could benefit from further treatment, and advised that she will refer me to Adult Mental Health in my area.
Fast forward to August, I had another meeting with my psychiatrist, and he also agreed that further therapy would help.
I received a letter soon after from the Adult Mental Health, inviting me for an assessment appointment. I was somewhat happy that I can finally get the attention needed to work on my issues, and hopefully kickstart my road to recovery. To my upset, I found out on the day, that I will have to be placed on a waiting list, and that it could take up to a year to be seen.
I need help, and can no longer afford to keep waiting, I decided to seek out private therapy, knowing that I cannot afford it and that I will get into more debt. My two sessions so far have been rewarding.
Soon after this, I receive another letter for reassessment after having filled out an ESA 50. I was told, that it could take 3 months for an appointment, it only took 3 weeks from the day of sending the form out. On the day of the appointment, I was advised that there is a delay of 30-45 minutes. After having waited for an hour and 10 minutes, the receptionist came back and advised that I can’t be seen, as the assessor is still busy. I insisted to be seen, however, she explained that it’s no longer possible, as the building closes at 5, and it was already 4.10 pm (I wasn’t convinced) but felt defeated. They rescheduled for 3 weeks after. I’m now so worried, and paranoid.
I feel having started on the path of therapy, I will hopefully get myself at a minimum to a functional state. I feel that going back for the assessment, will result in me regressing, and in turn, will impact my recovery. I’m so worried, that I have not left my room for 2 weeks, other than for the toilet. I feel terrible.
Thank you for reading.
0
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Replies
Did you send in other evidence? They very rarely contact anyone for this, the onus is on you to make sure you send it to support your claim. If you didn't send it with the form then you can try to hand it in on the day of the assessment but don't be surprised if they refuse to accept it off you on the day. It's happened to me and a lot of other people to.
Answer those questions with as much detail as possible and avoid the yes and no answer if you can. They will want to know about any work that you've done. Whether it goes against you will depend on the work you did and the reasons for your claim.
You can ring DWP about 1 week after the assessment to ask for a copy of the assessment report to be sent to you. This will give you some idea what the decision is likely to be as they mostly go with the report. Good luck.
- I will ask for the report from of my first assessment thank you for the suggestion
-PIP, I didn't think I can claim?
https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/personal-independence-payment-pip/pip-self-test
I wish I had been around when you were at work, all our family can have embarrassing accidents so carry wipes, plastic bags and changes of clothes. I've had to nip out and purchase clothes when out and about (charity shops are great when finances are a problem). You just needed a little practical help. Every single person in the world has had accidents (ie a stomach bug) so although not the same situation as you have, I think you'd find people would be a bit more understanding than perhaps you are worrying about. IBS for example is quite common. I knew someone who could spend her entire working day in the toilet until her condition stabilised (not much was known about IBS then otherwise it would have been stabilised sooner).
Remember, although its stressful having to do so, you have a process you can go through to appeal (MR, then Tribunal) any decision which isn't as it should be. It worked for me. Getting a 'bad' decision isn't the end of it.
Applying for PIP is a good idea. Its the same assessment process although the questions are focused differently.
(Text removed by MSE Forum Team)
I finally had my assessment last week after having it had rescheduled for a second time, on both occasions I attended only to be rescheduled . On the third visit (I was seen after an hour and a half wait) I saw a doctor, she was very pleasant, however, she rushed the assessment, her sole focus was on the bowel issues.
I had to push her to ask about my mental health, even then she brushed it off. No medical was done, none of the questions that were asked in my first assessment were even broached. This has left me unsettled, when I asked her why has she not asked in detail about my mental health issues, she said that the DWP sets the questions to which she asked about (I find that to be nonsense). She then went on to say, that a short interview usually means a favourable outcome to the claimant. This really worries me, it’s a wait and see situation. I now regret not asking for it to be recorded.
If you had put on the form enough of information about your mental health they there may have been no further questions to ask. The reason for the forms in the first place is so you can put down as much information as possible about how your conditions affect you. This way if an assessment is needed it will only be to confirm some things that you haven't put on your form.
An ESA assessment is not a medical, it's an assessment to determine your ability to do any type of work. ESA is about the work you can do and not the work you can't do.
Give it about a week and then ring DWP to ask for a copy of the assessment report to be sent to you, this will give you some idea what the decision is likely to be as they mostly go with the report. Good luck.