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Rheumatoid Arthritis
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Posted 11/30/2005 12:39 PM (GMT 0)
Goodmorning,

NO sleep last night.  Stress and sadness on top of severe pain made it for a horrid past 8 hours.

Am I being denied disability because I am young?  There are plenty of people who are not blind that are approved!  My tenant has been on disability and she goes from 5am till midnight!  Nonstop!  Laundry, babysits, exercises, cooks, shops all day, goes to parties, sews, does chores and goes up and down stairs all day!  Huh???  I don't understand.

How bad does an arthritic have to be?  Unable to move COMPLETELY?

I had to leave every job I had due to inability to stand, write, hold things, pain, can't sit or hold self up for too long.  Many times not even being able to get myself ready to work (couldn't stand in shower, hold wash cloths, too much pain/fatigue, diarrhea, can't walk...)  Never workes full time cuz I couldn't.  Never could do more than at best 6 hours a few years ago.  Had to leave school several times.

And I'm worse now than I was last year and the year before when I had applied.  And denied again?

Do I have the same story as someone else out there??  Please say I do...I need some hope because I am beginning to lose it.

I really wish the Enbrel and Humira had worked successfully for me...this would all not be happenning. 

Thank you

Erin

Posted 11/30/2005 2:17 PM (GMT 0)
Erin I just applied in early november and know I will get denied the first and probably the sec time. Do you have an attorney? I have ddd c spine with 3 bulging disc and fibromyalgia and now dxd with psoriatic arthritis i am also b12 defecient and have to have injections for that monthly I am on pain med muscle relaxers and arthritis med. I asked my doc if I could ever work again I havent since may and she says oh yeah no problem who will hire me? I have pain in my neck constantly my hands feet and elbos my  hip and ankles and a knee. I dont understand the system. I am 37 and called a lawyer who said i should qualify but that they will deny me automatically because of my age and then I will need to appeal. They said they would req a hearing before a judge and that is when most win. I cant imagine 1-2 years of no income. My hubby works but we where so used to 2 incomes. I made good money and worked since I was 15 i would only get 1/3 of what i would make if i was working so how do they think people are taking advantage of the system I would much rather work than live this way. Good luck to you and hang in there. Let me know what all you have been threw with this so far so I know what to expect.

TOnya

Posted 11/30/2005 2:25 PM (GMT 0)
Erin - don't give up. Get an attorney and fight. Some people cheat the system and that makes me angry, 'cause all it does is screw it up for the ones that really need it. There are lots of attorney's out there that will take your case and you will win. There is no reason why they should deny you... What were their grounds? Stay strong, you can do it, and I'll be here to help you as much as I can - Duck
Posted 11/30/2005 2:37 PM (GMT 0)

Tonya,

Thank you, you're great.  I needed to hear from someone.  I agree, I would rather be using my skills and working.  I've ALWAYS supported myself from the age of 11!  And was always employed from then on in too.  Made great money in highschool and college, sometimes worked 3 jobs at once!  Put myself through school, paid my own bills, took care of my mom.  Put a down payment on a house at age 20! 

Always was independent and never depended on anyone, not even my parents (mom didn't work & father was a real jerk/drunk/womanizer/abuser).

Why don't these people in SSI look at that?  I don't understand.  I did work even when sick!  Passed out on the job, sent home a lot, sent to ER a lot..but still worked!

I wish you well with this process.  In it together as I'm sure many here are going through the same as well.

I'm 24...here's my history:

Severe, active RA (since age 18, at it's worst the past 2 years)  and Ankylosing spondylitis.   Crohns Disease and colitis with active symptoms. (2005).  Chiari Malformation of the brain w/ R side veinous anomoly (Dx 2001).  Neuro Lyme disease (from 13 to 22 y/o).  Tetany.   Seizure disorder.  Emphysema.  Rheumatic heart.  Chronic pleuritis.  Mitral and Tricuspid valve prolapse.  7 bulging discs (Dx 2001 MRI).  And the joint pain is unbelievable.

Thanks for listening.

Take care,

Erin

Posted 11/30/2005 2:47 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks Ducky,

Their grounds were:

 

You do have pain.  However, it does not limit your ability to move about and use your limbs.

You have difficulty using your hands for delicate tasks.  However, you are still able to use them for handling objects.

There is no evidence which significantly limits your ability to work.

We considered your information, your age, education, training and work experience in determining how your condition affects your ability to work.

 

There ya have it.  Did they not look at my medical records???????????????

I have to appeal.  I'm calling today for help.

To tell you how bad this is, when I went to apply in person for disability...just getting there, sitting there, talking and applying, getting home; LANDED ME IN THE HOSPITAL the next day!  From joint pain and exhaustion.  There's no way I'm doing this again alone.

I totally disagree with their reasoning 

Posted 11/30/2005 3:55 PM (GMT 0)
Oh Erin, get a lawyer.. please please please get a lawyer
Posted 11/30/2005 11:55 PM (GMT 0)
eyes  Am hanging in there.  Today was rough.  Major joint pain, plus the stress & being upset has my guts in a knot.  I realize that major stress can throw an autoimmune disease into a flare...so I'm trying to pace myself in handling this.

I just read what to do next in regards to appealing, I made NO calls (needed time to get together).  Rested the whole day and tended to my knees.

So tomorrow I have to call for an appeal application and write to them.  Then you fill out this appeals form and the case is looked at again.

So this is the first step.

And see how it goes from there.

Both my neighbors told me they were refused 3 times, (and the one is a Vietnam Vet with spinal tumors!  Believe that?????  the poor guy).

 

How we stay sane through this is beyond me.  I really do not know, how after all these years I'm not in a looney bin!  and that I am still determined and motivated about life.  When at times like last night...all I wanted was never to have been "this" body.

Just goes to show how strong spirited you really are at trying times.

 

Thank God there was a special on Johnny Cash at midnight last nite!!  :-) I needed that.

Here's to a better tomorrow.

Posted 12/1/2005 3:27 AM (GMT 0)
Hang in there Erin, you know I am with you! I cannot believe with that list of issues, they have denied you again!  I'm waiting for my first appeal still - I expect to get denied again (if I ever hear from them - it's been quite a few weeks already.) Unbelievable. Maybe I should have mentioned I"m trying to raise 2 small children in the process of all these complaints. Maybe they would have helped better. 

Tonya, good luck! I am in the same boat as you - I made better $$ than hubby, to make 1/3 or less than that just to be home??? Not to mention, I'm only 35 and have been in and out of the workforce so much due to illness that I don't have much "vested" with SS anyway. It's hard enough for me that I even have to ASK! Give me health first. I'm sick of being sick and in pain.

**

Posted 12/2/2005 2:12 AM (GMT 0)
CaMama, did you try to get SSI that is easier than trying to only get SSDI and you don't need work hours to get that either it's some sort of a disability welfare system and it doesn't really cover a lot. You have to though have under $2000 in assets to get it. And if you are only 35, then your age is against you like mine they say due to your age, blah blah. The younger you are the harder it is to get the disability! And if you made better money or good money, that is against you too as you probably are smart and had a good long work record with good jobs so you can then they'd say be qualified or be able to do or learn more new jobs. Raising children with it I don't think that would help either. They only seem to go by whether or not you can do your past work, or whether or not you can do ANY work in the national economy that is gainful and substantial work being over $830 (For Social Security Disability).

They turn most of us down over and over again. I have already had four denials and am now working on the Appeal at the Virginia level. And also have re-applied so it is going on in two places. What a mess. They don't care about what pain you are in. Just why your disabilities stop you from working.

The disability website is helpful as it lists what they think are limits and what diagnoses meet their disability terms. You need to see if you meet any of their terms. And of course if ever a doctor would say you can't do any kind of work for 12 months that may help too. It's a long struggle that's for sure.

Get all the medical records that you are able to find. Review them and know what to expect.

Be sure to take a lawyer at the ALJ Judge Hearing, do not do what I did and go to that hearing on your own without being represented by a real attorney! They usually have a Career Expert come in and towards the end of the hearing when you have just about had it and really feel horrible and belittled, then here comes this friendly looking person and instead they tell you all the jobs that you can or cannot do. And it does not matter whether there are actually job openings in your area or any area. And it doesn't matter whether you can drive or not. Yet no they don't find you a job either nor help you get one either.
Posted 12/2/2005 2:24 AM (GMT 0)

erin kachmar said...
Goodmorning,

NO sleep last night.  Stress and sadness on top of severe pain made it for a horrid past 8 hours.

Ok gonna respond in midst of your post there.

Erin, so sorry you are having trouble sleeping due to pain.  I do too and that is hard to take, your body and yourself need rest.  Your organs need at least six hours of sleep to function correctly. 

Stress makes most disorders worse no matter what they are. 

Am I being denied disability because I am young? 

If you are under the age of 50, you are probably young yes and SSDisability does hold that against people.  I know I am only 46 and unable to do any gainful work, yet they keep giving me denial letters in the mail.

There are plenty of people who are not blind that are approved!  My tenant has been on disability and she goes from 5am till midnight!  Nonstop!  Laundry, babysits, exercises, cooks, shops all day, goes to parties, sews, does chores and goes up and down stairs all day!  Huh???  I don't understand.

I know I have friends who got it easily and they move around just fine and drive and have a real life and everything!  They may have got it when the rules were easier though, maybe that's the case with your tenant?

How bad does an arthritic have to be?  Unable to move COMPLETELY?

According to what I have read, the arthritis has to affect your RANGE OF MOTION to a certain degree.  Look on their website and find out what the terms are.  Go to a chiropractor and see just how bad your range of motion is.  Do your fingers move? 

I had to leave every job I had due to inability to stand, write, hold things, pain, can't sit or hold self up for too long.  Many times not even being able to get myself ready to work (couldn't stand in shower, hold wash cloths, too much pain/fatigue, diarrhea, can't walk...)  Never workes full time cuz I couldn't.  Never could do more than at best 6 hours a few years ago.  Had to leave school several times.

I know the feeling you are not alone, it is real hard though to see you suffering so much so young. 

And I'm worse now than I was last year and the year before when I had applied.  And denied again?

Yep they deny and deny and deny and so get a lawyer.  Read my above post as well. 

Do I have the same story as someone else out there??  Please say I do...I need some hope because I am beginning to lose it.

Yep me kinda.

Try some natural remedies for arthritis such as some mentioned in other topics.  Emi Oil is a new one a natural product from some bird.  It goes into your skin and penetrates through seven layers and hopefully works.  There's also salt crystal therapy, salt lamps, salt pillows (send me a PM on that as I have more info on that or see my other topic on salt therapy).   There's lots of things now for joints more than there used to be.  I sure hope you will soon feel better.

Posted 12/2/2005 3:51 AM (GMT 0)

Thank you so much for listening and sharing and responding.  Means a lot to me.  I called in for my appeal this morning.

I have a rheummy appt. tomorrow.  So trying to get a clear head.

I wish SSI/DIS saw me TODAY!  The pain in my knees was so bad I couldn't even get to eat till 6pm...woke up this morning and couldn't even make it out my room.

(thus...when I did finally make it to the kitchen....went straight for the chocolate!)

Thank you all for your support.  The past few days have been terribly rough.

I feel good that I called in for the appeal.  I'm in fighting mode at least.

Posted 12/2/2005 1:04 PM (GMT 0)
is that the blue emu oil? i heard that advertised. i have RA not OA. been through all the creams, oils, roll-ons....the only thing that helps slightly is the Lidoderm patches.
Posted 12/2/2005 9:46 PM (GMT 0)
Erin, what did your rheumy say? Any luck?
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