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I wonder if some of the "mental impairment" could be cured by a good swift kick in the ass, metaphorical or otherwise?
Wow. I'd just love it if the spouse's disabling bipolar disorder could be cured by a swift kick in the ass. Come to think if it ... I've tried it on several occasions. No luck. Should I keep trying?
All the same, thanks for begrudging him the $806 he gets each month in benefits.
Quote:
Originally Posted by nimchimpsky
2) redefine the criteria for disability. visible doesn't mean worse, invisible doesn't mean nonexistent. too many people are hung up on that thinking. people confuse what's medically obvious with what actually interferes with the ability to work.
Good points.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Zekester
Bottom line: having no relatives to lean on, if it wasn't for SSDI I would be homeless and probably dead by now. So don't be so quick to judge. I don't care how tough you think you are, you too can be brought to your knees. People take their health for granted and don't realize just how much they rely on it. Believe me, I would give anything to have my health back as well as the dignity that comes with employment and self reliance. Oh, and by the way, my SSDI payments amount to about half of the income that I made while working so I'm definitely not living the good life. Factor that in with the constant pain and my quality of life is zero.
Thanks for posting your story. This particular paragraph should be read and re-read by everyone who still doesn't get that being disabled is no picnic.
I wonder if some of the "mental impairment" could be cured by a good swift kick in the ass, metaphorical or otherwise?
Whenever people say this, all I can think is, wow, you've obviously never suffered from mental illness. Mental illness is not just a matter of will. Expecting a mentally ill person to just "get over it" is like expecting a diabetic to "just produce insulin." Sure, a strong will and positive attitude can help the healing process and help keep one healthy, but it doesn't make entire medical conditions vanish. Major depression, schizophrenia, PTSD, social anxiety, and other mental illnesses are just as real as physical illnesses and needed to be treated like real illnesses.
Hey, I wonder if we could apply this to other disabilities? I bet a lot fo those diabetics could also be cured by a "good swift kick in the ass!" I wonder if this might even be the cure for cancer we've all been waiting for?
I haven't read all of thread and had a long post written and lost it all. But, when I saw the heading, my blood pressure went waaaaayyyyy up.
A new social security office has been built across the street from us and two separate law offices have been built facing the office, merely across a small parking lot.
I have a fellow doing some yard work for me and he is applying because he has been in prison several times and has post traumatic stress syndrome from being in prison. He said he was told the odds of getting it were very good. His exwife is applying because she has a bad back (so do I) and bipolar disorder and she has been and probably still is a drug addict.
I know whole families that are on SS disability. I know of a young woman, less than 30, who is on it, bipolar disorder. Of course, she drinks like a sailor and has been deep into drugs.
the fellow from the prison, his brother applied because he couldn't work because of his feet....(?). I don't know if they told him to lose weight or what......
It is a racket and a scam, just like the disability parking sticker. Anyone can get it if they get the right doctor.
I have to quit or my blood pressure will really be high.
As is par for the course here on City Data you have no idea what you are talking about. Bipolar Disorder is a very serious and debilitating mental illness that usually renders the afflicted unemployable.
To make matters worse, those who suffer from this disorder often go undiagnosed for years which leads many down the path of substance abuse as they attempt to self medicate. Ask any shrink and they will tell you that comorbid drug addiction and mental illness go hand in hand.
Question: Why is it that the least informed are almost always the most verbose?
Boy howdy, does this topic push my buttons! I worked in the medical field for 20 years, and saw my share of people who were truly disabled and those who just wanted a free ride.
Example: An RN who had an aneurysm, had surgery, and was doing her best to keep a cheerful aspect. Could she work? NO. Probably would be able to resume her job after a reasonable recuperation time. She needed the S/S. Refused to apply for it since she felt it would be admitting defeat.
Example: A 19 year-old who was working in a factory. After two weeks, he hurt his back. He did everything the worker's comp law required. Saw the doctor. Had the imaging. No real injury. Probably a strain. Then he saw an attorney who sent him to our practice for an independent eval. No real injury. The attorney sent him to another physician who found a bad strain with chronic pain syndrome. Upshot? S/S disability. Until a Physical Therapist, (friend of ours) who had been treating him, left work early one day and passed his home on her way to her house. When she saw him scaling a ladder carrying a bundle of shingles, she immediately reported him.
Example: A seven-year-old with intractable seizure disorder. On S/S disability. Do I think there should be some medical help for this child if the family doesn't have insurance? Sure. I also think the child should get prescription help as well. But disability? Uh-uh.
Example: My own brother retired from his job after the required length of time served, and six months into his retirement, he was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. He immediately applied for -
and received - S/S disability. He was collecting the pension for which he had worked. His health benefits were part of his retirement package. He ultimately died from metastatic cancer of the liver. Should he have been collecting S/S disability? Not in my book.
I'm retired and living on Social Security along with an IRA that I saved over the years. In the past five years I have had open heart surgery, gall bladder surgery, and surgery for colon cancer. I dam near died. I can't work. But that's mainly because I'm 75-years-old. Would anyone think I'm eligible for S/S disability?
It's definitely abused. Now before people who are collecting get all up in my grille, I don't say everybody is guilty of goldbricking. I do say, you know who you are.
As usual, people read posts and pick out certain sentences that reinforce their POV without realizing that without context, their arguments are flawed. As I read, I don't see anyone saying that S/S disability should be discontinued. I see people wanting better oversight for eliminating those who are collecting this benefit fraudulently. My experience is my own and I have seen more than probably most who have not worked in the field. And in case I'm not clear, let me state it thusly, I have no hatred for entitlement programs. Welfare, Medicaid/Medical Assistance, Prescription assistance, and other programs in place to help those who are in need are desperately needed if we are to maintain some semblance of civility. It is the blatant abuse of these programs which I decry.
Last edited by theatergypsy; 10-25-2010 at 04:45 PM..
Boy howdy, does this topic push my buttons! I worked in the medical field for 20 years, and saw my share of people who were truly disabled and those who just wanted a free ride.
Example: An RN who had an aneurysm, had surgery, and was doing her best to keep a cheerful aspect. Could she work? NO. Probably would be able to resume her job after a reasonable recuperation time. She needed the S/S. Refused to apply for it since she felt it would be admitting defeat.
Example: A 19 year-old who was working in a factory. After two weeks, he hurt his back. He did everything the worker's comp law required. Saw the doctor. Had the imaging. No real injury. Probably a strain. Then he saw an attorney who sent him to our practice for an independent eval. No real injury. The attorney sent him to another physician who found a bad strain with chronic pain syndrome. Upshot? S/S disability. Until a Physical Therapist, (friend of ours) who had been treating him, left work early one day and passed his home on her way to her house. When she saw him scaling a ladder carrying a bundle of shingles, she immediately reported him.
Example: A seven-year-old with intractable seizure disorder. On S/S disability. Do I think there should be some medical help for this child if the family doesn't have insurance? Sure. I also think the child should get prescription help as well. But disability? Uh-uh.
Example: My own brother retired from his job after the required length of time served, and six months into his retirement, he was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. He immediately applied for -
and received - S/S disability. He was collecting the pension for which he had worked. His health benefits were part of his retirement package. He ultimately died from metastatic cancer of the liver. Should he have been collecting S/S disability? Not in my book.
I'm retired and living on Social Security along with an IRA that I saved over the years. In the past five years I have had open heart surgery, gall bladder surgery, and surgery for colon cancer. I dam near died. I can't work. But that's mainly because I'm 75-years-old. Would anyone think I'm eligible for S/S disability?
It's definitely abused. Now before people who are collecting get all up in my grille, I don't say everybody is guilty of goldbricking. I do say, you know who you are.
As usual, people read posts and pick out certain sentences that reinforce their POV without realizing that without context, their arguments are flawed. As I read, I don't see anyone saying that S/S disability should be discontinued. I see people wanting better oversight for eliminating those who are collecting this benefit fraudulently. My experience is my own and I have seen more than probably most who have not worked in the field. And in case I'm not clear, let me state it thusly, I have no hatred for entitlement programs. Welfare, Medicaid/Medical Assistance, Prescription assistance, and other programs in place to help those who are in need are desperately needed if we are to maintain some semblance of civility. It is the blatant abuse of these programs which I decry.
If only everyone could be as balanced and fair as this poster.
If only everyone could be as balanced and fair as this poster.
Zeke, thank you for the kind words, but I don't think of myself as any thing special. Just try to see both sides of the story before I put my foot in my mouth. It's been in there so many times, 7 1/2 is stamped on my lower lip.
I don't get the part about the seven year old. Have you had to manage the care of a kid with problems? The govt is there for some health care, but the expenses are not purely related to govt sponsored health care. Intractible seizures? Do you think the govt is going to pay for the in home health care that kid might need? No telling what other special needs the kid might have.
SS is social security. No matter what the govt plans may have been to privatize it, soc security is a fund that was paid into by anyone who has worked. My mom died when I was 10 and I got her soc security check every month til I left college. Should I have been denied that because I hadn't yet worked? She certainly had, and she certainly wasn't going to need it herself, cancer made sure of that.
I don't get the part about the seven year old. Have you had to manage the care of a kid with problems? The govt is there for some health care, but the expenses are not purely related to govt sponsored health care. Intractible seizures? Do you think the govt is going to pay for the in home health care that kid might need? No telling what other special needs the kid might have.
SS is social security. No matter what the govt plans may have been to privatize it, soc security is a fund that was paid into by anyone who has worked. My mom died when I was 10 and I got her soc security check every month til I left college. Should I have been denied that because I hadn't yet worked? She certainly had, and she certainly wasn't going to need it herself, cancer made sure of that.
poptones, there is something you haven't considered in the two scenarios with which you take issue.
Social Security is not an account with your name on it. It is a general fund that is drawn upon by all those who are collecting the benefits they worked for during their productive years. The intent of insurance, which is what SS actually is, is that everyone pays in some so that some can collect. If everyone who passes away has a claim on the money they have paid in, the government would have to honor that money as part of one's estate.
I am sorry that you lost your Mother. My opinion remains that Social Security is for retirees or those legitimately entitled to SSI by virtue of a disability that prevents them from continuing to be gainfully employed.
Last edited by theatergypsy; 10-26-2010 at 06:25 AM..
An attorney or even a lawyer is always coupled with a tier physician is, in my opinion, the best way to avoid that some people take profit of a situation and to restore some justice. I think SSDA should impose this.
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