incapacity benefit

[Regina]

Hi everyone :wave:

wanted to update you all as I got a letter this morning from incapacity benefit. I have qualified and will not be having a review for a year so I can now get this benefit for the next year if I need to. What a relief.

i found that completing the forms when I was feeling at my worse made them really easy to complete as i was in pain and uncomfortable. I concentrated on the effort of doing things and the effects after I had done these things.

I am just waiting to hear now about disability living allowance, my husband says the departments check with each other and the fact that I get incapacity could help my application.

I will update again once I have heard from them. Thanks for all the advice. :thumbs:

Gina

[Starrgazerlilly]

Hi Gina

:woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

What a relief! Congratulations and good luck with DLA.

:flowers:

[Regina]

thanks stargazerlilly

I like the dancers, a bit energetic for me though ;) :wave: :woohoo:

[snowhite]

hey gina

that is great news hun, congrats

as starrgazerlilly put it :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:
lol

and good :luck: luck with the dla.

ifra

[somerset]

:D Hi Gina

All my messages seem to be a bit random as I am still trying to filter through the site, I think I have trouble getting on the live chat because I don't have "java"...Anyway , please tell me how oh how did you get any financial benefits. I am so proud of you !!!

I was diagnosed with SLE in December 04 (after a year of not knowing, walking with 2 sticks and being a bit pitiful...all this I must add with GP/Hospital appointments booked first thing in morning and made up for the odd 1/2 hour by working thru lunch). Anyway, a month after telling my boss his response was oh "loopie" and we will make you redundant...(basically) 2 weeks later my job was advertised for less hours and more money. With the "stigma" of having a disease to declare on all job applications I was turned down for interviews for 2 months and am now doing 29.5 hours work in a supermarket - which ironically is more manual than my old secretarial job. I would dearly like to reduce the hours or at least not have to do overtime (I live alone and have a mortgage so the added financial worry isn't helping at the moment). I need to get some more income from somewhere and wonder if I am entitled to any financial help from our state?

Sorry this sounds a bit sad but I don't quite know where to turn, I know I could try CAB they were great with the unfair dismissal episode but it would be so nice to hear from someone who understands lupus, what it means and well just - understands. My specialist nurse is now sending me to my gp as she thinks I am depressed ! hmmmm....I think she has a point.

Juliet

[Deborah Rumbles]

:thumbs: Hi, Somerset, YOU are entitled to DLA as anyone with a disability is at different rates, so if you had to give up work then you would receive a higher rate, I had to give up work 2 years ago, I was basicaly told from my employer that they had no job for me as I was off too much and not able to do the original job I had.Anyway it was a major worry, also have mortgage etc.Anyway I had to be signed off sick for 6 months and then I received sick pay, after this you can qualify for incapacity benefit if you are unable to hold a job down,and DLA.Also some people get income support and then they help with your mortgage, you really should find out if you can carry on working or not, speak to your G.P Goodluck.

[Regina]

Hi Juliet

I just wanted to reinforce what deborah said, if you stop working you can qualify for incapacity benefit due to the fact that you have worked and paid national insurance and even if you have a partner who is still earning. For six months you get it by submitting sick notes from your doctor then they send a booklet for you to complete, you complete this with as much information as possible about you condition, the way I wrote it was more about the effort of doing things and the effects on me afterwards, in other words that it is very painful for me to do any of the usual daily tasks etc, I wrote it as if it were my very worst day. Once you have qualified after the first six months it then goes up from ?57.00 per week to ?68.oo per week, after a further six months it goes up to ?78.00 plus in my case as I am under 35 an age addition of about ?16.00. It is not alot if you have been used to working but sometimes it is worth not working until your health improves.

My advice is to go to a CAB and let them fill the forms in for you, they know the scoring system for incap benefit and know what you have to do for you to get it.

I have qualified for mine for a year before it is reviewed and I did not have to see one of their doctors.

Good luck Juliet, we will all be thinking of you. :wave: :thumbs: