Its been about 13 years now since I first became ill but I tried, in the beginning, to still work or at least do some volunteer work for a couple of years. I finally stopped trying to work at all.
I am going to talk to my doctor about getting an official letter of disability from her but my question is what are the guide lines to this sort of situation? How does a doctor determine if you can work or not or if they will provide such a letter?
I am anticipating that my living situation will change and I am going to have to get out on my own and get serious about being independent.
I am so sorry to hear this. I would definitely call your doctors office to find out what their policies are regarding assisting in a disability claim. My doctor's office actually had me sign a statement that I understand that they will not do any paperwork or assist in any hearings related to disability claims. If you are in the US then I would start with the Social Security Administration website for information on how to file.
http://discussion.livingwithpsoriaticarthritis.org/group/disability-application-process
The link Above will provide you some information. It’s a long and arduous process in most cases so be prepared for that. From what I understand it’s can be very hard to gèt approved with moat people getting denied on their first go round. Do a lot of reading up. It should really help you. Also, use the search function on this site. There are numerous discussions on the process.
Sorry to hear all of this, but know you are not alone. I don't know much about your state at all. However, I live in Fl and I just had my hearing last week with SS Admin. Law Judge. I stopped working 2/2012 and filed the same month. I received my 2 denials (normal from what I hear) within 2 mos. So I hired an atty and in June of 2012 we requested my hearing...as you can see it took 2 years to get it scheduled. Now, I have to wait another 6 weeks or so before hearing the judge's decision. It has been a long 2 years, a lot of paperwork and a lot of doctors appts. to get records from.
I wish you all the luck in the world and hope the best for you.