Originally Posted by Janke

If the disability report is completed online, the answers are seamlessly transferred to the electronic file. If you handwrite a paper disability report, the information has to be transcribed to the electronic file. Either way, all the questions that have yes or no answered have to be answered yes or no in order to create an electronic file that can be used and transferred to DDS. So hoping you can get around the yes or no answers is futile. The end format of the electronic disability report is the same, whether it is started online or handwritten.

If you leave unanswered questions on the disability report, either online or handwritten, the intake SSA employee will either have to recontact you in order to get an answer or will pick a box for you in order to get your case transferred to the DDS. They might also note that YOU left questions unanswered. I do know that some applicants are afraid of putting the 'wrong' answer. Personally, I think if the answer is honest, it cannot be wrong. Some answers may indicate that you are not as disabled as you need to be in order to qualify, but how can that be wrong?

SSA has a structure, a methodology of how claims are created and maintained. You might believe you have a better idea. Your friend may be she has a better idea and a better method. You may think that the structure is too limiting. Doesn't change the fact that you are restricted to the questions that are asked. Remember that the DDS analyst is trained to use that structure and work your case around those questions.

Your statements about your inability to walk more than 10 ft. without becoming unstable is important. However, the real question is can it be documented when reading your medical records? What doctor has observed and documented that? I think there is a way that you complete a detailed online disability report by fully answering all the questions. You are asked about your illnesses and conditions. List them all, including the inability to walk more than 10 ft. without being unstable. My guess is that there is a shorter medical term for it that you add. If you don't know the medical term, use the lay term.

Planning on customizing your own disability claim file the way you want to present it is like hitting your head against the wall. It really is your job to fit your claim into the boxes provided, not the other way. Answer the questions and include your narrative responses in remarks if you want to. Can't tell you, however, if your narrative attachments will be read more than once. Back when we completed claims on paper, there were applicants who completed every square inch on the forms, even where there were no questions. One guy who had no treating sources for his mental problems also attached a four page, single space, teeny margined typed document in which he rambled on and on with words that did not create complete sentences or even complete thoughts. It appeared to be how his mind worked all the time.

Organize your case according to how SSA makes decisions.

SSA has a goal of getting most claims completed online. This is 2014. I would like to be able to get a person to answer the phone right away each time I call a business, but we all know that doesn't work anymore.