Yup, you have to stop working except as stated above. I felt like I was jumping off a cliff when I decided to apply! I was only able to work 12 hours a week, and struggling with that, but even quitting that job was very scary.

It took me one and half years to win my case and that is considered a short time. I have a friend with MS and her case was over a year old last time I spoke with her. Kitty's fast approval is highly unusual.

Like others I lost a lot. My IRA, my house (that I owned outright) , & my savings. I applied for food stamps, and Medicaid while I waited. I spent my savings.

Medicaid is another story, and I don't know if I would recommend it. Their rules for receiving it are very strict. If I went over some ungodly low amount of income, including any gifts, even birthday gifts, I would lose Medicaid. I couldn't even have a room-mate in my home to help pay expenses and keep Medicaid.

I had to sell my IRA with a penalty in order to qualify for Medicaid. Then I lost Medicaid 1 year after I got SSDI because of a cost of living increase payment for SSDI of $10.00! I don't know if I would have done things the same if I had known then what I know now.

I also wish I had known more about the SSDI/ SSI process before I filled out my own form. I did not fill it out correctly as I later learned from my lawyer. I had learned so many ways to cope while working, and I focused on that when filling out the form, when really SS wants to know all the things you can no longer do. Not all the ways you manage to keep on keeping on. They act like they are there to help but really they are trying to discourage you from applying for it. That is why almost everyone is turned down the first time they apply. Then you appeal. At this point it's really best to get a lawyer.

SSDI wants to know why you can not sustain full time employment of any kind. If you can sit and count bottle caps you are able to work in their eyes. It doesn't matter if employment is not related to anything you are doing or have done in the past.

Most lawyers will tell you to apply and get denied, and then contact them. You don't pay them. If they win the case the money comes out of your back pay. Ie; the money SSDI would have paid you from the time you applied to the time it takes to win your case. The really good lawyers will assist you in filling out the forms correctly!

There are some great web-sites written by lawyers specifically for SSDI with solid information about the while process. I could send a link to one that I trust and who I know has helped people win difficult cases.

By no means is your medical history what determines if you will win or not. Your medical doctor carries great weight but there is much more to it.

And it is not the doctors diagnosis that determines whether you qualify or not! It is determined using criteria based on what you can no longer do. My doctor had to fill out forms that said how far I could walk, how long I could stand, if I could sit, and for how long, if I could lift and how much weight, or bend, stoop, etc. These are standard SSDI forms.

Your age and background also make a difference. Someone with a good education is considered more likely to find some other type of employment than someone with only a high-school education. They also look at how old you are. If you are in your mid 50's or older than your chances of winning are better.

I found the whole process very depressing because I had spent so much time before I applied learning how to cope and work around, or with my limitations. But when I applied, I had to focus on what I could no longer do.
I don't know your history, so it may be an easier case than some, but I do know people dying of cancer have been turned down at least the first time. One person I know with cancer said the applying for SSDI was harder than going through the cancer treatment.

I do know one other person with ovarian cancer who got it on the spot. Again, that is so very rare. The backlog for cases is years which is why they started having court appearances done via satallite/video with the judge.

Sorry so long winded, I know that some of what I wrote doesn't even apply to you, or your question. But I learned and went through so much for SSDI, that my wish ever since has been that I could use what I learned to help someone else down the road.

Sunrise