I was off work for an entire semester last year (I teach high school). This year, I've gone back to part days (currently up to 5 hours) in a mostly one-to-one setting instead of whole-group.

Today I subbed for a regular class for an hour. Very overwhelming. I made it through pretty well, but got a headache afterwards.

I just can't see being able to handle a full day of that every day by the 12-month mark. Financially, I need to be able to do something to support my family as I currently provide all our health insurance and the primary source of dependable regular income.

I feel like I might possibly be able to handle part-time teaching if I were guaranteed cooperative students most days, but that's just not realistic.

What can anyone tell me about the process of applying for disability benefits? I'm worried now that the fact I've been working part days in a modified situation will count against me being considered "completely and permanently disabled" even though it really doesn't seem feasible for me to go back to my regular job.

Probably a good idea to talk to a good lawyer with experience in disability cases (not cheap, but it could save you time, energy and exasperation in the long run). Maybe ask some professionals in related fields like occupational therapy if their brain-injured clients have had positive experiences/outcomes with particular lawyers in your geographical area.

I applied for disability at one year past my accident. I was approved in 2 1/2 months from date of application. The neuro-psychologist who tested me at 6 months and again at 1 year is the one who demanded I apply.

I have owned my own web design & hosting business since 1997. I have been limited to no more than 10 hours of work per week per doctor's orders. I also made a very detailed report as to how my business/work was affected by my TBI. I can't do this __ because ___. It takes me longer to do this ___ because ___. , etc

So is neuropsych testing pretty much a requirement before I apply? I haven't had any yet.

I don't know if it would be necessary or not. I had not considered applying for disability until the neuro-psychologist told me to as a result of my tests and interview with him.

Your doctors will have to fill out paperwork which Social Security will send to them. If there is not enough medical evidence Social Security will send you to one of their own medical review people.

Another thing that I think helped me was that I have been seeing the same family doctor for about 7 years and he could tell major differences in me and documented them.

I did not use an attorney. I applied online. You can login and do it a few minutes now and then. Make sure the info is as detailed as possible. You can always get an attorney at appeal stage if you don't get approved at first.

Eowyn,

The basics of applying for Social Security Disability Income are simple. You must not be able to work at a level that brings in more than $1000 per month. Your attempts at work will not count against you if you have not made more than $1000 per month average for the duration of the time you have been limited in your work abilities.

You can apply online like roadrunner did. her experience with her family doctor does not really make a difference. His observations are of minimal importance. The determination of disability is done by your State Disability Determination Service for the first two applications.

They will have you evaluated by their occupational psychologist for their determination. The medical records from your doctor will be useful at determining the date of your injury and any chance at further recovery.

Your doctor can diagnose your condition and what symptoms are manifesting and record any attempts at treatment and rehabilitation. If he makes a diagnosis of permanent 'whole man' disability, it will be ignored. This is to prevent doctor shopping.

The process is quite simple. The application starts at the Social Security Administration. You can go to their office and they will help you fill out the forms if you need their assistance. Take you income records. They determine if you qualify for Social Security Income ( sort of a welfare payment based on needs) and then forward your application to your state's Disability Determination Service.

You just respond to their questions from then on. Roadrunner was very fortunate to get approved so fast. It is not a common occurrence. Most get denied in the first application and have to resubmit for a second review.

You can not start the process until your 12th month of disability.

Good luck.

My best to you.

I talked to a lawyer today who deals quite a bit with SSDI cases. He said to go ahead and apply now since they will most likely deny me the first time in any case, and the appeal process takes quite a while. He said that if I improved and wanted to go back to work, I could always withdraw my appeal.

Sort of a can't hurt, might help approach.

He also said that my time working could count as part of my trial work period and therefore wouldn't necessarily count against me, but you're limited to nine months of that.

It was an interesting conversation. I'm glad I called.

I don't think that attorney knows much about SSDI. The trial work period that SSDI allows does not happen until after you have been approved. I tried to exempt some work efforts by claiming the Back to Work trial period. No dice because it was before I got approved.

A good SSDI attorney usually only does SSDI applications. Plus, the first application that is commonly denied leads to a reapply/second application, not a appeal. The second application is sent to your state's Disability Determination Service. If that is denied, you appeal to the Social Security appeals and get a hearing before an Appeals Judge.

Regarding your attempts to return to work, you will need to add up your paychecks since your injury and divide the total by the number of months since your injury. It is OK if you made over the $1000 limit in any single month. They will use the average over the time since your injury.

Also, you should have at least some kind of journal of your experiences trying to return to work. List the struggles you had working and how long it took to recover each time.

So, get your application started.

I'm in the same boat, about to try to get disability, in2004 i had 3 severe TBI's and my symptoms dramatically changed for the worse august of last year, my headaches are more intense and often, severe anxiety, bipolar etc, the last neurologist i saw 3mo ago put on the report "migraines" as my diagnoses when its clearly headaches from the TBI's, does anyone know if that will that make them deny my claim or have any advice for me?

They will have you tested for functions that would prevent you from being gainfully employed. Your doctor's diagnoses will not be the deciding factor.

You need to understand your own symptoms and be able to explain how and why you struggle to be gainfully employed. They will then verify those claims.

For example, my limitations are:

Poor memory function in both auditory and visual areas.
Inability to process and successfully follow multi-step instructions.
Sensitivity to bright/flashing lights and noise.
Inability to maintain focus for extended periods as required for an 8 hour work day.
Frequent days where I have severely reduced functions requiring additional sleep periods

There is an online medical handbook (blue book) listing symptoms and conditions that are accepted as employment limiting. The neurological section lists the seizure related dysfunctions. The mental illness section list the cognitive and behavioral dysfunctions. It will give you an idea of what symptoms are considered work limiting. Here is the link: http://www.ssa.gov/disability/profes...ltListings.htm and http://www.ssa.gov/disability/profes...dult.htm#12_01

These listings will show you what issues the SSDI people look for. Any medical documentation to support these claims of dysfunction will be helpful.

Good luck with this endeavor.

My best to you.