Does depression qualify for any sort of disability/unemployment support?

In My Humble Opinion
1

Hmm…

Well, I hate to ask this because it feels like a copout, but I may need a bit of help in the months to come. I don’t want to cheat the system or live off welfare, but I was wondering if there’s any sort of government/social support for depression while somebody is seeking employment?

I’m a 30-year old single man (no kids) who recently dropped out of college. I just didn’t have the willpower to finish after 8+ years of trying. I’m able-bodied physically and I’ve held various (usually part-time) jobs ranging from 1-4 years.

I’ve also suffered from pretty severe depression since I was a teenager, and I have an extensive, documented medical history to prove it (including records from multiple psychiatrists, medication history, a couple of suicide attempts, ER visits, institutionalization records, etc.). It is very hard for me to admit this to myself, but looking back, I believe this has had a moderately negative effect on my professional and educational careers. I’ve been fired and/or driven to quit from a small handful of jobs because, frankly, I just couldn’t summon up the energy to continue at them. Many days, it was hard to even wake up and get out of bed. For the most part, I would summarize my professional experience as slightly above mediocre (6.5/10) and my educational history as absolutely disastrous.*

Now, I know it’s not easy to differentiate clinical depression from run of the mill laziness, and in my case (to be really honest with myself) it’s probably a combination of both. Probably about 50/50.

Anyway, I’ve been looking for a job for about 2 months now without much luck, because there just aren’t that many employers to begin with where I live (Humboldt County, CA). I am also looking in other parts of California and Oregon and have a few leads, but the big employers there usually take a few weeks or longer to get back to applicants.

Until now, I’ve survived off some very generous support from my parents, but that won’t continue past the end of December or January at the latest. My very meager savings won’t last much longer beyond that.

I don’t want to turn into a welfare leech even if I could, but is there any support available for someone like me while I’m looking for a job? Something that might last 2-3 months? I will apply for food stamps very soon, but I really hope I don’t have to be homeless again. I lived out of my car for a few months in the past; it wasn’t much fun.

*In terms of educational/professional specifics: I have no college degree, not even an AS/AA. I have about 160 units of completed coursework across various majors (mostly environmental, with some communication and computers thrown in), but sadly they’re too diverse to actually earn any diploma. I did not finish high school either, but I have a California GED. I have about 10-15 years of mostly self-taught experience in the technology field, and a few good references, so it should be enough to at least land an entry position somewhere. It’s just hard doing it long-distance, and hard waiting to hear back from employers. I spent an hour doing a phone interview with one potential employer today, but even they need another 2 weeks to make a decision. Sigh :frowning:

Just wondering what my options might be… thanks for any advice!

2

you can get an SSI check but it would be at most between 500 and 800 dollars a month, maybe closer to 800, it goes state by state adjusted to expenses, California has to be a pretty high state. it can take a while to qualify for, whether that is 3 months or a year i dont know, but, you wont be getting a check in two weeks is the point.

3

You can get onto SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance) based on psychiatric disability, including debilitating depression. (You needn’t ask me how I know that //roll-eyes// )

The thing you need most is to stumble upon a doctor (or maybe several) who will work with you to get you set up. Finding a doctor who will do that is a crapshoot.

Sounds like you have a good pile of history and documentation. That’s a good start.

You can’t do this for very short-term disabilities. There is some rule like the disability has to be expected to last for 6 months or a year (I forget which) and it has to be a total disability, not just partial. (That’s where you need the sympathetic doctor to come in.) And once you get approved, there’s a five-month (IIRC) wait for benefits to begin. They assume you have enough assets or support to get by for that long. They really want to cover only long-term disabilities, and not short-term stuff. So if you are facing living in the gutter within three months, you can’t get with the program that soon.

By the way, your doctors don’t get to decide if you should be on disability. That is done by some nameless faceless bureaucrats somewhere. All your doctors (and you) get to do is fill out some lengthy multi-page questionnaires with supposedly objective facts and evaluations about your health. Allegedly, few cases are approved at first but you can appeal and many more cases are approved then – or so it is commonly said.

You can go to the Social Security office and get yourself an interview, and all the forms you need to fill out and get your doctors and others to fill out. There are also a variety of brochures and publications they can give you. There are some special support rules for disabled people who are trying to get back into working – you can have a trial work period (for nine months I think) where you can work, even full time at full pay, and continue to get full disability benefits. There are other programs to assist in getting back to work.

4

Check out this page for information about SSDI benefits. I think the same page has information about SSI benefits.

I gather that you have limited work history. That may be a problem. SSDI, like Social Security, depends on you having some amount of work history. I don’t know exactly what the limitations might be. If you aren’t eligible for SSDI, you might be eligible for SSI.

Note also: If you get onto SSDI, you also are eligible for Medicare automatically.

5

Reply, here is a list of impairments for a disability claim;

6

If I am not mistaken, in 2 years one is eligible, not automatically.

7

I know two people on SSDI for mental health disability. From what they tell me, it takes a long time and you almost always get denied the first time, unless it is something extremely obvious like being paralyzed from the neck down. The real test is the appeal. The fact that you have lots of documentation will definitely help. There are lawyers who know all the right strings to play to get what you need. I’d give you the name of the one I know, but since you’re on the other side of the continent it wouldn’t help you much.

8

Is there a senior center in your area? They would have all sorts of information about Social Security. And since Social Security for elders is closely connected with Disability for elders and not-so-elders alike, a lot of that information is all there together. Similarly, if there is any kind of periodic newsletter for seniors, there will be plenty of advertisements by all sorts of service providers – including lawyers – who specialize in Social Security and Disability issues.

9

Social Security Disability (SSDI) is not going to be available unless you have a work history long enough to make you eligible. If you’ve basically been living off parents, much of the time that means you have no been paying into Social Security, and that means you can’t receive Social Security.

SSI does not require a work history.

However, both SSDI and SSI require that a disability be complete and permanent (at least the expectation of permanence) or to end it death. There’s no such thing, at least according to the rules, as a temporary SSDI/SSI disability.

ETA: I misstated it (misremembered). Not permanent, but at least a year.

10

I should really think before I hit “submit.”

Being in the process of looking for a job you expect to find is not really within the definition of “disabled” for SS purposes. They are looking to see whether you can do previous work, whether you can do new work, and whether you are hampered enough by your condition(s) to be the cause of the work problem.

11

It’s possible you could get General Assistance (as well as the Food Stamps you are applying for):
http://www.cdss.ca.gov/cdssweb/PG132.htm

You need to find out the requirements in your county.

But overall all I am pessimistic about your possibilities.

12

Since the OP is looking for advice, let’s move this to IMHO.

Colibri
General Questions Moderator

13

And sometimes not even if you are paralyzed from the neck down. My mom once worked on an appeal for a quadriplegic; his denial letter alleged that he could do a desk job.

14

I am on SSDI (osteoarthritis).

It involves an application, and a chat with a psychologist.

You will almost always be denied on first application.
You can appeal 2x - the final appeal is/can be in person before a board.

My benefits are the same as my retirement SS would have been. With spotty work history, your benefits will be limited.
Medicare Part A becomes yours free after x years. Part A is Hospital - not Doctor, Clinic, lab, or drugs. Those are Part B, which is cheaper than private insurance, but not free - it is a % of your benefit amount.

If you do get SSDI and want to supplement your income, there is a (small) limit to how much you can earn before your benefits are reduced and eventually terminated.

I do not know if you could get back on if you were to find a lucrative job and then return to unemployed.

I do not know about SSI and how its amount is set. I was advised to apply for both and hope for SSDI, because SSI really does mean “Supplemental” - it is nothing close to full retirement benefits, and assumes you will have additional income.

Talk to a worker at the SS office - they can tell you your benefit level for both SSi and SSDI, and walk you through the application.

15

  1. Not true. Applications are reviewed by disability examiners independently of one another unless it is determined by an Administrative Law Judge (hearing level) that a prior claim should be re-opened. Unless you’re on the border, you can apply 50 times and get continually denied. I see it all the time.

  2. Mostly correct. Your initial claim is reviewed by an examiner (non-MD but usually signed off by an MD) at the state level and then you have the right to appeal to an ALJ at the hearing level (federal) should you disagree with the decision. Bear in mind that the average wait time for a hearing is over 1 year at present. If you disagree with the ALJ’s decision, you can appeal to the Appeals Council which can uphold or vacate the ALJ’s decision and send it back for another hearing, OR they can issue their own decision independently of the ALJ.

You can then appeal to the district court level but these cases are not very common and you can expect even lengthier delays. Most cases are denied review by the courts and the AC decision is final.

The initial claim typically only takes a few months for processing. If you choose to appeal, expect long delays.

Feel free to PM with any issues. I’d be happy to help in a non-professional capacity.

-SSA employee

16

Oops, I didn’t see your edit.

Nevermind :slight_smile:

17

Hmm… thank you all for the information. I really appreciate it.

I guess I’m not disabled enough. I can work, just haphazardly, and it’s more temporary unemployment help that I was hoping for, not lifelong welfare.

Oh well. It was worth a shot. I just have to work harder, I suppose, keeping in mind that billions of people are much worse off than me and still manage to eke out an existence.

Thank you.

18

If your description you gave in you OP is to be taken seriously, it sounds to me like you might well have a case for getting disability. However, it’s you apparent lack of much work history that seems like the greater obstacle for you, at least for getting onto SSDI. Other benefit programs like SSI might still be possible.

You should consider applying in any case. That doesn’t cost you anything. And find out as much as you can about these benefits.

19

Try calling the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). They have resources they can suggest that might be helpful. Their number is 1 (800) 950-NAMI (6264).

Try Catholic Charities or Lutheran Family Services. Food banks.

I don’t know really anything about the following sites, but maybe they’d be helpful: affordablehousingonline.com, rally.org, modestneeds.org, gofundme.com.

California expanded Medicaid, so see if you qualify. (Medicaid and Medicare are two different things.)

If you can, try to get outside and take a walk most days. Try to get up at the same time every day. Try to eat healthfully. I say this, frankly, pretty hypocritically. I know I need to do this myself and am less than consistent. But all my therapists and psychiatrists have all said this can really help. Try meditation or mindfulness practices.

I hope some of this helps.

20

If these jobs fall through, please seriously consider going on disability. It will take a few years to process and go through, but with your diligently-documented and long-lasting history, you should be able to justify that you absolutely cannot hold down a job. Don’t forget food stamps, medicaid, etc.

I have another friend going through the same thing and it’s like, you’re 30, you’ve had 12 years to gain employment or get a degree, enough is enough. This is not your fault. Just your lot in life.

Keep focusing on your treatment. Maybe the next drug that comes along will be the wonder drug. I was lucky. I take a pill that allows me to get out of bed and bathe myself. Maybe someday…