Oakland Social Security Disability Law Blog

Schizophrenia is a mental illness that is defined by the sufferer having a limited ability to understand reality. They may exhibit strange speech or have hallucinations that lead them to form confused beliefs about the world.

This can often mean that those who have been diagnosed with schizophrenia are unable to gain meaningful employment, and they, therefore, struggle financially. In some situations, schizophrenia sufferers can qualify for disability benefits with the Social Security Administration (SSA). The following is an overview of the defined qualifying criteria.

If you consider yourself to be disabled but you are struggling to successfully gain Social Security disability (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI), it is possible that you feel frustrated and defeated. After one or more denials, you may simply feel like giving up on the process altogether.

However, you must be persistent. A surprisingly high amount of people have their disability benefits denied after their first application, but many people go on to be successful when they make an appeal. Your benefits application may have been denied for an arbitrary reason, such as a mistake on your medical reports or missing information. The following are some things you can do to appeal an application denial with confidence.

Many Social Security Disability (SSD) claims revolve around physical injuries. You may have a brain injury or a spinal cord injury that makes it impossible for you to work, for instance. However, though these cases are common, it's important not to assume that only physical injuries qualify. You may also qualify if you have a mental disorder that you're dealing with, which can certainly keep you out of the workforce just like a physical injury or disability.

To sort these disorders and determine who qualifies, the Social Security Administration (SSA) divides most of the disorders into 11 main categories. They are as follows:

1. Personality and impulse-control disorders
2. Neurocognitive disorders
3. Intellectual disorder
4. Schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders
5. Somatic symptom and related disorders
6. Eating disorders
7. Neurodevelopmental disorders
8. Depressive, bipolar and related disorders
9. Autism spectrum disorder
10. Anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorders
11. Trauma- and stressor-related disorders

If you have a debilitating illness or injury that prevents you from working, then you should submit your application for Social Security Disability (SSD) quickly. No, the program isn't going away or running out of funds. The Social Security Administration (SSA) is notorious for denying applications though. Data released by the federal agency last month shows that many people are dying while waiting to find out if they'll get benefits too.

Most Americans are required to make contributions to the SSA every pay period, so they'll be eligible for benefits later in life. Employees become eligible for SSD based on time working as well. We're supposed to be able to draw from the fund if we ever become too hurt or sick that we can't work. Many people don't realize until they need these benefits just how hard it is to qualify for them though.