However, it can sometimes cause problems in a disability case. Social Security cases can be summed up as, “do your conditions keep you from being able to do some kind of work?” That is a bit of a simplification since the standard is whether an individual can engage is a “substantial gainful activity,” but it is a good question to start with.

I’m not trying to work, I’m just going to school. Is this going to be a problem?

That depends on several factors:

Is going to school consistent with your disability?

If you have PTSD, social anxiety disorder, or another condition, how are you managing with the social requirements of going to school?

This is not an insurmountable question, but Social Security will consider it, and you need to have an answer.

I have known people who go back to school, but they take night or online classes to minimize social interaction. I have had other clients with anxiety disorders who have permission from the school and the instructors allowing them to leave the classroom without any penalty if they feel an anxiety attack coming on.

Social Security often looks to the specific accommodations provided by the school to decide this is consistent with the disability.

Is the school activity comparable to work?

If classes, labs, homework and studying take up around 30 to 40 hours per week going to school may be viewed by Social Security as close enough to what is required in the workplace to suggest that the individual is capable to engaging in a substantial gainful activity (aka working). Put another way, if you can put in 40 hours a week at something which is as hard as work, Social Security may think you can work. And, if you can work, your case may be denied.

So is your going to school similar to going to work? It all depends on the circumstances.

• How many classes are you taking? Are you going full time, half time, quarter time?
• How are you scheduling your classes? Some people with chronic fatigue disorder have gone to college half time or less, and set up their schedules to limit time in school to only a few hours a day. Or, have several hours between classes for rest periods.
• How many hours are you devoting to school? This is the big question. When you add up all the time between classes, studying, homework, labs, etc, how many hours are you devoting to being in school? Is it close to a 40 hour work-week?
Is the degree inconsistent with the disability?

Ask yourself, “what jobs can I do with my degree?” If the jobs are inconsistent with your current disability, how are you going to explain to Social Security why you are pursuing training in that area?

For example, if you have a seizure disorder and are training to be an electrician, Social Security may wonder how you are planning to deal with the possibility of losing consciousness while working around live wires? The result may be that Social Security may infer that the seizure disorder may not be disabling considering your educational goals, and deny your case.

Of course, not every degree program or retraining is inconsistent with a disability claim. For example, I have had several clients go back to school to become therapists and counselors with the goal of working on their own, in an environment where they can set their own schedules, thereby allowing them to manage their disabilities.

Going to school while pursuing a Social Security disability case brings a unique set of potential pitfalls for the unwary. Whether this keeps you from winning your case often depends on how well you understand the potential risks and the documentation you have prepared to resolve potential problems.

The problem with this approach is that DDS does not obtain your doctor’s opinion about your functional limitations. Rather, DDS reviews your medical records and makes its own determination.

Unfortunately, a doctor’s treatment notes are created to manage a patient’s medical care, and are not intended to establish the functional limitations that Social Security uses to evaluate that patient’s ability to work. It is often difficult to discern a claimant’s limitations from the medical records alone. Therefore, the method used by DDS to evaluate disability frequently results in a denial of the initial claim.

To remedy this situation, obtain your doctor’s opinion regarding your physical and/or mental limitations, and how those limitations affect your ability to work. Social Security is not concerned with whether or not your doctor believes you are disabled; that is an issue reserved to the Commissioner. What is important is your doctor’s opinion regarding your work-related functional limitations. And that doctor’s opinion is missing from almost every Social Security claim file when it first arrives in my law office.

A medical source statement from your doctor setting forth your limitations due to your impairments is often the most powerful evidence in support of your disability claim. Obtaining these opinions is one of my most important tasks as a Social Security disability lawyer.

All individuals have experienced some degree of pain at some point throughout life. The intensity of pain can range from a dull headache, to an agonizing toothache, to the more severe type of pain commonly associated with chronic conditions such as migraine headaches, Fibromyalgia, and Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD). Although pain is a symptom and we easily recognize it when we experience it, pain is nevertheless hard to describe.

Pain can be hard to describe because 1) it is subjective and cannot be felt by others and 2) it is not a visible condition. Thus, a judge assigned to your case may not fully understand the extent your pain if you merely state you have pain. Stating you have pain is not enough; in order to strengthen your chances of winning your disability case, you must learn how to effectively describe your physical pain so that the caseworkers, physicians, and even the ALJ (Administrative Law Judge) assigned to your case can understand what you experience each day and how your pain limits your functioning.

Your ability to effectively describe your pain to your doctors is also important. This is because their reports and records will be evaluated by the SSA. I have seen many medical records where during an office visit, a client replied only by saying “Fine” after being asked by the doctor “How are you doing?” In such cases, the client’s chart might reflect something like: “Patient stated that she is doing fine today.” The word “fine” does not win a social security disability case. In fact, some adjudicators will often seize on something like this to justify denying a claim. Choose your words cautiously – even while at the doctor – especially if your words relate to describing how you are feeling.

The following are some guidelines suggested to help you effectively describe your pain:

Nature of the pain – What is the pain like? Is it sharp or dull? Is the pain aching, shooting or throbbing? Does the pain burn? Is it a constant ache that progresses to spasms as it evolves? On a scale from one-to-ten, how does your pain rate?

Location – Where is the pain physically located on your body?

Frequency and Duration – Is it painful all of the time or just some of the time? How long does the pain last? Do you feel better in the morning? Alternatively, does it start bad in the morning and continue to worsen until you go to bed?

Triggers – What events trigger your pain, if any? Do events such as walking result in pain? Does looking at a computer screen for an extended period of time result in migraine headaches?

Effects of pain – Does the pain affect how much you can lift? Does the pain affect your ability to interact with your children or spouse? How long can you sit, stand or walk? Does your pain affect your ability to read any type of written correspondence, whether it be a book or letter?

Effects of medications – Do your medicines help? Does the pill or injections relieve all of the pain or just some of the pain? What do the medications help with? What pain does the medication not relieve?

Keeping a journal of your symptoms and pain may be useful – Again, pain must be described in other words than by just saying “I hurt.” Keep a journal handy and write down your daily symptoms and experiences with pain. Something like: “A day in the life of X (your name).” It does not have to be in some fancy, formal writing style. Notes jotted down are just fine. Be sure to include things such as pain level, daily limitations, and medicines taken (and side effects). It can be hard to remember on your own how you feel each day. The disability process is long and enduring. Do yourself a favor and start journaling today.

Many people also don’t want to be labeled with a diagnosis of depression for different reasons. I am writing this post to tell you that it is very important to follow your doctor’s advice and get treated for depression or anxiety if your doctor recommends it. It will not only help your Social Security disability or SSI claim, but hopefully help your overall well-being. Many people don’t realize they are depressed, because they are so focused on their physical problems. Since this post is about Social Security disability and depression I will explain why it is important that you claim depression as a medical condition along with your physical problems to give yourself the best chance to win. Let me first say that everyone who has chronic pain does not also have depression but if your doctor tells you do or advises you to be checked by a psychiatrist you should do so. In a Social Security disability claim for some of you your physical problems and pain can cause many limitations and be enough to prove to Social Security you are unable to work. For others, your physical problems and pain may severely limit you to the point where you would be unable to perform many jobs but Social Security may find there is light or sedentary work that you could perform.

If you are getting treated for depression and you can show you have mental limitations from depression or anxiety these additional limitations may mean the difference between winning or losing your SSDI or SSI claim. For example, particularly if you are under 50 years old Social Security frequently will say that although you are limited from performing heavier work you can still perform sedentary work. If your psychiatrist or a Social Security psychiatrist finds you have mental limitations these mental work limitations must be considered by Social Security just as your physical limitations are. So if Social Security finds you are limited to be able to do sedentary work but you have additional mental limitations, then depending on how severe these mental limitations are they may prevent even a significant number of sedentary jobs and therefore you can be found disabled. Some mental limitations that would significantly impact your ability to perform work related activities would be your ability to interact with the public, ability to interact with supervisors and take direction, ability to complete tasks, difficulties with concentration, difficulties with memory, ability to handle stress, inability to deal with changes in work setting, inability to perform complex tasks, inability to form simple tasks, and many other possible limitations.

Depending on how severe your depression is, I hope you can see how getting treatment for depression and getting an opinion from your psychiatrist or mental health counselor can greatly improve your chances of winning if you suffer from this condition and include it in your claim for disability. There is no shame in suffering from depression – it is a medical condition just like your physical impairments are.