I am in search of info on how to obtain social security benifits for my two sons. Does anyone have info on this or know how to go about doing it? Another parent at their school mentioned that she has been getting it for her so since he was put on medication. Has anyone else heard of this?

This is just "hear say" but I have heard that it can be very hard to get SSI for AD/HD. I have also heard that people are more likely to qualify for SSI if the person has a dual diagnosis. But, like I said it's "hear say" and I'm not quite sure of the laws.

CHADD http://www.chadd.org may be able to help you.

You could also try the site http://www.addcopingskills.com and click on the "Get in Touch" link. The person who runs the site is an attorney who has AD/HD himself and is very active in the AD/HD communuty.

I have actually heard the same thing, Tara

Thanks so much for the info guys! I got lost in both sites! There is just so much great info. Boy I wish I had known about these sites sooner. Thanks for everything. This info and this site will help to make our family life that much easier. Now if I could just find someone in my area! LOL

My son is ADHD combined tpye, ODD, and conduct disorder. And medicated.I went to social security with all the info and after the schools sending paperwork and his dr too. We will start recieving benefits within a couple of weeks for him.

N.B. I am not a lawyer.

Much like insurance companies, various Gov't programs that offer cash benefits will 'deny deny deny' all applications the FIRST time. (Seen John Grisham's THE RAINMAKER?)

Obviously this is CRUSHING for those who really really need help.

But take heart in knowing that it happens to Everyone.

The trick is: (a) patient persistence, and (b) amassing documentation of how the disability impacts all areas of life (eg school, work, earning power, social effects, concentration -- all the functional things in one's day to day Life).

If this is your case, a lawyer's letter threatening legal action in a disability application will often get a recipient approved for benefits.

This happened with my mom's disability case here in Canada.

I have seen it happen again and again with clients, patients, neighbours, friends of friends.

Ofcourse, getting yer $500 or $700/month isn't a lot of money, but if you can't work, it's the world. It means the difference between living indoors or on the pavement.

Often colleges/universities with Law School's will have student Legal Aid offices. If you can't afford a lawyer [and who can?], you could start there for advice.

Best of Luck,
Emma

[QUOTE=Tara]This is just "hear say" but I have heard that it can be very hard to get SSI for AD/HD. I have also heard that people are more likely to qualify for SSI if the person has a dual diagnosis.


Yup. The medical thinking is that the MORE co-exising Diagnoses that a person has, the more disabled they are. :S

Same as if a person had cancer, HIV, MS, paralysed at C4, and a brain injury -- they would be seen as being more impaired [translation: hopeless] than the person with Inattentive ADD.

The more GLOBAL the impairment (the -=greater=- # of areas affected, and the more profoundly impaired they are (eg social, occupational, school, family, physical, cognitive, emotional, behavioural) -- the more hopeless the person is seen as being for functioning well in the future.

The more co-morbidities [co-existing illnesses], the more negative the outlook for that person's future.

Emma

I would also suggest contacting the non-profit Legal Services or Legal Aid organization in your area (if any) and see if they will be able to assist you with your application. If you fit their income guidelines (be under a certain percentage of poverty) and they have the person power to help you, these offices often are able to assist with the process and provide helpful advice free of charge. If you are over the income guidlines, they might be able to suggest other places to look for help.

ADHD can act like a Frontal Lobe Syndrome. You might be able to proceed on those grounds.

The trouble is: you are going to need a lot of TESTING documentation.

This can be hard to get if you cannot afford to pay for TESTING from a NEUROpsychologist. (PhD Brain impairment tester.)

[Often the insurance will not cover a neuropsychologist. If you are needing to apply for Disability for your kids, i'd imagine you don't have thousands of dollars for Testing.]

Neurologists (MDs) don't do much 'brain performance testing' other than EEGs and fMRIs or CTs or PETs. They are moreso looking for evidence of stroke, head injuries, tumours, seizures, anoxia, or aneurysms. Often insurance will cover the Neurologist.


The EEG just measures surface brain activity.


Imaging like fMRI/CT/PET will not always pick up problems, unless they are also anatomically correlated to symptom/loss of function for that area seen on the results.

Maybe you can get school records or school testing records to help bolster your application?