Working and Disability?

[JollyBadger]

I have to be honest, I don't really know how the disability thing "works" when you apply for it.

Can a person still claim disability even if they are working just a part-time job, because it's all they can handle? Or do they have to be completely "unable" to work?

I don't like being completely out of work - I like having a job to go to and I feel fortunate that I am able to work from my home part-time. I have collected unemployment and HATED that feeling of being "dependent" on it, and not being out there earning it.

However, even doing 30 hours a week is really pushing it for me. It mentally exhausts me, even on a "good" day. I have excellent performance reviews, so it's not like I'm just plugging along. . .but financially I just cannot get caught up and I know I won't be able to live like this.

Having to pay COBRA when I lost a previous job totally depleted my savings account and put me well into the hole of credit card debt. I cannot afford the medication I need for the ADHD, depression, and anxiety so I am stuck in a rut.

Is anyone out there familiar with taking in some form of disability while still being able to do SOME work? Or is that considered "double-dipping?"

[Retromancer]

A common dilemma with no easy resolution. To be eligible for disability you have to show that you are unable to work period. The fact that working part-time won't support you -- or provide medical benefits -- is not the bureaucrats problem.

However once you do become eligible for disability you can work if you keep your gross income below what is called the gainful activity limit. Right now that is about a thousand dollars a month. If you earn more than that then the clock starts ticking -- you have 9 months before your non cash benefits stop. Whatever you are doing had better be worth it.

My personal goal right now is to take advantage of my Medicare coverage. First time in my life I have time and medical coverage. If I find work I will emphatically keep it below the gainful activity level.

[JollyBadger]

Hmmm. . .so basically, if I had applied for disability while I was still out of work and been approved for it, then I could have gotten my current job and still gotten disability since I would fit the other criteria?

But, since I am trying to work and support myself, and it's just not happening because I cannot work full time, and cannot afford the medications/treatments that might help me function well enough to work full time, I'm basically stuck.

Bummer.