Social Security Disability Benefits

What does your daily routine have to do with whether or not you can receive Social Security Disability Benefits?”

The federal regulations that govern whether or not a person may be found to be eligible to receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) are highly complex, as one would expect from any self respecting set of federal regulations. However, they can be broken down into four basic considerations:

1) Has the person worked and paid into the system for the required period of time? 2) Is the person totally disabled? 3) Is the disability permanent? 4) Does the disability limit the person’s ordinary daily life activities?

The first three are fairly straight-forward and the Social Security Administration relies mainly on documentary evidence to make its determination - medical records, employment records, etc. The fourth consideration is often a matter of subjective interpretation. It is not surprising then, that most of the time spent during a hearing before an administrative law judge is spent asking the applicant questions about their daily activities. How do you sleep at night? What do you do for fun? Do you do any chores or housework around the house? Do you shop for your own food?

These questions may seem like they belong in a television dating game, not a federal hearing on disability benefits, but the answers you give will be used by the administrative law judge to match you up with potential jobs. Bear in mind that the ultimate question of disability is NOT weather you are able to return to your previous employment, but whether you are able to work at all at ANY job.

For example, when asked, a claimant might say that he or she does nothing all day but sit and watch T.V. What the applicant means is that they are unable to get up and move around because they are in a lot of pain. What the administrative law judge hears is “ this person is able to work at a sedentary job where they sit for eight hours and look at a computer or monitor security cameras.”

This is why it is critical to give full and complete answers at your hearing. Instead of saying, “I just sit and watch TV all day,” the applicant should have said, “I try to make myself as comfortable as possible and, because of the pain medication the doctor has me on, I get very sleepy and dizzy, so as a result, many days, it’s all I can do to get to the sofa and watch television, but even then, I’m in constant pain.”

Obviously, you have to give truthful answers - falsifying your answers is a federal criminal offense. But remember that this is your one and only opportunity to explain to a live human being within the federal government why you need SSDI benefits. It’s your one chance to tell your story, so make sure you tell the judge the whole story.