How to Make a Successful OCD Disability Claim
When you apply for disability, you can’t just tell the SSA that you have a health problem that acts up occasionally. Your condition needs to be one that stops you from working on a regular basis.
You must be able to show that:
- Your OCD prevents you from working.
- Your OCD would still prevent you from working if you tried changing jobs.
- Your situation has little chance of improving for 12 months or longer.
It’s important to know how Social Security evaluates OCD. The first step is showing that you exhibit one or both of the following symptoms:
- Your OCD prevents you from working.
- An involuntary, time-consuming preoccupation with intrusive and unwanted thoughts
- Repetitive behaviors meant to ease your anxiety
There are two additional requirements in Social Security’s listing of impairments that can qualify for disability benefits, also called the “Blue Book.” You have to meet at least one of them to qualify for benefits.
First, you can show that your OCD is “serious and persistent.” That means you have a medically documented history of a debilitating version of this disorder over a period lasting at least two years. You have to prove this with medical records from regular and ongoing visits with mental health medical providers.
If you don’t have the medical evidence needed to prove that point, you have to meet the SSA’s other requirement, which is that you must show an extreme limitation of one or a marked limitation of two of these areas of mental functioning:
- Understanding, remembering or applying information
- Interacting with other people
- Adapting and managing yourself
- Concentrating and staying on task
Because Social Security won’t take your word about your OCD and its debilitating effects, you also need evidence from medical and mental health care providers of how your condition interferes with your life and how your symptoms prevent you from working.
Items that can help include:
- Results of psychological and medical tests
- Reports from doctors, therapists, and other health care professionals who have treated you
- Detailed therapy and treatment records
- A list of medications you’ve been prescribed
- Records of hospitalizations and medical procedures
- Assessments of your everyday functioning
- Statements from friends and family members who have seen you struggle with your OCD
- Evidence of work disruptions, like missed days and reduced hours
- Statements from employers and coworkers who have seen you struggle to perform job duties
Identifying the evidence that can help you build a convincing claim is tough, but you don’t have to do this on your own.
Our Utah disability lawyers can be your personal guide through this process.
What if I’m Denied Disability Benefits for OCD?
Getting denied for Social Security Disability benefits is essentially a part of the process. Around two-thirds of disability claims in Utah get denied initially.
It’s especially hard to get approved with mental health conditions like obsessive-compulsive order that are difficult for other people to see and understand.
That’s why we don’t recommend going through this process alone. When you need a hearing with a disability judge, for example, the government’s own numbers show you are more likely succeed if you have a representative like a lawyer with you.
Our Utah disability lawyers help people in St. George, Lehi, Salt Lake City, and across Utah when they need Social Security Disability benefits that could help them live more independent lives.
Whether you have questions about qualifying for Social Security Disability with OCD, or you have questions about application forms and other steps toward getting benefits, we can walk you through it.
If you already applied and your claim was denied, we’ll help you understand why and what you can do to make your application for disability benefits stronger on appeal.
We’ll prepare you for your disability hearing and represent you in front of a disability judge.
The Utah lawyers at Barnes Disability Advocates have the knowledge and experience needed to help you get back on steady ground when OCD has interfered with your life.
You don’t pay an attorney’s fee until you win benefits.
Do You Want to Know More About Our Disability Lawyers in Utah?
Barnes Disability also helps with long-term disability claims when you have a private insurance policy to protect your finances if you lose the ability to work. Our disability attorneys have decades of experience and a mission to help everyday people find peace and dignity in difficult times.
