Post by Admin/ Traveler on Nov 18, 2018 18:19:33 GMT
How to Answer Questions at Your Disability Hearing (by Robin Mead)
"Many people overly-stress about answers to questions at a disability hearing because they want to say the perfect thing that will get them approved and they are terrified to mess it up.
Rest assured, it does not really work this way. No matter what you say, you won’t get approved based on how you answer questions. You are going to get approved based on a combination of many different factors. The most important factor is your medical records. If what you say at your hearing is similar to what your doctor has written in your records, this can be a support to help your case.
Please do your best to take care of yourself and not get too stressed. There is no such thing as the perfect answer that will get you approved.
Getting Ready
The best way to approach a hearing is to just be honest and be yourself. You know your story and your struggles better than anyone. Just share what is true for you. If you read through some of the ideas and articles below, you can think ahead about how to accurately answer questions.
If you have more than a month before your hearing, you should not be worrying about questions right now! There are way way way way (way way way way) more important things you can be doing to improve your chances. Check out Great Things to Do While You Wait for Your Disability Hearing.
If your hearing is less than a month away, now you may start thinking about questions. Here’s some tips:
Articles
Great articles written by disability lawyers with info and advice on:
Questions You May Be Asked at a Hearing.
100 questions You Might Be Asked
50 Good Tips for Your Hearing
How to Answer Questions at a Hearing
Videos
Disability Lawyer Jonathan Ginsberg has made 124 videos all about disability hearings! Many of our readers have found these helpful:
All Jonathan Ginsberg Hearing Videos
Last Minute Advice for Preparing for Your Hearing
Tricky Questions!
Below are a few examples of common questions. You may not get asked these questions in these exact words, but the general topic may come up.
🌞 What Activities Do You Do?
Many disability lawyers recommend that when you mention an activity, you also explain if there are any limitations you have or if there is any way that someone assists you. One easy way to do this is to ask yourself this: “How is this activity different now than it was before I became disabled?” If you would like some ideas for how to do this, here’s how to How To Describe Your Activities. Here’s how Petunia’s Describes Her Activities
What Are Your Limitations? How Long Can You Stand/Sit/Walk?
It is a good idea to let the judge know if you have both good and bad days. Some disability lawyers recommend letting the judge know about your worst day. One way to do this is by starting your sentences using the magic words. The magic words are “When my symptoms are severe…” Or “On days when I have bad symptoms…” or “On a typical day…” Roselyn did this when she applied for paratransit: How Roselyn Got Approved by Using the Magic Words.
Do You Take Care of Children or Pets?
Important: They are not asking you if you love your children. They are asking you if you can hold down a job as a nanny. Tell the truth. If you are caring for children, it’s helpful to mention if there are any activities you need help with, anyone who assists you, any activities you cannot do, or any activities you cannot do as well as you did before you became disabled.
Why Can’t You Work?
This is a complicated question, so it got it’s own page! How to Answer the Question: “Why Can’t You Work?”
Can You Manage Your Own Finances?
This question may or may not come up. It often comes up for people with: Serious mental illness, developmental disabilities, drug or alcohol abuse history, or significant cognitive problems.
If you are asked about this, it is up to you how you want to answer. If a judge decides that you cannot handle finances, then after your case is approved, you will not be allowed to manage your own disability money. You will need to select someone you trust to handle your disability money for you, or social security may appoint someone. This is called a Representative Payee.
It is probably worth mentioning that many people hate having a representative payee, and once you get one, it can be difficult or impossible to undo. Learn more about Representative Payees.
Tips for Staying Consistent
Ideally, what you write on your disability application will be similar to what you say during your hearing and all of this will be similar to what your doctors write in your file.
Some disability lawyers recommend to avoid the words “always” and “never” and avoid saying you “can” or “cannot” do something. Of course, if something really and truly is “always” then it is fine to say “always”, but if there are exceptions, it may be more accurate to say “sometimes” or “usually” or “typically” or “when I am having symptoms”
“My Friend Said the Right Thing and Got Approved”
Some people get very stressed before a hearing because they have a friend who says, “The judge approved me because I said such-and-such during the hearing” or “The judge approved me because he saw me in my wheelchair and felt sorry for me” or “The judge liked me because he saw how hard I tried to keep working.”
These people are confused about why they got approved. The judge may have liked them, and may have felt sorry for them, and may have felt their story was credible, and this may have been a small help, but this is not the reason they got approved.
The judge needs to make the final decision based on medical documents. They cannot just approve people they like and feel sorry for.
Optional: A Few Things You Can Do Before Your Hearing:
Read Your Activities of Daily Living Form
The Activities of Daily Living Form is a form that you filled out when you first applied. You may have been asked to fill it out again during appeals. If you have copies of your records, it’s not a bad idea to look back and see what you wrote. The judge will have a copy of what you wrote and may ask a few of the same questions. If your form is from several years ago, obviously some things may have changed in your life or health since then.
Look Over Your Work History Report (if you are over age 50)
When you first applied you filled out a work history report and described your past jobs. If you are under the age of 50, this is unlikely to matter. If you are age 50 or over, it may be helpful to look through and make sure your answers about job duties and job titles were complete and accurate and will help your case. If anything is missing or unclear, you or your lawyer may be able to submit updated or additional information. Learn more about: How to fill Out a Work History Report. Learn more about Correcting Your Work History. If you have a lawyer, you can ask your lawyer to assist with this.
Learn More
What Happened the Day of Your Disability Hearing? – Stories from Readers
"Many people overly-stress about answers to questions at a disability hearing because they want to say the perfect thing that will get them approved and they are terrified to mess it up.
Rest assured, it does not really work this way. No matter what you say, you won’t get approved based on how you answer questions. You are going to get approved based on a combination of many different factors. The most important factor is your medical records. If what you say at your hearing is similar to what your doctor has written in your records, this can be a support to help your case.
Please do your best to take care of yourself and not get too stressed. There is no such thing as the perfect answer that will get you approved.
Getting Ready
The best way to approach a hearing is to just be honest and be yourself. You know your story and your struggles better than anyone. Just share what is true for you. If you read through some of the ideas and articles below, you can think ahead about how to accurately answer questions.
If you have more than a month before your hearing, you should not be worrying about questions right now! There are way way way way (way way way way) more important things you can be doing to improve your chances. Check out Great Things to Do While You Wait for Your Disability Hearing.
If your hearing is less than a month away, now you may start thinking about questions. Here’s some tips:
Articles
Great articles written by disability lawyers with info and advice on:
Questions You May Be Asked at a Hearing.
100 questions You Might Be Asked
50 Good Tips for Your Hearing
How to Answer Questions at a Hearing
Videos
Disability Lawyer Jonathan Ginsberg has made 124 videos all about disability hearings! Many of our readers have found these helpful:
All Jonathan Ginsberg Hearing Videos
Last Minute Advice for Preparing for Your Hearing
Tricky Questions!
Below are a few examples of common questions. You may not get asked these questions in these exact words, but the general topic may come up.
🌞 What Activities Do You Do?
Many disability lawyers recommend that when you mention an activity, you also explain if there are any limitations you have or if there is any way that someone assists you. One easy way to do this is to ask yourself this: “How is this activity different now than it was before I became disabled?” If you would like some ideas for how to do this, here’s how to How To Describe Your Activities. Here’s how Petunia’s Describes Her Activities
What Are Your Limitations? How Long Can You Stand/Sit/Walk?
It is a good idea to let the judge know if you have both good and bad days. Some disability lawyers recommend letting the judge know about your worst day. One way to do this is by starting your sentences using the magic words. The magic words are “When my symptoms are severe…” Or “On days when I have bad symptoms…” or “On a typical day…” Roselyn did this when she applied for paratransit: How Roselyn Got Approved by Using the Magic Words.
Do You Take Care of Children or Pets?
Important: They are not asking you if you love your children. They are asking you if you can hold down a job as a nanny. Tell the truth. If you are caring for children, it’s helpful to mention if there are any activities you need help with, anyone who assists you, any activities you cannot do, or any activities you cannot do as well as you did before you became disabled.
Why Can’t You Work?
This is a complicated question, so it got it’s own page! How to Answer the Question: “Why Can’t You Work?”
Can You Manage Your Own Finances?
This question may or may not come up. It often comes up for people with: Serious mental illness, developmental disabilities, drug or alcohol abuse history, or significant cognitive problems.
If you are asked about this, it is up to you how you want to answer. If a judge decides that you cannot handle finances, then after your case is approved, you will not be allowed to manage your own disability money. You will need to select someone you trust to handle your disability money for you, or social security may appoint someone. This is called a Representative Payee.
It is probably worth mentioning that many people hate having a representative payee, and once you get one, it can be difficult or impossible to undo. Learn more about Representative Payees.
Tips for Staying Consistent
Ideally, what you write on your disability application will be similar to what you say during your hearing and all of this will be similar to what your doctors write in your file.
Some disability lawyers recommend to avoid the words “always” and “never” and avoid saying you “can” or “cannot” do something. Of course, if something really and truly is “always” then it is fine to say “always”, but if there are exceptions, it may be more accurate to say “sometimes” or “usually” or “typically” or “when I am having symptoms”
“My Friend Said the Right Thing and Got Approved”
Some people get very stressed before a hearing because they have a friend who says, “The judge approved me because I said such-and-such during the hearing” or “The judge approved me because he saw me in my wheelchair and felt sorry for me” or “The judge liked me because he saw how hard I tried to keep working.”
These people are confused about why they got approved. The judge may have liked them, and may have felt sorry for them, and may have felt their story was credible, and this may have been a small help, but this is not the reason they got approved.
The judge needs to make the final decision based on medical documents. They cannot just approve people they like and feel sorry for.
Optional: A Few Things You Can Do Before Your Hearing:
Read Your Activities of Daily Living Form
The Activities of Daily Living Form is a form that you filled out when you first applied. You may have been asked to fill it out again during appeals. If you have copies of your records, it’s not a bad idea to look back and see what you wrote. The judge will have a copy of what you wrote and may ask a few of the same questions. If your form is from several years ago, obviously some things may have changed in your life or health since then.
Look Over Your Work History Report (if you are over age 50)
When you first applied you filled out a work history report and described your past jobs. If you are under the age of 50, this is unlikely to matter. If you are age 50 or over, it may be helpful to look through and make sure your answers about job duties and job titles were complete and accurate and will help your case. If anything is missing or unclear, you or your lawyer may be able to submit updated or additional information. Learn more about: How to fill Out a Work History Report. Learn more about Correcting Your Work History. If you have a lawyer, you can ask your lawyer to assist with this.
Learn More
What Happened the Day of Your Disability Hearing? – Stories from Readers