i am having my medical intreview in May and I've been told That i will have to appeal as everyone else because this Athos people pretend everyone is fit to work - mainly because they get paid on results.
Apart from my Hypo, I have a chroic myalgia, which probbably leads to fibromyalgia (I'll see reumathologist at the end of May) and sjogren's syndrome. My symptoms are endless and my chronic fatigue plus a fever I live with have me lying down most of the time I'm awake-not long.
I think I've seen questions or blogs about this. What are your experiences? Is anyone expecting to go from ESA to disability benefit?
All my problems are due to a car accident. Once the claim is settled I don't think I will be able to claim this benefit-although not sure-I guess the third party will be responsible for this. The problem is that until this happens this benefit is my only way to survive.
Any similar experiences or good advice?
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Smily
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i went for my medical and was told i was fit for work im on esa and been told i will have to see a work focus adviser ive appealed but was turned down im in chronic pain 24/7 ive fibro and ME my doc wont refer me to see a specialist he just give me tablet and tells me its something ive to live with some days i get so down i feel unable to cope with life
So how do you manage, deeplydippy? I don't have any other means to maintain myself until my accident claim settles down and that could take another year or even year and a half.
Did you have the right help frm one CAB lawyer? Th one where I live, she's supposed to be very good. I know finding the way it's extremely hard with our condition but you need somebody who can really help you to help you and you need to make an effort to help that person help you too - Think it will be last time you have to go through hell before things settle down.
o dear its bad isnt it..i have fibro and m.e. and am waiting for the forms to come.im not holding my breath...i was hoping that geting d.l.a last month for a further 3 yrs would go for me....but i dont think so.....hope you get on ok....and i think you can appeal against a appeal...not sure but i would enquire...best wishes xxxx p.s. you could ask to go the pain clinic and a occupational therapist to vist you. i found the o.c. did me a wonderfull letter to send the d.l.a.
Hi Smiley I agree with Christine, I went for a DLA appeal in 2005 had help from CAB who helped with forms, I was also told to be very honest & bare my sole as to speak as to how FMS affects me on a daily basis. Have had this now for 20 yrs & this was the 1st time I had really bared it all down on paper!! eg the times I have sat & cried & wished I was dead etc. wont bore you with any more!! I also listed other symptoms separately eg IBS RLS hemi plegic migraines. Well it seemed to work I got my DLA re-instated & for an indefinated period. I have also filled out the form from ATOS so I did it in same way & so far I have not been called up for medical, so my advice would be to tell them HONESTLY HOW FM AFFECTS YOU & I wish you all the luck in the world xx
Symptoms are endles, I don't even think I could put them all together at once having my head functioning as it does but I'm definetely getting help from the CAB, there's no way I can do this on my own. I sympathise with you too, I also get the migranes. Thank yu very much bublebut
I went for my ATOS medical this afternoon. I saw a GP and he was very understanding, also seemed very familiar with FMS & my other conditions. He suggested I apply for DLA and a blue badge so whether that implies I'll get my ESA granted or not I don't know but time will tell.
That doesn't sound as anything I've heard so far. I hope I'm that lucky. I wish you the best but if you have seen a person who is understanding I'm sure you'll be fine.
hi i had the esa medical last year to get the extra £25 on my esa with the help from the cab, and won it and was put in the work support group. but had letter couple of weeks ago saying that it was going to end and that by law you are only aloud to had it for 365 and that the rate i will be getting is going to change and a few other people on here have had same letter. so we are just waiting now to see what the new payment will be before going back to cab and seeing the macmillan nurse that helped me last time. not that ive got cancer but because a member of my family did thats how i come to have got help from her. i wish you the best in this matter.
Extra £25 what's this? I didn't know I could ask for anything extra. What do you mean you can only have for a year? You mean th extra £25 or claiming the benefit which is slightly over £200 a month, right?
What's the support group about? I have so far 3 chronic illnesses I don't think I could make it and that it would make anything for me. Do they try to convince you that you are fine to work?
The link above is the actual training handbook they use for staff doing the ATOS medicals. It is long, but if you look on page 6, that is the contents page, you can click on any subject and it takes you straight to the relevant information.
When you have it, the questions they ask you might not make sense, I got asked if I could put a hat on. If you can, say yes, but tell them how difficult it is to put on. For each question they ask, answer each one as if it was your worst day.
Make sure you have written letters from any specialist you have seen, from a pain clinic, doctor, consultant etx. And also if you can get people who know you to write letters about how they see you and how the illness affects you. The more evidence you have the better.
I failed my medical, but took it to tribunal and won. I used the handbook to make sure I understood what they were going to ask me, and how many points they were going to award for each section.
Hope this adds to the good advice everyone else is giving you!!! Hope it goes well, and will be thinking about you.
I have to go to this ATOS medical next week & i have been so worried about it now, i have afew illnesse's including a brain tumour, epilepsey, Psoriatic Arthritis & Fibromyalgia & i suffer from chronic migraine & my husband has been my carer since my brain tumour - i don't understand why they are doing this at all as i clearly am not fit to have a job as i have fits and i can't move around so easy so i wouldn't be able to hold down any job, this is so wrong and making people worry even more when we have enough to worry about without putting us through something like this, i have so many hospital appointments every other week too it just makes me so upset the government can do this to us - rant over !
I just soke to my gp and its the second time I get the same answer from one of the gp I usually see. They say they can give me letter from the specialists Ive seen and that i am abot to see but that they can't write reports. They can write it if they approach to them but not for me to take to a medical. They say that is not the nhs work and that if that was the case they would have to do it for everyone everytime they went to a medical. Will those letter be enough?
I am meeting him anyway to make sure that they put all the symptoms which stop me from working in my records because they are not there due to them only focusing in the main reason why I can't work.
I recently went to a medical with a client who suffers from Fibro as well as other issues the adice I got from welfair rights was never go alone and take the person with you in to the interview the assessers only assess on what they see on that interview take as much evidence as you have available and when they examinate you if it hurts do not try to do it pastcomfort level and tell them it hurts answer the questions with what you are like at your worst and if they walk to quickly infront of you to the examination romm tell them to slow down
I will, see what happens. The problem is that i don't know anyone who can come with me, which scares me a bit. Last time I was examinated by a spacialist for my accident claim HE HURT ME by pushing me backwards when I simly can't beacuse of my lower back injured I had. I hated it because I was on extra pain for a couple of days and because of course he didn't comment on it and pretended i was just fine. It makes me furious to only remember. My solicitor said and did nothing about it - according to her it's all to the specialist. How can anything be up to such an a.. hole???? Can't deal with it, it just makes me too furious. I am just afraid something similar happens. I am not doing anything that causes me the slightles pain - but then they may say we couldn't examinate her so we don't know or she needs to come back again.
DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE WORK CAPABILITY ASSESSMENT. ...You will almost certainly fail. Almost everyone does. The company doing the "independent" assessments know what the DWP / Government expect of them. So don't let it get to you.
ALWAYS TAKE A WITNESS (call them a helper for your disability) AND BE SURE THEY TAKE DETAILED NOTES.
The Work Capability Assessment is just the first step in a very long process where the benefits agency hopes you'll give up the will to fight on.
Forewarned is Forearmed, so read up on the nasty tricks the assessors play, and keep focused on your just and legitimate claim. It is a game they're playing, but one that you can (eventually) win. Just be ready for a long and tiresome fight.
Right is on your side. Even the United Nations have censured the UK government for its deplorable and immoral treatment of disabled people claiming benefits.
I've been around the ESA process twice now. I won both times. So don't despair.
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