Confused!

[gilford]

Hi everyone, I am so confused! I am off sick from work for the last 3 weeks because of a bad flare up, and will have to ask my gp to sign me off again cos I am still not well enough to go back. I can see my working days coming to an end soon and I'm petrified! I have no idea about benefits - people mention 'PIP' and 'ESA' and I don't know what these are? Isn't a pip a seed in the middle of an apple?!! Please help!

[rosewine]

I can commiserate as 4 years back I had to give up the job I love and the benefit system is enough to confuse a saint. There is a lot of information on everything at our mother site so click on the FibroAction logo for that. Gov.UK will give you details on all the benefits for disabled people and those who are sick and there should be a benefit calculator there as well if I remember correctly. . Benefit and Works and turn2us is another good site for explanations and also the Citizen's Advice site.

If you can try to get help with filling in the forms and do try to get it copied before sending it off. Firstly you have a record but also the information gathered for one form can help with another and it saves having to go back and gather things again. Try and get your GP on your side as a report from them can go a long way. Keep a record of all your doctor/hospital and other medical appointments and appointment cards and any letters you have received about your condition as you go along as it helps to do these things gradually and you might inadvertently throw something away that might be needed to give information on a form, better too much than too little. Remember with the forms that you can add pages if the boxes are too small to properly explain any problems just make sure your full name, date of birth and national insurance nos are on the top.

Good luck with everything I just sincerely hope you don't have to go up that route.x

[gilford]

Thank you rosewine I am totally ignorant as I have worked all my life and the benefit system looks so complicated!

[jellynpain in reply to gilford]

Hi Gilford,

It is a minefield and if you get to the point of not being able to hold or return your job it is stressful & upsetting.

I worked all my life, fought hard to keep it but looking back it just wasn't possible for me to sustain. Employer was disability friendly either!

I'd say take a step at a time, give yourself time to hopefully improve and face the rest if it comes to it.

The support on here is brilliant and of course we 'get it' xx

[Hidden]

I too am in this situation - my current "fit" note ends on the 2nd Feb and I feel totally unable to be back at work, my GP is urging me to see my Occ Health dept to look at resigning but don't want to do anything too rash, I spoke to Citizens advice yesterday who urged me not to instigate any conversation about resigning but to leave it up to my employers to highlight the next step, it is a minefield you don't know what to do for the best. I'm feeling really stressed about it all, x

[TheAuthor]

Hi gilford

I am so sorry to read that you are struggling so much with work, and I have pasted you a couple of links to the GOV.UK webpages on ESA and PIP, so I hope that they explain a few things to you:

gov.uk/pip/how-to-claim

gov.uk/employment-support-a...

I want to wish you all the best of luck.

All my hopes and dreams for you

Ken