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Nerve issues after Cauda Equina

EdBot79

Hi all. I had discectomy and decompression surgery in December after weeks of 'sciatica' was ignored by doctors ending up with a visit to A&E, an MRI and a diagnosis of Cauda Equina Syndrome.

My recovery seemed to be going well but I'm finding i can only sit/stand for a couple of hours before numbness in my legs sets back in,followed by pain and difficulty walking.

I cannot shop on my own or do the housework without assistance. I wondered if DLA or such is applicable if the nerve damage/aftermath of cauda equina may be permanent?

This only came to mind as I wanted to pop to our local shopping village but realised I could not manage a walk around the shops without resorting to using crutches and couldn't plan to go out unless I knew I could park close to the shops.

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Comments

Jimm_Alumni

Oh, hey @EdBot79, I just replied to your hello message and didn't see you had posted here!

DLA isn't really applicable anymore but PIP certainly could be. PIP does not require any specific diagnosis.
It just requires the following

Your disability to affect your day to day living or mobility
They have affected you for more than 3 months
You expects the affects to last at least 9 more months

You can read more about our advice article on PIP here: PIP | Disability charity Scope UK

Also, when you apply for PIP you should include all your conditions and how they affect you, whether you have an official diagnosis or not. Your ADHD and Autism too.

EdBot79

Thank you! I've put an application in and had the response of 'we may need you to attend a consultation' etc.

My main worry is that my difficulties change through the day - I can get about by shuffling/penguin walking without an aid in the morning but then later in the day am really struggling- how do they tend to view this? Sorry I can't think of the word to describe it.

Jimm_Alumni

EdBot79 said:

Thank you! I've put an application in and had the response of 'we may need you to attend a consultation' etc.

My main worry is that my difficulties change through the day - I can get about by shuffling/penguin walking without an aid in the morning but then later in the day am really struggling- how do they tend to view this? Sorry I can't think of the word to describe it.

It's whatever you are like more than 50% of the time. Consider also how often days when you are worse as well. Are there days you struggle from the start? Also it isn't comparing pain, just shuffling means you take longer to get around than someone without the condition. So that is counted. It's best if you give them real life examples of how your day is affected, and at the assessment tell them exactly how you are affected!

In the other discussion you said recovery could take 2-3 years, so this is definitely eligible for PIP.