Hi, my name is Kittianna!

Kittianna

Hi everyone. I've been diagnosed as having Ankylosing spondylitis with a positive HLA B27 gene. 
I'm 55 and have always suffered with neck back pain on and off from my twenties. 
I went through a number of years of stress and in October 2015 I was struck down with horrendous pain in my groins, my knees, me intercostal muscles and my lower back and neck. 
After a time of being pushed from pillar to post I got my diagnosis. 
I lost my contracted job as a nurse but continue to work as a nurse through our nurse bank system. Basically, zero hours contract , pick and choose shifts , shifts can be cancelled - no sick pay !! I've kept my pension though but as I'm on the final salary one this will be significantly less now as I simply can't put in the necessary hours. 
I qualified for PIP and got it but I queried something , I noticed I had no points for mobility , they then took the lot off me. I'm currently awaiting a tribunal. 
So that's me and I thought it would be good to hear from others who have the same disorder. 
You feel less alone when there are others in the same boat as it were. 
I'm new to forums so not sure how it works. 
So .... Let me give it a whirl ... And get through the novice part without too many hiccups! 
Looking forward to hearing from you all. X ( do I put kisses ?? ) or is that not PC ? Lol. 

Pippa_Alumni

Hi @Kittianna, and a warm welcome to the community. Great to have you here!

Thanks for sharing this with us. I'm glad to hear you finally have a diagnosis, although I'm sorry to hear about your pain and the issues you've had with work.

Wishing you all the best with your tribunal. Many of our members have been through the process themselves, so do feel free to post any queries in our PIP/DLA discussions and we'll do our best to advise. In the meantime, you may find Scope's guidance on appealing DWP decisions helpful. I hope today's as kind as possible to you!

Ami2301

Hi @Kittianna welcome to the community!