Experiences with claiming

GaynorA

Hey all.  I am very interested to hear all your views and experiences relating to claiming ESA, PIP and AA. Sometimes it really helps to know you are not the only one going through the stress, panic attacks and desperation that result from face to face assessments.  I just had to switch from DLA (indefinite award) to PIP.  I was terrified.  My anxiety sky rocketed.  My depression worsened, My pain control went out the window because I was too stressed to sleep - and so, as many of you have probably experienced, my pain threshold dropped.  I am one of the fortunate ones to actually have my application succeed (higher rate mobility AND care) - but, by the time the assessor left, I was in tears having a MASSIVE panic attack.  I know that it is notoriously hard to "prove" that you need support - especially when you need to claim on grounds of mental health difficulties.  I know that it is an exercise in humiliation and very traumatic to have to explain your life away to a complete stranger who, essentially, is there to pass judgement on you.  Recently I have been reading about people who are turned down for PIP and end up suicidal, and sometimes ending their lives.  One commentator made the best observation I have yet seen about the debacle that is our current benefit system.  He described it as "genocide in slow motion" - delivered against disabled people by the people in power.  Genocide: "the deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of a particular nation or ethnic group." Sounds familiar doesn't it - and I don't think it is simply scaremongering.  Too many people are dying in this PIP/ESA/AA system.  Let me know your experience.

poppy123456

Hi and welcome,

I'm a community champion here on scope.

Good to hear that your DLA to PIP transfer was successful and you were awarded PIP at the Enhanced rate for both parts. It's always good to hear the good stories because on any internet forum it's only natural that we mostly only hear the bad stories. If someone's had a decision they're happy with they have no questions to ask so we don't hear their story.

I wouldn't go as far as saying too many people are dying with the benefit system, if that was the case then we'd hear more of those stories but we don't.

Personally, i've never had any bad experiences with my PIP and ESA claim and same for my daughters PIP claim. I've been claiming ESA and PIP since 2013 and my daughter's been claiming PIP since 2017 and neither of us claimed DLA, infact we were both refused DLA.

I can't comment on AA because there's very few stories about this benefit.

All i can say it that you have Enhanced for both parts so please try to relax for now and put it all at the back of your mind, at least until your next review, whenever that maybe. If we all continued our anger even after claiming successfully, then we'd never sleep.

positivemama

Greetings Gaynor,

Pleasure to meet you. Thank you for sharing your story, for people like me just now starting all the paperwork it's helpful to know how it affects others too. Am happy for you that you got both parts of the dla. Rest all you can now and shower yourself with love.

Best regards
Positive Mama.