We took my husbands ADHD PIP claim to tribunal and won!

Schanios

Hi Everyone, I just wanted share the positive news about PIP because it is just such a long and demeaning experience. I am currently reapplying for myself, as I am undiagnosed but now wheelchair bound. 
However due to my investigation into the world of disability benefit, I realised that my husband was eligible with his ADHD. We applied for him too, got 0 points, took it to MR and got 3 points. They said that "there was no evidence of cognitive impairment", and it lit a fire under me!! 
I appealed the decision, with an 11 page essay (which took me a month to write!) schooling them on ADHD, how it is a physiological impairment that results in cognitive issues. 4 weeks later we got 21 points, enhanced rate for 6 years, and no need to go to court! To say we are delighted is an understatement. 
Just wanted to share to encourage people to keep going. It is definitely motivating me to get through my re-application. Hope you all have a lovely Easter, and that you may be able to see loved ones soon xx

Ross_Alumni

Well done on the outcome, I admire your persistence  

leeCal

Congratulations @Schanios ?

janer1967

Great news and thanks for sharing with us 

Good luck for your claim 

chiarieds

Thank you for letting us know @Schanios - & congratulations. Now to do as well with your claim....I've no doubt you will.

Carla03

Congratulations @Schanios. 
I recently applied due to mental and physical health and got 0 points. Im so tired and dont know how to get through an MR though. I dont know what to include.
Im a single 41yr old mum of a 15yr old. I have suffered chronic anxiety and depression and been back and to to my gp since i was 15. Iv been on countless antidepressants and had cbt and counselling which didnt help. Only last year my gp decided to send my to a psychiatrist to be assessed! I was told i have recurrent depression severe in partial remission and suspected ADHD. So i was referred to ADHD clinic and diagnosed combined adhd in Jan. He put me on concerta xl but my mood is still incredibly low. 
Anyway, i sent pip evidence of a letter from last yrs psych which mentioned my depression and possible adhd and that id be referred to adhd clinic. I also included proof of my fibromyalgia and mri scan of cervical and lumber spondylosis with spinal stenosis and disc bulges yet they still gave me 0 points even tho i told them i need prompting to look after myself. That i burn food, get distracted and forget about meals, cant budget and been through a DRO last year yet getting in debt again and have a support worker to help me with my finances now. I told them i have pain and can never sleep due to racing thoughts and that im constantly exhausted etc etc.. i was in floods of tears on the phone on my assessment due to humiliation. I hate talking about my problems! But i still got 0 points.
There is so much more to my story over the past few years. I am in LCW of UC and have been for about 3 years due to declining health and been complient with the job centre trying to help me stop working jobs which cause pain and get a career so i started an open Unversity degreei! Im only in my first year but struggling to keep up as im so disorganised and mood dependant. Pip told me i have no cognitive difficulties etc. They have no idea. Its destroying my life! This is why i have a support worker to help me budget etc 
 My decision making skills are rubbish!
Pip also said my depressuon isnt bad because im on a low dose antidepressent at the mo even tho i told them my mental health is under review and antidepressants dont work for me!
All this pip stuff has just left me feeling worthless!
Yesterday i had a review with my psych and he said he is really. concerned about my low mood and he emailed my gp straightaway to say i need to be referred to mental health services as soon as possible. He thinks i have major depressive disorder but i need assessing to rule out bipolar etc and he has told my gp i need psychosocial help and support asap! My adhd psych also wants to see me again in 6 weeks and for the forseeable anyway for adhd but he said my mood disorder needs treating before the adhd. He suggested my gp put me on quietapine (antipsychotic) in the meantime whilst i wait.

Sorry this is long. Im so glad you fought for your husband, i just dont know what to do about myself. My support worker is off on annual leave till 21 april. Iv put in for an MR but told them i have to wait for her to get back as i dont know what im doin! They accepted this. My support worker is writing a statement for me as she sat through my assessment with me. I just dont know what PIP want from me! 
Its like they either want blood or a suicide attempt before they realise people are not coping at all, otherwise they see people as coping perfectly well.

Schanios

@Carla03 I'd like to say im sorry, but I'm not surprised. My experience of physical and mental health practitioners so far has been that people would rather pass you on, than actually pay attention. 
It's sounds like your biggest thing to deal with right now is looking after you. I'm glad you have someone to help you with your claim, and I really hope whoever you next meet is able to help you and give you some clarity about what's going on. My understanding is that female ADHD can be very different from the textbooks, and so psych's often misdiagnose. If you can, do as much research as you can to advocate for yourself, there's loads of stuff on youtube.
My current favourite quote is 
"Magic happens when you don't give up, even when you want to. The universe always falls in love with a stubborn heart ❤️". 
Remember you're important, you deserve a right diagnosis, and you deserve medication that helps you. Look after yourself xx

Carla03

Thanks @Schanios. Im fully aware of my adhd now and understand it. I couldnt believe it hadnt been picked up sooner. It was extremely overwhelming when i was diagnosed. I tried to explain this to my assessor that i failed school and have suffered depression and anxiety ever since as a result. But that the issues are not solved just because i am trialling meds. 
They just said because im under a psych for 'just' adhd then im fine. They have absolutely no idea.
 Just praying i dont have to go to tribunal as i wouldnt bother. Id not be able to cope with more stress.
Glad you eventually got the help you need for your husband ? xxx

Caz_Alumni

That's fantastic, @Schanios!

Thank you very much for sharing your good news with the rest of the community as well

That's really kind of you to look on it as an opportunity to encourage others to keep going. Knowing this, I think it will definitely help to motivate people who might need a bit of positive thinking to get them through the whole process.

You have a great bank holiday weekend

ClarissaJ

I don't suppose you still have that essay lol? What a lucky man your husband is to have someone like you to help! Thank you for sharing. 

poppy123456

ClarissaJ said:

I don't suppose you still have that essay lol?

Hi,

It's quite an old thread that you've commented on. To be honest someone else's evidence isn't going to help you because PIP isn't awarded based on any diagnosis, it's how those conditions affect us against the PIP descriptors. You don't get 2 people the same because we are all affected differently, even those with the same conditions/diagnosis.

If you have any questions please do ask and i'm sure someone will help but you're better off starting your own thread and then your questions won't be missed.

Schanios

@ClarissaJ Good Morning I did a lot of evidence based research on the fundamentals of executive dysfunction and the subsequent cognitive impairment. How the developmental issues like lack of non-verbal working memory, and ciricadian rhythm, decision paralysis... and then tapered that to an argument surrounding my husbands issues. It was especially difficult because he works, so we had to get evidence from his work about how they have naturally made adjustments for him. 
Please have a look at Dr Russell Barkley's lectures on Youtube. My husband has watched them over and over, as he likes to understand 'the why and how' of his condition. There's loads of good stuff to use on there to explain behaviours and difficulties. 
Wishing you all of the best.

Schanios

@Username_removed Thanks for your opinion. I don't think its sad, that I worked hard within the system, and won because I created a undeniable argument. My husband said nothing, because he was not capable of applying himself, so I know for a fact we won based on my words. I appreciate that there is 'no magic bullet', but definitely a little unnecessary to belittle my efforts. I shared this originally only to show that there is hope in the system, because I have struggled through two separate PIP applications, gone to MR twice myself, and appeal for my husband and eventually been awarded what we deserve. None of our combined conditions are widely acknowledged by the PIP process, and I have spent months of writing and researching between spells of being bed bound to get there. So please understand I'm not preaching some ideal that its easy, but I certainly didn't get to where I am based on luck.

Schanios

@Username_removed no I didn't.
Still not sure why you're going out of your way to dismantle, what was originally pride in my efforts, and a continued confidence that I could be helpful to others. Congratulations though, you've definitely put me off sharing in the community in the future. 

zazar

I would love some info on where you sourced your information please. I have ADHD, I've been told it's severe and being reffered to check for Autism too, I've struggled for almost 38 years, the support to be able to apply would be amazing. So glad it worked out for you. 

jaderebeccal

Hi, I’m currently in the exact same situation. Got 0 and got told “You have no diagnosed cognitive impairment and you do not receive any specialist mental health input and you receive first-line anti-depressant medication”.

I’ve just called to start a MR telling them guy that ADHD is a developmental disorder affects your cognitive function and includes mental health. I also take 150mg sertraline and have done for years, which isn’t a low dose, so the fact that they can give me zero and essentially tell me my diagnosis is BS is astounding.

Any chance I could view a copy of your essay? I’m anticipating needing to write my own because the people on the phone seemed bored and unenthused listening to my apparently fake diagnosis that doesn’t affect me in any way.

chili14

I’ve got several neurological issues and I’ve been told the “you have no cognitive impairment”.

because they know better than my neuro team

poppy123456

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/491262#Comment_491262

PIP isn't about a diagnosis, it's how those conditions affect your ability to complete the 12 PIP activies. Asking someone else if you can view what they sent isn't going to help you because we're all affected differently by these conditions and no 2 people are the same.

What you need to do is state clearly where and why you think you should have scored those points. Adding a couple of real world incidents of exactly what happened the last time you attempted that activity. Include information such as where you were, what exactly happened, did anyone see it and what the consequences were.

jaderebeccal

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/491742#Comment_491742

Well because of my cognitive issues I get overwhelmed at big tasks, so seeing that example would help.

Ncee

Hi Schanios. would you be able to message me? I could really do with some help and advice Im 39 and suffer from ADHD I was diagnosed 2 years ago and have just had my MRN desicion where I scored 0 points on both daily living and mobility. We sent a 9 page letter showing how I've had undiagnosed adhd since a child and how it has affected my life but still got awarded no points. When I got the diagnoses it felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders and that there might be some light at the end of the tunnel but this has hit me hard and left me feeling completely defeated.

poppy123456

Ncee said:

Hi Schanios. would you be able to message me? I could really do with some help and advice Im 39 and suffer from ADHD I was diagnosed 2 years ago and have just had my MRN desicion where I scored 0 points on both daily living and mobility. We sent a 9 page letter showing how I've had undiagnosed adhd since a child and how it has affected my life but still got awarded no points. When I got the diagnoses it felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders and that there might be some light at the end of the tunnel but this has hit me hard and left me feeling completely defeated.

It's not unusual for the MR decision to stay the same, only 27% of MR decisions change. As PIP isn't awarded based on any diagnosis, it's impossible to compare yourself to someone else. Whether you qualify for PIP will totally depend on how your conditions affect you against the PIP descriptors.

Your next step is to request the Tribunal. Information for that here. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/benefits-introduction/problems-with-benefits-and-tax-credits/challenging-benefit-decisions/challenging-a-decision-by-the-dwp-or-hmrc/appealing-against-a-benefit-decision/

You also mention a 9 page letter telling them how your conditions have affected you from childhood. They don't need to know your life story because it would be too much information and less is often more.

You need to concentrate on giving a couple of real world examples of exactly what happened the last time you attempted each descriptor that applies to you. Include detailed information such as where you were, what exactly happened, did anyone see it and what the consequences were. Your main priority will be to just request the Tribunal first with a brief reason why you disagree with the decision. The rest can be done at a later date.