Advice on ill health retirement

method
method Community Member Posts: 3 Listener
in Work

I battle schizophrenia and anxiety everyday. I have tried to grit my teeth and work my civil service job for the past few years. I've taken time off sick every year but not much.

I struggle to work and it's gotten worse over the years. I don't know what to do. A colleague suggested I pursue ill health retirement but I thought it was only for terminal illnesses.

Ill health retirement is such a small amount, I don't think I can afford it.

I'm feeling really lost right now. Any advice?

Psychiatrists tell me i'm "high functioning" but I am suffering so much. They don't understand.

Comments

  • Mary_Scope
    Mary_Scope Posts: 6,051 Scope Online Community Children and Family Specialists

    Hi @method and a warm welcome to the community from me!

    Thank you for telling us a little bit about your situation.

    If you do retire early because of ill health you may be entitled to other benefits, so it may be worth running your situation through the Turn2us Benefits Calculator. Do you claim PIP at the moment?

    We do have quite an active ill health retirement discussion on the community which may be helpful to have a look at and post in.

    I also found some information on Ill Health Retirement that may be helpful.

  • Bydand
    Bydand Community Member Posts: 262 Empowering
    edited September 12
    https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/148893/advice-on-ill-health-retirement

    Hi, sorry to hear that you are struggling with your health and subsequently your work as a result. It often feels like a revolving door when trying to manage a health condition and work at the same time. There often comes a time though when the reality is that you really struggle with both to the point of actually making yourself even more ill….and so the cycle continues. I realise finances are paramount in most people’s minds and it’s easy for me or anyone else to say your health comes first but you do need to listen to what your body is telling you. Making do and struggling for years because you think you have no other options is a recipe for disaster.

    ill health retirement is an option for employees who are really struggling and employers who may be finding it difficult to manage you effectively and sympathetically. You do not specifically need to have a terminal illness.

    There is very specific criteria you would have to meet and these are usually laid out within your specific pension policy. It is a good idea to get a copy of this.

    I am more than happy to try and answer questions you may have having gone through the process myself, but what I would suggest initially to start of with (and you may have done some of these already) is

    1/ Register with the civil service pensions portal, this has a useful amount of information within it

    2/ Read the civil service ill health retirement procedural guide which is fairly comprehensive and explains what you need to know and be aware of. Just do an online search and it will bring this up.

    I won’t go into too much detail at the moment as it can often feel overwhelming at first but reach out if you want to ask anything, I am more than willing to help or just reassure.

    I realise you have posted again on the forum with similar questions but if I can I will answer this one only so as not to jump between posts as it might be easier.

    Kindest

    Scott

  • method
    method Community Member Posts: 3 Listener
    https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1149036#Comment_1149036

    Hi Scott,

    I am still off sick. I was diagnosed with Autism and ADHD. I was also diagnosed with C-PTSD and still struggle with Insomnia and Anxiety.

    It's quite a lot to take in. Not sure what to do about work. I can barely do anything. Just trying to survive each day.

    Slowly going through the guide.

  • Rachel_Scope
    Rachel_Scope Posts: 5,260 Online Community Team

    I'm sorry that you're still off sick @method and that you've had those diagnoses. It's definitely a lot to take in and you need to focus on yourself and not worry about work until you feel ready to go back, if at all.

    Could you take a few days to recuperate before going through the guide again?

  • Bydand
    Bydand Community Member Posts: 262 Empowering
    https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1153783#Comment_1153783

    Hi,

    Sorry to hear that you are struggling with so many things at the moment. I can easily imagine feeling overwhelmed by things and feeling a bit lost having to cope and deal with everything.

    The guide I mentioned is useful and often takes more than one reading to begin to fully understand everything.

    It might be worth having a short break from going over the guide and have a few days concentrating solely on you, maybe revisiting it when feeling ready too.

    The civil service has a procedure for managing time off through sickness. You should never feel guilty about having to take time off, whether that’s a week, month or even a few months but you do need to be mindful of accruing too much time off…..my advice is to get a copy of you’re absence management policy and have a read of this when up to it. This policy will be clearly written and you will be better informed about going sick and taking time off, especially in relation to trigger points etc.

    Have a few days for yourself then you can maybe get back in touch and we can try and work through stuff together in relation to work.

    Take care

    Scott

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