Print

Print


Many thanks to John Cottingham and Allan Netick for digging up the
SSA reference to PD as an "impairment".  I'm trying to determine what
is likely course course of events I may face and what choices there
may be.  I'm possibly starting to poop out.

It's clear that PD alone is not a sufficient cause for disability,
especially if one is working at a satisfactory level.  I'm curious
about what might be the most frequent causes of receiving SSA disa-
bility for people with PD whose work is mostly mental.  It must not
be PD alone, but PD plus some consequence of PD, such as fatigue and/or
inability to concentrate.  This has been so in the few instances I'm
familiar with.  For example, I know of one lawyer who was no longer
able to stay awake at meetings.  (Lucky man. In another type of work
situation one can get fired!  :o) )

Also, since PD is a gradually progressing condition, there must be
a grey area in which it is not clear whether one qualifies for
disability or not in spite of the statement in the SSA Handbook that
you are determined to be either "disabled" or "not disabled" (you
will not receive a "percentage" of disability rating).  I'm not
sure what this means in practical terms, except that there may be
room for subjectivity and chance.

I also wonder about the lack of discussion of fatigue in the books
books on PD that I've seen.  Fatigue is supposed to be frequent among
people with PD, but when I look for a discussion of it in the books
by Drs Duvoisin and Lieberman, there is barely a word on the subject.
It's most often mentioned in connection with depression, but I think
it can occur without depression.  What would be the medical causes of
the latter?

Phil