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Stress/Anxiety exacerbated by physical limitations when Appealing PIP decision

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11 months 2 weeks ago #285814 by bpirockin
When I was originally awarded PIP I was denied any points in the mobility component, even after appealing. The Tribunal managed to turn a familiar journey into an unfamiliar one that I navigated my way through, albeit with assistance. At the time I had nowhere to turn for assistance and to be honest, my head was too frazzled to bother after a completely misleading Dr's report, and then what happened with the Tribunal. Part of me feels that I gave them the information to help defeat me - for example, when asked how I got there I said "by car", I didn't say that my brother drove me. I have nothing to evidence my difficulties, I've simply shrunk my life drastically to avoid situations. This time I know that I have to fight, I cannot afford not to, and to that end I am appealing.

I understand that it is hard to prove that you can't/don't make unfamiliar journeys because the unknown is too stressful, but my stress/anxiety is exacerbated by having only one working arm and after over 20 years of using that arm, which was not my dominant arm for my first 34 years, now regularly causing me pain/weakness. What and where the pain is differs from day to day, but my daily activities have to be prioritised accordingly. I have had X-rays and MRI's that show no 'problem', hence the remedy is to rest said arm. Impossible to do when you have only one working arm and live alone.

I also have a blood disorder and brain damage that causes me great distress when things get too busy, or unexpected situations or people present. I shut down in groups and have to remove myself from situations, even with family. The impact this has in terms of travelling is that I can no longer go anywhere unfamiliar alone, even with a satnav. I now also worry about my arm becoming problematic/painful, on top of the stress about where I'll park, how many obstacles I'll need to manoeuvre around etc. My once inferior arm now does twice the work of an able-bodied person's dominant arm, and I live in fear of damaging it to an extent where I cannot use it at all, even temporarily. As I live alone this would be disastrous and require me to need full-time care, something I would really rather avoid.

I cannot take a bus because I fear falling and damaging my one working arm, and there are days when it would be excruciating for me to even manage the walk to the nearest bus stop anyway, due to joint pain. My nearest train station is a 25 minute drive. Due to the stress of the unknown, on the rare occasions I have a hospital appointment, I travel to London via the family home and a station that is familiar to me. When I attended an appointment and found that a lot of building work had taken place around Waterloo Station, I had a panic attack, thinking that somehow I was magically in the wrong place, having disembarked at Waterloo East. It was only with the kindness of a passing stranger who was also going to St Thomas's and saw my distress, that I was able to accompany her and make it to my appointment. I have been once since then and a friend arranged to come with me, which enabled me to again make my appointment, even when we arrived to find that the exit I would have previously taken from the station, no longer existed.

Consequently, on a daily basis if I go out it is a 1 mile drive to the village shop, and once a week I go 'home' and Mum and I go to the supermarket together. She is the only person I see on a regular basis, though I do have a friend who contacts me either online or by telephone every few days.

I'm hoping for some advice regarding the RSI and realistic possibility of being totally disabled if I do not take care of what limited arm use I currently have. My stress/mental health issues were misrepresented last time, and now I need to get it accepted in conjunction with the physical pain and very real (to me at least) potential for irreparable damage concerns.

Apologies for my long explanation, but I didn't want to drip-feed.

Any guidance in how best to get this across, possible precedents etc. would be very much appreciated.

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11 months 2 weeks ago #285821 by Gary
Hi bpirockin

Welcome to the forum.

You might want to have a look at the following FAQ which explains where everything is; www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/guides-for-claimants/faq/forum.

I would advise you to seek advice from your local Welfare Rights Organisation; advicelocal.uk , they will be able to take all your circymstances into consideration.

If you are looking for possible precedents try; pipinfo.net

Gary

Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
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