Consistent treatment
Therapy notes and psychiatric records over time. Continuity matters more than intensity, and a long ordinary record beats a short dramatic one.
Social Security Disability
Disability Benefits for Depression and Anxiety
Nobody can photograph this, which is exactly why the record has to be built deliberately.
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Assessed on functioning, not on a diagnosis.
Mental health claims are decided differently from physical ones. There is no equivalent of a scan, and the diagnosis itself carries surprisingly little weight: a great many people with the same diagnosis are working full time.
What Social Security looks at instead is functioning, across several broad areas of everyday mental activity. In plain terms: can you take in and follow instructions, can you get along with colleagues, supervisors and the public, can you concentrate and keep going at a reasonable pace, and can you manage yourself, turn up reliably, and cope when something changes.
A claim is won or lost on how well those four things are documented. Not on how bad you feel, which nobody disputes, but on what happens when you try to sustain a working week.
Conditions this covers
Major depressive disorder, persistent depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, and bipolar disorder where depressive episodes dominate.
- Understanding and remembering Taking in instructions and applying them.
- Interacting with others Colleagues, supervisors and the public.
- Concentration, persistence and pace Keeping going, not just starting.
- Managing yourself Attendance, and coping when things change.
Why good days are used against these claims
The pattern is familiar to anybody who has been through it. A note records that you were bright and engaged at an appointment, and that single line is later offered as evidence you can work.
Two things answer it, and both have to be in the record before the decision is made.
Variability, documented as variability
These conditions fluctuate. A file that shows only the appointments you were well enough to attend describes your best days and nothing else. Missed appointments, cancellations and crisis contacts are part of the picture, and they belong in the evidence rather than being embarrassing gaps in it.
The difference between an hour and a working week
Managing a forty minute appointment, prepared for in advance and followed by a day of recovery, says nothing about sustaining eight hours a day. The word Social Security uses is sustained, and it is the word most claims fail on.
What actually helps a mental health claim
Most of it is evidence people do not realize counts.
Medication history
What has been tried, what was stopped and why. A list of failed trials is strong evidence of severity and is frequently absent from a file.
Crisis contacts
Emergency visits, hospitalizations, and contact with crisis services. Uncomfortable to revisit, and among the most persuasive evidence there is.
Somebody who sees you daily
A partner, parent or friend describing what a bad week looks like. Ordinary and specific carries further than clinical language.
Questions
Depression and anxiety claim questions
General information, not legal advice. Every case turns on its own facts. The only way to know where yours stands is to have someone look at it.
I have not seen a psychiatrist, only my family doctor.
That is common and it does not end a claim, though it does weaken it, because specialist records carry more weight. Where a referral has not happened because of cost, waiting lists or the condition itself, that reason is worth getting into the notes.
I stopped going to therapy for a while.
Gaps in treatment are routinely read as improvement. With these conditions the gap is frequently a symptom rather than a recovery, because not leaving the house is part of what is wrong. It is answerable, and it is much easier to answer if the reason is documented rather than reconstructed later.
I also have a physical condition.
Then both belong in the claim, and the combination is often stronger than either alone. Chronic pain and depression in particular reinforce each other, and the effect of the pair is supposed to be considered together rather than separately.
Will I have to talk about all of this at a hearing?
If the claim reaches a hearing, yes, and it is an uncomfortable prospect for most people. Preparing you for it is a substantial part of what we do, and you will know the questions before you are asked them.
My employer let me go. Does that help?
It can. A failed attempt to keep working, and the reasons an employer gave for ending it, is real-world evidence about sustained functioning. Keep any written record of it.
What we charge
Our fees are set by federal statute, are contingency only, and are the lesser of 25% not to exceed the statutory maximum of $9,200.
There is nothing to pay up front and nothing to pay if the claim does not succeed. The fee comes out of past-due benefits when they are awarded, and it has to be approved.
If your condition is not one of these
The conditions we have written about are the ones we are asked about most often. They are not the only ones that qualify, and the list is not a test you have to appear on.
A disability claim is decided on what your conditions do to your ability to work, not on the name of the diagnosis. Several problems that are each manageable on their own can add up to something that is not, and that combination is frequently the strongest part of a claim.
If what you have is not on this site, that tells you nothing about your claim. Tell us what you have been diagnosed with and what it stops you doing, and we will tell you honestly whether it is worth pursuing.
Other Social Security Disability pages
The rest of this practice area, in case your situation fits one of them better.
All Social Security Disability
SSDI denials, appeals and hearings.
Initial Applications
We prepare and file the whole claim. Most clients start here.
SSDI vs SSI
Two different programs, two different sets of rules.
Disability Appeals
What to do when the claim comes back denied.
Disability Hearings
The hearing in front of the judge, and how we prepare you for it.
SSI Children's Cases
Benefits for a child whose disability affects how they function.
SSD Widow's Benefits
Drawing on a late spouse's record, from 60, or from 50 if disabled.
Back Injuries & Spine Conditions
Qualifying with a spine condition, where function decides it.
Neck Injuries & Conditions
Cervical claims turn on the hands and arms, not the back.
Cancer
Some diagnoses qualify outright. Others turn on what treatment left behind.
COPD & Respiratory Conditions
Breathing test values, and the day the test was taken.
PTSD
Reactivity and avoidance, and why the workplace itself is the barrier.
Multiple Sclerosis
A fluctuating illness, assessed on a single day. Closing that gap.
Heart Disease
Measured exertion, and the difference between stable and employable.
Stroke
What is left when recovery stops, and when to make the claim.
Bipolar Disorder
The cycle decides it. Well periods are read as capacity.
Arthritis
Which joints. Ones you stand on and ones you work with.
Amputations
The prosthesis, not the amputation, is what gets argued about.
The three areas we handle
One incident can open more than one claim, and they are handled together here.
Client Reviews
What our clients say
If I could give a MILLION PLUS stars I DEFINITELY would!! I contacted Mr. Steve Casper to handle my SSI case. I filed at first on my own and I was denied. He was VERY professional, honest and upfront about the clients he takes. He reassured me that I DID have a strong case. I got the news today that HE won my case for me!!!!
Kelly Bilbrey
Google Review
We cannot thank Casper and Casper enough for sticking with us through 4 years of back and forth to help our son (who has autism) receive his SSI benefits. From beginning to end we were treated with kindness. They were very thorough and made sure we understood the process and what we would face along the way. The relief we have received is immense.
joanna powers
Google Review
Casper x3 were a lifesaver. I chose them because they practice in our region and understand what exactly I needed. I did not want someone from out of town. Their team from top to bottom helped me in my SSDI case. I tried it first on my own and was denied. Having decades of SSDI and court experience, Robin Partin helped me from step to step to go thru the process and had my back 100% in the hearing.
Daniel Ethridge
Google Review
Steve Casper was VERY professional. Very compassionate. He explained things in an easy to understand way. He took my case after a previous firm dropped me in a very hurtful unprofessional way. He got my disabilty case approved from the very beginning. Steve is worth EVERY penny. I now will have my monthly payments to survive with my conditions and back pay to boot.
Jen Jen
Google Review
Steve Casper and Ben were amazing! They literally did all the work for me and I only had to fill out a few forms. I won my case and absolutely could not have done this without them! They are very professional and kind. I was very nervous about this whole process but their words of encouragement helped me a lot!
dragonmastergirl
Google Review
I highly recommend for anyone dealing with the disability process to contact Casper, Casper & Casper. Steve Casper along with Ben Hite were VERY helpful in the entire process. If I a had any questions or concerns; they had the answers and reassured me everything would be okay. They worked diligently on my case for months and I was FINALLY approved. This team of attorneys WILL help fight for you as they have for me.
Kimberly Moore
Google Review
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