Social Security Disability Benefits For Headaches: What You Need to Know
Most people think of headaches as an annoyance that goes away after taking a couple of aspirin, but migraines and other forms of chronic headaches can be so debilitating that a person cannot work. If headaches interfere with your ability to function, and you’re losing income as a result of being unable to earn a living, the headaches disability attorneys at the GCC Law Firm can show you how you could be eligible for benefits through the Social Security Administration disability programs.
Navigating the Social Security disability claim process can be challenging. Complicated regulations and procedures that you must comply with lead to mistakes that can delay or defeat a claim for disability benefits through the Social Security Disability Insurance or Supplemental Security Income programs.
More than two-thirds of the applications for disability benefits received annually by the Social Security Administration end with a denial notice, but there is a better way to do it instead of on your own. According to data released by the federal government, people applying for benefits who have representation have a success rate three times higher than those who do not.
Understanding The Types Of Headaches And Social Security Eligibility
There are many types of headaches, including:
- Migraines
- Cluster Headaches
- Hormone Headaches
- Tension Headaches
Headaches are categorized into two classifications: primary and secondary. Primary headaches, such as tension headaches, migraines, and cluster headaches, result from overactivity of pain-sensitive parts of the brain. External symptoms or medical conditions, such as sinus infections, head injuries, or a sudden increase in blood pressure, can cause secondary headaches.
A migraine is a particularly debilitating type of primary headache classified as a neurological condition. Migraine headaches may worsen with exposure to lights and sounds or by physical activity. Someone experiencing a migraine headache may have it for several hours, or it could continue for days. While stricken with a migraine or other type of severe headache, a person could be unable to perform the activities required perform the activities required by the work they do.
The Social Security Administration does not include headaches in its listing of impairments. The listings include medical conditions considered to be severe enough to meet a federal standard for a disability. However, you can obtain disability benefits for headaches by understanding how the application and disability evaluation process works, and with the skilled experience and know-how of the GCC Law headaches disability attorneys.
Social Security Disability Definition To Qualify For Headaches Disability Benefits
If you are 18 years of age or older, the Social Security Administration considers you disabled if you cannot engage in any substantial gainful work-related activity due to a medically determinable physical or mental impairment, or a combination of impairments, expected to result in death, or expected to last or has lasted for a continuous 12-month period.
The definition makes qualifying for headaches disability benefits challenging, but it’s certainly not impossible, provided you have a strong claim supported by objective medical evidence that starts with a diagnosis by a medical professional. Your healthcare provider will discuss your medical history with particular attention to information about the headaches, including:
- How frequently they happen and what they feel like.
- Duration of the headaches.
- The level of pain and other symptoms caused by the headaches.
- Whether other family members have a history of chronic headaches.
- Any symptoms that linger or occur during the time between headaches.
Your medical provider may order neurological and other testing to identify or rule out conditions that may cause the types of headaches you describe. If your provider prescribes medication or other treatment, you must comply with it. Disability claims for headaches can be denied benefits when a claimant fails or refuses to follow the treatment plan prescribed for them.
Comprehensive medical records are crucial in supporting disability claims related to headaches. Your statement about symptoms and experiencing headaches is insufficient for the Social Security Administration to make a determination without medical evidence to support it.
Options Available Should Your Claim For Disability Benefits For Headaches Be Denied: Giving Up Is Not One Of Them.
The application and review process for disability claims for headaches can be long and frustration, with the frustration increasing when Social Security denies your claim for benefits that you may desperately need. Giving up may seem like an option when you receive a denial notice, but our disability attorneys at GCC Law know how the appeal process has turned many denied claims into approvals.
The appeal process gives you four opportunities to challenge an unfavorable decision made by the Social Security Administration. You have only 60 days from the day you receive a notice of decision or determination to appeal it, so contact GCC Law immediately to avoid missing a deadline.
The appeal process, which offers four opportunities to reverse the adverse decision made on your application for Social Security for headaches, includes the following:
- Reconsideration: A representative other than the one who initially made the determination reviews the entire case file. Your disability attorney can also submit new evidence.
- Hearing with an administrative law judge: An unfavorable decision after reconsideration can be appealed to the hearing level where an administrative law judge reviews all the evidence, including new medical records, witness testimony, and other evidence submitted by GCC Law on your behalf.
- Appeals Council Review: An administrative law judge’s decision may be appealed to an Appeals Council. If the Appeals Council accepts the appeal, it can reverse the judge’s decision or send the case back to the hearing level for further action.
- Federal court review: An unfavorable decision from the Appeals Council may be challenged in a civil court action in a U.S. District Court.
As you can see, you have options to pursue after the initial disability review process that can lead to approval of your claim for headaches disability benefits.
Improve your chances of approval for headaches disability benefits with a disability attorney at GCC Law
If headaches prevent you from working and earning a living, there is too much at stake to take on the Social Security disability system on your own. Instead, rely on the experienced headaches disability attorneys at GCC Law Firm to represent you from application through appeals. Learn more by contacting GCC Law for a free consultation and claim evaluation.
Call Our Illinois Headaches Disability Lawyers Today
At GCC Law Firm, our Illinois Headaches disability attorneys provide personalized, solutions-driven legal advocacy for clients. If your SSDI or SSI claim has been denied in Illinois, we can help. Contact us to schedule a free and completely confidential initial consultation, please contact our law firm today.
Call (479) 340-0002.