If you are starting your Social Security disability claim, you may be confused if you have several things that are disabling you. The Social Security Administration (SSA) is required to consider all of your impairments when determining whether or not you qualify for benefits. If you have one disease, for example, that causes chronic pain in addition to a mental impairment like anxiety or depression, it’s essential that both of these illnesses be developed as part of your record.
While one impairment may not qualify you for benefits on its own, in combination these several impairments can add up. If they create functional impairments that prevent you from working full-time – the criterial for benefits – they can qualify you for benefits, assuming the medical record supports this. Social Security considers “residual functional capability.” What can you still do? In most cases, the SSA will consider an iwhat you can still do despite your impairments. Factors include your age, your education, your work experience, and your condition or combination of conditions. Many factors that come into play when the SSA determines whether or not you receive benefits.