Close Menu

Mental Disability Attorneys in Utah & Nevada

DOES YOUR MENTAL CONDITION WIN SSD BENEFITS?

If you have a mental illness and need Social Security benefits, then the SLC attorneys at Cannon Disability Law can help you. Mental illness that keeps you from working for over 12 months can win SSD & SSI benefits. Perhaps you lost your job because you had a panic attack at work. It is also possible that you cannot get along with others because of anxiety.

Likewise, you may have lost your job because you were too depressed to go to work. For years you may have been struggling with mental symptoms from anxiety. Perhaps you have never been able to sustain a job. Or, maybe you have been fired from jobs after you worked for a short time due to your symptoms. Problems with your work history can be due to mental illness.

If this sounds familiar, are you seeing a counselor or doctor? Have you been in the hospital due to mental illness? Are you on mental health medications?  Do your mental symptoms stop you from getting along with others? Does they keep you from sticking to a work schedule? If so, then you might qualify for Social Security benefits. You can file an application online at the SSA’s website. In order to win benefits for mental health, you will need treatment. There are many free and low cost treatment options in Utah.

WHAT EVIDENCE PROVES MENTAL ILLNESS ?

Mental illness symptoms can prevent you from being able to work. In order to be paid benefits by the SSA your mental illness must be severe. Additionally, your mental health condition must prevent you from working at any job for at least 12 months or more.

In order to win benefits, you will also need medical records about your mental health from your treating sources. Your mental sources should include a counselor, psychologist, and doctor. For example, you will need progress notes and statements from your treating sources to prove you cannot work. Likewise, weekly therapy notes from a counselor are helpful.

For example, weekly sessions about how your mental conditions impair your ability to work will help your case. Those records should also discuss if you are able to do your daily tasks. Your struggles with panic attacks, crying spells, and mood swings need to be part of your therapy notes. Also, ask your counselor to write a letter about why your mental health prevents you from working.

A statement about your memory and concentration problems can help your case. If you have ongoing mental health treatment and support from your counselor and doctor, then it will help qualify your for SSDI and SSI benefits

mental disability needs SSD

GET FREE TREATMENT FOR YOUR MENTAL ILLNESS

Many people have mental illness and physical conditions that qualify them for monthly SSD payments.  However, benefits are only available for those who get treatment. If you have mental illness, seek treatment from a counselor. If you have insurance, you can also hire a psychologist.

Even if you don’t have enough money to get treatment for your mental condition, there is a solution. Free and low cost health clinics can be found on our website. Call the clinics in your area. Then, ask if they will treat you for free. Or, ask if they will give you a low cost payment plan. For example, some clinics or counselors may allow you to make monthly payments. You must have evidence to win your SSD and SSI case. And, medical records are the most important evidence. Find out about the importance of medical records in SSD cases.

Anxiety or low mood due to pain from a physical illness, may prevent you from working. As such, all of your mental and physical issues should be part of SSA’s analysis. Contact our office. We can tell you whether or not you can win benefits.

We can also help you file your SSD application with the Social Security Administration. It is easiest to file an application online on Social Security’s website. You cannot get benefits unless you apply. Therefore, every day you wait to apply for benefits is a day you are losing money that belongs to you.

LIST OF MENTAL CONDITIONS THAT QUALIFY FOR BENEFITS

The SSA has a List of Impairments called the Blue Book. The list includes many mental health conditions. In the past, the list was called the blue book. Now, you can read the list on SSA’s website. The SSA uses the symptoms on the list to determine if you have a mental illness that prevents you from working. For example, if you suffer from Depression, the SSA will compare your symptoms to the symptoms on the list.

Depression includes symptoms such as sleep trouble. You also might lose weight due to not wanting to eat. Also, you might have memory problems and crying spells. You could also have other symptoms such as weight gain or panic attacks. Your treating doctor should document all of your mental symptoms in their records. You can find a complete list of mental conditions on the Social Security Website.

Disability benefits are available for many severe mental health conditions including the following:

Remember, in order to win SSD benefits, your mental symptoms must be severe enough to interfere with your ability to work. The symptoms must also impact your ability to finish daily tasks. Also, your symptoms may prevent your from getting along with other people. All of these symptoms can keep you from working.

YOU CANT WIN SSD BENEFITS WITHOUT MENTAL HEALTH RECORDS

In order to win SSD benefits for a mental condition, you must have medical records. This means you will need to obtain a mental health provider, like a doctor or a counselor, or both. Then, you will need to meet with your doctor for medications. If the medications don’t work for you, then you will need to try another set of medications. The SSA will not award you benefits if you are not getting medical treatment.

Next, you must also get therapy from a counselor. There are many types of counselors. However, you will need to visit one that has a degree in mental treatment. The SSA, for example, does not accept counseling records from a “life coach.” Usually your counselor works with your doctor to provide the best treatment available for your mental health condition.

You will also need to provide ongoing treatment records to the SSA. These records should show that you visit your counselor at least twice a month. If you go to counseling for just a few months and then quit, those records won’t count.

The SSA is looking to your medical records to see if you can work. If your records only show a couple of months of treatment, then the SSA will give them no weight. Also, if you continually switch counselors because you don’t like what they say, then you will be seen as failing to follow treatment advice.

The goal of treatment is to try to get better. If you don’t get better, then your mental symptoms prevent you from working. Your counselor and doctor can submit statements to the SSA that you cannot work. This will help you win your benefits.

WE CAN HELP YOU OBTAIN BENEFITS IN ANY STATE

Finally, to win SSDI benefits you need treatment for your mental illness. If you do not have health insurance, we have resources for you that offer free or low cost mental treatment.  Free mental health treatment is available in Utah and Nevada. The medical records from your doctors are your most important evidence. Our staff and attorneys will collect mental health records to obtain your benefits.

We collect medical records from Utah, Nevada, California, and Idaho. We also collect medical records from other states every day. If you give us the name, address, and phone number of your doctor, then we can collect your records. You can also ask your doctor for a copy of your records. So, ask. In fact, it is a good idea to request a copy of your progress note every time you have a visit.

The SSA will look at the progress notes from your counselor. Or, they will read a helpful letter from your doctor.  They will also request records from a hospital visit or mental facility stay. If you have had a lengthy hospital stay in a mental hospital, then you should let us know so we can collect the records. The best thing you can do to help your case is collect all of your mental health records. Then, submit them to the SSA.

Using your medical records, you can prove that you meet or equal a listing. Learn more about SSA’s list of mental conditions.

WE CAN HELP YOU OBTAIN MENTAL HEALTH RECORDS

If you hire our Salt Lake City Social Security attorney, we can help you obtain your mental benefits. We do this by asking for your medical records. However, if we ask for your help in finding medical records, then please help us. We need your help, because we often need you to go directly to your doctor to get your records. The reason we may need you to do that is doctors are using large companies to send medical records. The companies who send records often charge high fees to send us your records.

We want to avoid that fee if we can. Because that is a fee you have to pay. If you can get the records for free by asking your doctor to give you a copy, then that is a less expensive option. Therefore, we might ask you to obtain the records directly from your doctor or counselor.

We will also present your case to the SSA using the mental health rules. For example, if you have Depression, we will use SSA’s listing 12.04 to discuss your case. If we need to go to a hearing in front of an SSA judge, then we will help you at the hearing. In order to prepare you for the hearing, we will explain the kind of questions the judge asks in court.

For example, the ALJ questions you about your mental symptoms and how those symptoms prevent you from working. Hearings are held throughout the country in hearing offices that are near you. We will come to wherever you live in order to prepare you to be a witness in court. Contact our law firm now and join us on the road to winning your SSD and SSI benefits.

WHAT WE DO TO WIN YOUR MENTAL HEALTH BENEFITS 

You do not need to try to win SSD benefits on your own. We can help file your SSD and SSI application. Also, we can help you file an appeal after every SSA denial. That way, you can focus on your health and spending time with your family. Our attorneys and staff can:

If you file your application for benefits online at Social Security’s website, then you have 6 months to complete the application. However, if you have a medical condition that automatically wins SSD benefits, you should not wait to finish it. Once you submit your application online, the SSA sends you an application summary in the mail. You must sign the summary and mail it back.

Additionally, once you receive a denial from the SSA, you have 60 days to file an appeal. You must meet the time limit set by the SSA. If you do not, then you will have to start the process over again. That means you will lose any benefits you could receive on any prior application.

SSD BENEFITS & YOUR MENTAL RESIDUAL FUNCTIONAL CAPACITY (RFC)

If you are getting treatment for your mental health doctor, then you should also see a counselor. Weekly or monthly visits with a counselor can help you talk about your mental health symptoms. Counseling can also help you deal with past issues or current relationships. Additionally, your counselor can help you develop skills to deal with your mental health symptoms.

Treatment from a counselor on a regular basis can make the difference between winning and losing your SSD benefits. Because a counselor is going to know about your symptoms, such as being unable to sleep or whether you lost your job because you had memory problems.

Your counselor and your doctor can complete mental RFC forms that document your mental health on the job. For example, your doctor could state that due to anxiety, you must be able to take three extra breaks a day for 15 minutes. These breaks help you deal with stress. Likewise, your counselor could state that you are not able to get along with other people on the job, such as other workers, your boss, or the public. Then, your counselor could give examples of problems you have had dealing with others in the past.

This type of information is important when it comes time for the SSA to decide if you can sustain a 40 hour work week. If your mental health symptoms are severe, then chances are that they will interfere with your ability to work. For example, if you can’t stay focused, remember instructions, and deal with others, then you can’t work. Having your doctor and counselor document your mental RFC can help you win your SSD benefits.

OUR LAW FIRM & THE ATTORNEY CLIENT RELATIONSHIP  

Our attorneys practice Social Security law in Utah. You can find out more information about Utah SSDI benefitsNevada SSDI and SSI information can be found on our website too. We also represent clients in Idaho. Learn about Idaho SSDI benefitsColorado SSI benefits information is also on our site. Also, find out more about California SSD benefits. No matter what state you live in, we can work with you.

While you are our client we help you file your application for mental health benefits. Also, we work with you during the appeal process. At each level of appeal, we will collect your medical records. Our goal is to use your medical records to prove to the SSA that you deserve benefits for your mental condition.

We will also prepare you to testify at your hearing. For example, we will review the questions that a judge normally asks. Then, we will talk about your answers to those questions. You can review your answer at home, prior to the hearing. By the time you attend a hearing, you should know what to expect. You should be able to testify with ease. Read here to learn more about your Social Security hearing.

HIRE US BECAUSE WE CAN WIN MENTAL SSD BENEFITS

We know you need benefits to replace your income. Over the past 30 years, we have won over $100 million in ongoing and past due benefits for our clients. Obtaining SSD and SSI benefits for our clients is the only kind of law we practice.

Our law firm has won over 20,000 SSDI and SSI cases. We have the legal experience you need to win your mental health benefits. If you want to learn more about our law firm, then read our About Us page. For instance, Andria Summers can help you with your Medicare plan. She has also won thousands of SSD cases. Dianna Cannon has been helping her clients win SSDI and SSI benefits for thirty years. Brett Bunkall also has years of legal experience helping people obtain their SSD benefits.

Contact us today. You can have a free review of your case. When you become our  client, you will only pay an attorney fee if we win your case. If we don’t win your SSDI or SSI benefits, then you will not pay an attorney fee. Learn more here about attorney fees and how they work in SSD cases. We want to be your legal team. Call us. Find out if we can help you win your mental benefits.

Share This Page:
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn
Contact Form Tab

Quick Contact Form