I haven’t been able to work an eight-hour day in about eighteen months. I haven’t been able to work more than four hours a day for about a year. I don’t have stamina — when I work I grow tired very quickly and I have to take frequent breaks to rest or nap. Dr. Smith thinks that I have idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), and if I do then I won’t get better. The diagnosis may be something else but the past three specialists I’ve seen all agree that I have a chronic inflammatory disease which is likely an incurable one. They’ve tested for the more common diseases and have ruled them out one by one. I have a fairly long list of diseases which they thought I might have but are now sure I don’t. Regardless of the final diagnosis, it is nearly certain that I won’t recover enough to go back to full-time work. I have made the decision to apply for Social Security Disability.

I don’t want to do this. All my life I’ve heard stories of people who fake injuries, or the extent of their injuries, to receive disability and then laze around. “He could work if he wanted to,” they often say. And there have been news stories about the corruption in the judicial system through which most people must go to receive disability. It’s sad that an institution created to assist those unable to provide for themselves is now seen as corporation of fraud.

I’ve also heard that it is difficult to be approved for disability. Friends and neighbors have told stories of people waiting two or three years for approval, going to hearings, hiring attorneys, and filing appeals. It sounds like an onerous journey and I don’t desire to travel that road. But money is getting tight so I need to start this process however uncomfortable it may be.

I go online and read the information at the Social Security Administration (SSA) web site. The site is well-organized and full of information. I want to learn the requirements for disability payments, supporting documents required, and where to file the application. The requirements are spelled out succinctly: have a medical condition on the Administration’s list and not have been able to work for at least a year.

IPF is on the Administration’s list, which is what one would expect for a chronic, debilitating, progressive, incurable disease. Reading about the diseases on the list brings a bit of good information. The SSA is aware that being approved for disability can take many months or even a few years, and that some diseases can progress more quickly than the disability application. IPF is included in the “Compassionate Allowances” category — “a way to quickly identify diseases and other medical conditions that, by definition, meet Social Security’s standards for disability benefits.” That will streamline my application process a bit. Cases which fit in the Compassionate Allowances category are dealt with more rapidly than other cases. This is good news.

The second requirement is inability to work for at least one year. Well, I meet that requirement but I’m not sure how to demonstrate it as I’m self-employed and “unable to work” looks a lot like “unwilling to work.” I’m worry about that later — I need to start the application process now because I learn that if approved there is waiting time before benefits are paid. I need to get the application filed as soon as I can in order to get the clock ticking.

The site guides me through the process of applying online. This is very helpful. I expected to print out some forms, fill them in, wait for an appointment at the local SSA office, and then take the forms in. But I can do all the required work online, and I do, completing the application in two days. Now I begin waiting and wondering. Will the physician offices I’ve listed send my records quickly? Will the information submitted by the physicians match what I’ve said. I’ve told the truth insofar as I know it but there’s always the possibility that I’ve misunderstood something or failed to catch some nuance.

A few days later I receive a call from the local SSA office. The worker tells me that I need to make an appointment to go over my application. I make the appointment and show up at the local office only about a week after applying online. The local office interview is primarily a review of the information I submitted online with the worker asking a few questions to clarify some points. It takes a long time but isn’t taxing. The case workers at the local office are very helpful and polite. At the end of the interview the worker tells me that our state has a very large number of disability claims and so the processing time is longer than for most states. He tells me to be prepared to wait eight to ten months before getting an initial response. Then he says, “No, wait — your disease is on the Compassionate Allowances list and the computer advises me that you should have a response in two to three months.” That sounds much better. The worker looks at me and says, “I’m sorry you have one of those diseases. They’re bad.”