I don't want to do this...

This post is hard for me to write. I do not like discussing my health, or the ins and outs of my benefits with anyone. But this government, and in particular this document http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/m-1-13.pdf is forcing me to.. Please share so at least its been worth it.

I have an interesting (well thats one way to call it) impairment. I collapse, without warning and for however long. It takes a long time for me to recover from these. Last summer I also starting fitting, alot.

After referal to the hospital and various tests for epilepsy it was concluded that this physical health problem resulted from stress. Or that is it at its most basic level. I have dissociative seizures.

Last summer I filled out my ESA50. Quite rightly I put all the information about the collapses in the box about loss or altered concioussnes. Quite rightly, because of the severity of them, I was put into the support group for a year.

However, the document I referred to above states this:

18 From 28.1.13, when assessing the extent of the claimant’s LCWRA, it is a condition that the claimant’s inability to perform
1.
physical descriptors arises
1.1 from a specific bodily (i.e. physical) disease or disablement or
1.2 as a direct result of treatment by a registered medical practitioner for such a condition and
2.
mental descriptors3 arises
2.1 from a specific mental illness or disablement or
2.2 as a direct result of treatment by a registered medical practitioner for such a condition

So, where does that leave me?

It would appear down a massive black hole created by the government to save yet more money. My needs, condition and ability to work wont have changed from last summer, and I was lucky to even get into the support group in the first place. However, now, that would seem highly impossible, what the hell is going on?

I have to admit this is the same with my bus pass. I get this because of the same condition, and when i went to get my form I was asked if I needed the physical or mental health bus pass forms. In the end I was given both, because neither of us could decide.

The problem, the BIG problem is, that one thing has an impact on the other. It is impossible to split the two areas up and think that they wont impact on each other. I am currently sitting here, snowbound. Whatever the reason behind it (whether phyiscal or mental health) it still leaves me feeling depressed and isolated, a mental health problem).

It is simply impossible and stupid to try and do this, unless of course they are trying to save money. And heres me thinking that the benefit was there to help people who cant work because they are sick.

damn those boxes they want to put us in are getting smaller huh?

The security of information from the government

Aside from the current farce i am experiencing from the jobcentre regarding my actual claim, the phone call i just made to the jcp tops my list of stupidity.
You see, we have this new fangled system when you ring up the jobcentre, where you divulge your personal information to a robot before being connected to a human. It is, meant to make things simpler and easier on both sides, quite simply though, it doesn't.
Having gone through the process and queued in the conga line of joyous music for five minutes i was met by a jobsworth only found working at the government.

"you have failed the security questions, so i will have to ask you some more"

fair enough me thinks, im dyslexic so am prone to making stupid mistakes. After reeling off everything from my address, shoe size and inside leg measurement to the lovely guy on the end of the phone he came to the conclusion i must have been a fraud.

"im sorry madam, you have failed to answer these questions correctly so i am sorry i wont be able to help you today"

i politely requested that we start from scratch and actually check that he was actually trying to access my records.
"im sorry madam, i cant do that. You will have to ring again and repeat the process"
obviously getting upset by this point i tried explaining to him that i am dislexic and am sometimes unable to put numbers into their correct order. The reply?

"im sorry, if you cant do it yourself, then youll need to have someone else to help you"

i was so upset by this i terminated the call and curled up into a disheveled state.

The problem is, ironically, that the jobcentre demands this level of security to prevent fraudulent access to my claim. I am meant to be the only person who can access it. So, failing that, and having to divulge this information to someone else, surely defeats the object of the system? (apart from anything else the only person i trust is more dislexic than me, go figure).

I feel like its the same as those situations you hear about where shop and bank workers think its ok to ask a disabled person for their pin number.. If i cant access my own benefit claim anymore (and lets not even go there with the fact i cant telephone people most days) then what hope do i have?