I know this topic might belong in the employment forum, but I wanted it to get as much exposure as possible, hence my decision to post here. People not yet in the situation I find myself may envision the topic matter ever being relevant to them. I never thought it would be relevant to me, and I want to spur some thought on how preparation for the worst case scenario is always better than being unprepared.
I am wondering how often social security disability is approved on the basis of cognitive deficits only. I have lost employment twice in the last year solely due to mistakes I've made from the effects of fifteen years of MS. Tasks requiring divided attention, focus, and accuracy have been the bane of my existence at employment, and it has led to a real lack of confidence and outright fear, when before the last relapse, nothing scared me. Now I have nearly constant anxiety in work situations. I am unemployed, even though I have been conducting a relentless job search not even related to my degree in drafting.
I was always up for a challenge and enjoyed problem solving in many past jobs. Now, I break out into a cold sweat if the topic comes up in a job interview. Multitasking? Yeah, right. My processing speed is so slow, you might call me a monotasker. I feel incredibly scared at job interviews having to explain the breaks in employment, the reasons for leaving, pondering the potential for future errors. It has me contemplating applying for SSI or SSDI, which is the last thing I want to do. I don't want to admit defeat; I don't want to be limited in income. I am still in debt for the associate degree in drafting and design that I was convinced to obtain, thinking that the less physical nature of the work would be more compatible with any physical challenges MS threw my way. I never thought I would experience cognitive symptoms.
I am wondering how often social security disability is approved on the basis of cognitive deficits only. I have lost employment twice in the last year solely due to mistakes I've made from the effects of fifteen years of MS. Tasks requiring divided attention, focus, and accuracy have been the bane of my existence at employment, and it has led to a real lack of confidence and outright fear, when before the last relapse, nothing scared me. Now I have nearly constant anxiety in work situations. I am unemployed, even though I have been conducting a relentless job search not even related to my degree in drafting.
I was always up for a challenge and enjoyed problem solving in many past jobs. Now, I break out into a cold sweat if the topic comes up in a job interview. Multitasking? Yeah, right. My processing speed is so slow, you might call me a monotasker. I feel incredibly scared at job interviews having to explain the breaks in employment, the reasons for leaving, pondering the potential for future errors. It has me contemplating applying for SSI or SSDI, which is the last thing I want to do. I don't want to admit defeat; I don't want to be limited in income. I am still in debt for the associate degree in drafting and design that I was convinced to obtain, thinking that the less physical nature of the work would be more compatible with any physical challenges MS threw my way. I never thought I would experience cognitive symptoms.
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