Qualifying for disability or Centrelink options

[HSPme]

Hi

Im 25 years old and have been dealing with severe anxiety and panic attacks since young.
Ive been on a number of different medications. My conditions go through phases: sometimes manageable, sometimes not. When it’s good, I can cope with going grocery shopping and a few outings per week. This is always followed by an episode which can happen at any time.

I’m currently seeing a third psychologist to better manage my situation.

I am worried that this may be a lifelong condition and that I won’t be able to get and maintain a normal job. I cannot cope with full time work at this time and I’m not sure I ever will.

I am just hoping for anyone else’s experience in navigating Centrelink for similar situations. I don’t want to rely on it - far from it. I would love to be ‘normal’ and this is always my goal.

Thanks

[Dove20]

Hi,

I don't have much information to share regarding navigating Centrelink... but I just wanted to come and say that you are not alone. I myself am young and have been dealing with anxiety for a while. I feel your worry about not being able to maintain a normal full-time job... I share the same anxiety, and constantly worry about whether I can support my family or pay bills when my parents retire soon.. so this has especially been fueling my anxiety. However, I've been searching for part-time/casual jobs. Maybe you can start there in terms of employment wise? I also know that nowadays there are a lot of options where you can work from home or am able to work in night shifts where there is less stimulation..

I hope things get better for you. I have you in my prayers

[clarky27]

To get the DSP is a bit of a nightmare. I thought they lost my application complained after 18months of waiting.

You have an interview at centerlink and explain your situation. With me it was schizophrenia. If you pass this interview you are referred to another psychologist for what took 5minutes and really don't know what it was about.

You need at least 20 points to qualify. I got the 20 points probably should of documented my alcholism for another 10 points to be on the safe side.

Anyway I got it, but was pretty stressful, and they backpaid me for the waiting time of 18 months. Somehow I got on the NDIS at around the same time. Feel very fortunate and am not up for review for 10 years

If I was in your situation make sure your treatment is complete and you a stabilised. I would be going to a phsychatrist. They carry more weight than a psychologist

Good luck with it

[james1]

Hello HSPme,

Welcome! I also don't know much about Centrelink but I hope you don't mind talking about getting to a point where you can lead your own life in a fulfilling way.

I presented to hospital I think just before I joined this forum which looks like it was 4 years ago. I was suffering quite badly from depression and started to get quite bad anxiety too. Being in hospital took me out of work for a short while, and thankfully I didn't lose my job or anything. But I did lose a lot of friends and basically wasn't really living a fulfilling life for a very long time. What was interesting for me to realise in hindsight was that I'd probably been dealing with the same issues, just differently, since I was a child. So I am still seeing a psychologist now, 4 years on, and also the third psychologist, for those childhood issues. But the difference now is that, like you are trying to do, I've more or less learnt how to manage the worst of my mental health issues and being able to do this means I am living what I would consider a 'normal' life.

So I am not sure what the path forward will look for you, but I am really glad to hear that you are still trying to work with a psychologist to learn new skills. It sounds like you are able to do certain things in life like shopping or going out which is really positive to hear. I would suggest that holding that in mind, and remembering the good times, is going to be really helpful when you do start to worry about your future. With any luck, the good times will become more frequent and the bad times less so.

I hope you are able to work something out with Centrelink, but regardless, please feel free to reach out to us here if you just generally want to chat as well.

James

[clarky27]

Centerlink is a bit of a nightmare on Jobseeker. I was just getting medical certificates for a long time, but don't think that is good enough anymore. Probably end up a disability job center and get stuffed around. Go for the DSP if you think you can't work

[David35]

This is only my opinion from my own experiences. I'm sure yours are different.

See a psychiatrist. They're more qualified, have access to your medical records and are cheaper too by the time Medicare reimburse you. Psychologists are good for emotional / social problems, but if there's anything medically causing problems, they'll never detect it. I'm on a DSP for a head trauma I suffered many years ago. In short, I was shuffled around from pillar to post within Centrelink and the joke I had was that if you didn't have a mental health problem before dealing with Centrelink, you soon would have afterwards. There's no-one there qualified enough to deal with complex issues such as mental health. After being diagnosed as having an acquired brain injury, one letter from my psychiatrist documenting my condition was enough to get me on it.

So it depends really on your situation; only you will know. But there's probably an underlying reason for your panic attacks. Mine are associated with certain inadequacies I have as a result of being unemployed, etc. Maybe getting to the bottom of yours might help in the long run.