Hello everyone, thank you for also being a member, allows us to chat about sometimes difficult issues.

[Shirlee]

I have a DSP claim coming up in 2 weeks fory JCA, I was wondering what to expect.I have diagnosed PTSD and very high anxiety.I need to be ready for my assessment, I have given 3 year's of treatment history and my clinical psychologist report.Is there anything els I need to do?

My beloved brother committed suicide late 2016 so my emotional levels are very high and exacerbated PTSD and loss and grief.

Any kind words of advice and confidence with the system which does tend to fail a lot of people who need help.

Please feel free to leave a comment..ShirleeS

[blondguy]

Dear Shirlee

Welcome to the forums and thankyou for posting with us...The first post takes courage and good you!

I am very sorry for the loss of your brother in 2016. It would seem like a month ago to you.

Since there is no thing as a dumb question Shirlee...can I ask you what JCA stands for if thats okay?

I used to have acute anxiety for a long time....which has morphed into depression. I am also hoping to get a claim through as well

Can I ask if you have a GP/Counselor that provides you with support? I still see my GP every 4 weeks for a fine tune and it feels good

I hope your application is successful

My kind thoughts

Paul

[Guest8901]

Hello Shirlee and welcome. I too am diagnosed with PTSD, so am very familiar with the very high levels of anxiety you experience.

I'm so sorry for your loss re your brother in 2016. Suicide leaves such devastation behind. I've not personally lost a close loved one to suicide, but I have lost loved ones through tragic circumstances. The result is much the same - deep shock and disbelief.

If I understand you correctly, you already had a diagnosis of PTSD prior to 2016. If already suffering from PTSD, we are very susceptible to a relapse or exacerbation of symptoms through subsequent trauma situations. So I am not surprised your brothers suicide caused that for you.

From what you have said, it sounds like you are receiving good care from your GP and your clinical psychologist.

I really just wanted to welcome you and to let you know that the forums are a good and safe place to come and receive understanding and support from other caring people also experiencing mental health difficulties.

You are likely to also find the benefits of being part of this community complimentary to your professional mental health team.

Unfortunately I am unable to assist with any information about the DSP process. Never having been through it. Hopefully someone else will chip in soon to help.

Paul, I think, being related to centrelink and DSP, it is likely to be a Job Capacity Assessment (JCA).😀

Amanda 💜

[geoff]

Hi Shirlee, and can I also give you a warm welcome.

My sincere condolences for the loss of your brother.

Do you mean 'Career's Allowance' you are applying for, then maybe you might need a document signed by your doctor as well.

Can you please get back to us then we will try and help you some more as to what you may need.

Best Wishes.

Geoff.

[Guest8901]

Hello again Shirlee. I note that you've not been back since your initial introductory post. I know some new members have difficulty finding their way back to their original thread. I'm sorry nobody else has come here to offer further advice about the DSP process. But my post here will bump your thread back up again and make it more prominent for other members to see. Hopefully you will now get further responses.

I want you to know that there are people here who would be happy to chat with you any time you need someone to talk to. Certainly I would be. I note your thread title mentions that you would like to chat sometimes about difficult issues. Please be reassured that you can do so any time you need to. Just reply to any of the existing posts here or on other threads if you'd like to. The site is moderated to ensure security and anonymity, so you need have no qualms about speaking openly about any issues (difficult or otherwise) that you wish to discuss.

I hope you had a good weekend?

Amanda 💜

[romantic_thi3f]

Hi Shirlee,

Thanks for your post. It sounds like you've had a lot of support here already so I'll just focus on the aspects of your DSP. As you may know, it is much harder to get now then ever before.

There is a multi-step process to getting the DSP. You need to prove that your condition (PTSD) is diagnosed, stabilised and not likely to get better within at least 3 years. This is incredibly hard with mental illness because Centrelink have the idea that mental health gets better with therapy. There are a lot of people that fall through the cracks of the system.

How your PTSD affects your daily life will be 'measured' into tables. This is where the questions come in. They'll want to know how intense it is and has been, how it affects your day-to-day and how you've coped so far and continue to cope with it. It's rated from 0 - 20; 20 being maximum impairment (which meets DSP criteria). These questions will be hard and they will be intrusive. Bring someone along if you can.

You can access the tables/criteria here - https://www.dss.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/05_2012/dsp_impairment_final_tables.pdf

(Scroll down to page 22).

I hope this helps you!

As someone who has gone through neurological and mental health conditions, I applied for the DSP and was rejected, so it is a hard thing to do, but hopefully everything else is helpful.