If you have been diagnosed with a mental illness that is so severe you can’t work, you may be able to qualify for Social Security disability benefits. Disability benefits can help pay for living expenses when you can’t work. You can be approved for Social Security disability benefits with a mental illness if you have worked in the past but can’t work now and you expect that you won’t be able to work for at least a year.
Documenting Your Mental Illness
When you apply for Social Security disability benefits with a mental illness you will need to show proof of your illness and documentation of your symptoms. You will also need to show how those symptoms make it impossible for you to work.
Some of the documentation that the SSA looks for are things like a letter of diagnosis from a doctor, psychological evaluations, and statements from old employers, teachers, or friends. You can also submit a Residual Functional Capacity evaluation. The RFC is voluntary but can do a lot to help prove your mental illness is debilitating.
Social Security Disability and Mental Illness
There are dozens of mental health conditions that are well documented and make someone eligible for Social Security disability benefits. Whether or not your mental health condition makes you eligible for benefits depends on the symptoms you have and the severity of those symptoms. You can fill out a claim for disability benefits for yourself or for someone else if you have a friend or relative who needs help filling out the application documents.
Using A Mental Residual Functional Capacity Evaluation
A Mental Residual Functional Capacity assessment is something that the SSA may say you need to do in order to prove that your mental health condition is disabling. The MRFC evaluation takes about four hours to do. A physical therapist will ask you to do simple tasks like standing, sitting, bending over, lifting items, using small tools like pens, and other tasks to see if you are physically capable of working. If the physical therapist finds that you can’t perform basic functions because of your mental illness then you will be eligible for benefits and won’t have to work.
An MRFC evaluation is different than a Residual Functional Capacity evaluation. The RFC evaluation is a form filled out by your doctor that lists all of your limitations and how they prevent you from working. You don’t have to complete the RFC, that’s something your doctor needs to do.
Get A Free Case Evaluation
An MRFC evaluation is a great tool to help you prove that you are not capable of working due to your mental illness. However, the MRFC evaluation by itself may not be enough to prove that you can’t work. You should speak with a disability attorney to find out more about how to get approved for disability benefits. Working with a lawyer that specializes in SSD can help you submit the right documents to get approved for disability benefits.
Fill out the Free Case Evaluation on this page to get connected with an independent, participating attorney who subscribes to the website.
Additional Resources
- Mental Residual Functional Capacity Assessment
- How Severe Does My Mental Illness Have to be to Get Disability?
- How Much Does Disability Pay with a Mental Health Disorder?
- How To Apply For Disability Benefits With Anxiety
- How to Apply for Disability with a Mental Health Condition
- What Mental Disorders Qualify for Social Security Disability?
