Does anyone claim PIP for mental health disorders?

[BackAgainSlimLady]

Wondering if I can get help financially for this.

For context; I have generalise anxiety, severe health anxiety, panic disorder, social phobia and depression (I know, I’m all shades of fcked up)

I’ve recently quit my 9-5 job as the stress and anxiety of it all was just too much, on top of being a parent to two young children aswell.

I have however resolved it with a super relaxed new job, it’s only 10 hours a week, a couple hours each evening, fits around school ect. It’s much more easy on my mind for now.

but - money is an issue. We’re super super tight now I’m not getting a full wage. We’re literally living to the penny with no savings ect. But I just could hack it anymore and DH knew I wouldn’t be here now if I carried on.

I do see the PIP place says you can claim for mental health.. but surely it’s not as easy as “I suffer from XYZ” “yep sure here’s some money”

so my question is, if you claim PIP for mental health, how/why/what was needed? I’m trying to get a feel for whether I’d be entitled or not.

thanks in advance ☺️

I wish people knew how difficult it is to get awarded PIP. You have to have real, solid evidence and the whole process can be soul destroying. My dh has severe mental health issues. We both worked full time and paid tax and NI for many years, enough that we both qualify for full state pension already and yet we are both years off state pension age. My dh had a psychotic breakdown and has been left with severe mental health problems, he is on anti psychotic and many other meds for anxiety and depression and will be on them for life. He suffers from GAD and has tried to kill himself and, by accident, me too in the process and been hospitalised many times. I'm now his full time carer. We can't manage financially without PIP and Carers Allowance, which both work out a damn sight cheaper for the government than dh going into residential care. We've had some pretty crap mental health social workers and support workers and that's what needs looking at, not taking away disability benefits from mentally ill people who have had to jump through hoops to get them in the first place. All those slating mentally ill people who claim PIP want to be grateful they aren't ill like my husband. Our lives have been ruined by his illness, we lost our home at one point. We paid into a system for years on the understanding that it was there to help vulnerable people, we never dreamed that one day it would be us. I feel no guilt at claiming disability benefits and the government should be looking at getting their money from other sources, not persecuting vulnerable, mentally ill people who are an easy target.

PIP is based on how someone’s disability affects them, not on diagnosis. It isn’t an out of work benefit. All claimants have an assessment - for some this will be a paper-based assessment, but it is still an assessment. The scoring system is the same for all claimants that are not claiming under the special rules. It isn’t a different scoring system for those with mental health difficulties. For those made under the special rules, i.e. those with 12 months of less to live, they automatically receive the enhanced daily living component and can be assessed as normal for the mobility component.

People don’t get PIP just because they are a bit sad or a bit anxious. They don’t get it without evidence either.

If anyone thinks they are eligible but have been refused, they should request a MR then appeal. Whether other people are eligible or not isn’t relevant to that.

@BeAgileRubyTurtle how do you know you are being ‘taken off PIP’ if you have an assessment next week? Claimants don’t know the outcome of reviews before assessments have been undertaken.

Honestly, to get to the point that you have quit your job and want benefits, all without actually trying any of the multitude of medications available to treat any and all of your very common issues is just madness. You need to try to get yourself in a better place before writing yourself off.

I hope it's reverse.

I hope nobody can claim taxpayers money for generalise anxiety, severe health anxiety, panic disorder, social phobia and depression whilst working 10 hours a week in a super relaxed job around school hours.

What an insult on taxpayer.

ETA: and we blame all ills of this country on migrants...

This 100%

I get PIP for MH issues. I was awarded it without appeal. I sent lots of evidence of appointments, diagnoses, hospital stays, sections. They contacted my care coordinator, psychiatrist and GP I believe.

PIP is very hard to get and you would need to meet their points system.

DD applied for PIP in Dec 24 after being diagnosed with ADHD, Dyslexia and Dyspraxia. We got sent a form in March after chasing it, sent it back then. Got an appointment in June, received letter end of July turning her down. asked for mandatory reconsider 8 August, rang on 22 Sep to ask if they had received letter, yes they had but nothing done. Now they have logged it and said 15 weeks for reply, by which time it will be over 1 year since she applied. It will be backdated if she gets it, but what a ridiculous wait and shows how understaffed DWP is. If the reconsider is turned down then she can appeal. She has also been diagnosed with ASD and language disorder since she first applied.

But it is not what you have but how it affects your daily life and what help you need. we are fighting for it because DD does incur costs that others don't.

My SIL gets it for MH issues. She is extremely messed up unfortunately 😔. It is a very high threshold for 'just' MH by the sounds of it. You only have to spend 10 mins with her to know she is really very unwell mentally. She's been sectioned, has 2 different psychiatrists for different areas of trauma, takes so many pills she rattles, and still has to appeal and get reports etc. every time shes assessed

But I won’t often leave the house alone unless to get to work or do the school drop off. I won’t go out leisurely on my own. I can’t just go for walks or shopping ect, my brain just won’t let me and catastrophises. I can eat a meal, I can cook and dress myself.. so I feel ‘able’ but I do feel like my mental health does limit my life in a negative way.

Re reading this thread. You don’t sound eligible.

I also had to send in a current Psychiatrist report and contact details for dh's psychiatrist. I had to obtain a written report from the community mental health team and also details of a contact there and give dates and reasons for dhs hospital in patient stays since his last review. I had to list all his meds and enclose a copy of his latest prescription. I also had to explain in great detail, and rightly so, why dh could not carry out the day to day tasks listed in the PIP form. I also provided a letter from dh's support worker who explained his limitations and how he helps him. I also enclosed a copy of a report from a DWP Officer who visited our home and interviewed us both (organised by the DWP) then made me dhs Appointee in all his financial matters with the DWP. Even after all this dh only ever gets awarded standard rate PIP and we never challenge it as it's so stressful and there is a threat that if you challenge it the whole award could be removed. I honestly don't believe that anyone gets awarded PIP for mental health issues unless they can provide solid evidence.

This is really misguided. Yes I’m sure there are people who should have PIP that don’t get it and I’m sure there are people getting PIP who don’t need it but it’s well known that the evidence needed to get PIP is massive. I don’t believe for one second anyone got it using just a letter from their girlfriend.

They also don’t kick someone off PIP each time they award a new person PIP. You make it sound like it’s a direct result, it’s not. The fraud rate for PIP is less than 1%.

You are also very dismissive of non physical disabilities. These can often be far more pronounced and restrictive than physical disabilities but you act like only a physical disability is worthy. Being a wheelchair user affects your mobility for example but having a severe learning disability affects every single aspect of your life. Mental health is a very broad term, it includes people with severe mental health issues such as schizophrenia for example. Are you suggesting that because someone with schizophrenia is “able bodied” they are able to work? Would you want someone experiencing hallucinations, voices in their head and urges to engage in dangerous behaviour for example working in a public environment?

Yeah no.. I actually enjoy working but I had a mental breakdown and nearly killed myself so it’s not just a case of ‘I don’t want to work and want the government to fund me’ - I don’t HAVE to work at all. DH could theoretically handle all of the bills on his own, but we would literally be down to pennies after all the necessity bills are paid and we would have very little in the way of food that isn’t absolutely vital.

but I work because I can, I do what I can manage for my mental health at this time. I should hope with some improvement I can go back to more hours and eventually full time again. But it’s not feasible for me right now.

my point is that for what I can work right now, money is tight.. and if I was able to claim PIP for a short term until I am stable again then it would help take some of the stress off, and in turn help speed up my recovery.

but you keep that mind narrow, it suits you 🫶

It doesn't really matter whst other posters think ,you can apply and you may or may not get awarded depending on your eligibility.

My friend's son is getting PIP for severe depression. He tried to kill himself. He is very ill. He spend many weeks in hospital.

But what are you actually going to do, to 'get yourself stable' if you're not prepared to try any of the multitude of medications available to you? If you are ill, you treat the illness. You don't just shrug and say "hey, sucks to be me, I can't work properly any more and that's just how it is...best get some benefits."

I claim for MH. Most of the people I know on PIP also claim for just MH. There are people I met in hospital or in groups in the community.

Have a look at the descriptors and see if they apply to you.
It is always helpful to get some outside help for this. CAB, and if you have a CPN or any sort of support worker then they can help too.

Evidence can also be a diary that you can keep for a while to show how your difficulties affect you day to day, and you can also get evidence from people close to you such as your DH.

Are you on UC? If not, then that might be worth looking into too but if your DH earns too much then it would be wiped out anyway.

It is not impossible but it is not that easy either. I really think it all depends on who is assessing you on the day and how they write their report.

The fact you manage 10 hours is amazing and you should be proud. The people putting you down have no idea how hard that can be when you have the MH issues you do. Stuff em.

This is really unfair. Mental health is not like physical health issues in that you can pop a pill and it gets better. They are complex and usually require therapy too... which is something the NHS is poor at. Most people get offered a short course of CBT. That does not work for everyone and it is a sloppy sticking plaster for what can be very deep seated and severe issues.

It's a slippery slope. It may lapse you into a certain mindset.

I don't mean this to come out as hard as it's going to sound : but drop the hyperbolic descriptors "super super" (it's an American use of the English version) also "severe health anxiety"

With respect, anyone who prefixes their condition with severe (which is pretty much everyone on Mumsnet and always in relation to mental health ) gets a cynically raised eyebrow from me. It's competitive.

It becomes a mindset. You deserve support. You deserve help. You deserve to be treated for your struggles. But my dear , deep down the only person who can action the help is you. I fear claiming pip and lapsing into it won't be long term beneficial....

You think having a dual cancer diagnosis, just requires a pill and we are all better? A disease which can cascade through your body, where chemo doesn’t always work, but you suffer the ill effects of treatment anyway, in the HOPE that at least one poison kicks it’s arse!! The way I feel right now, I’d rather have a MH issue. Oh wait, but I do, as a result of the possibility that I won’t see my children into adulthood!

You are pitting one thing against the other here, and that is not fair. You sound angry about the cards you have been dealt with but that is nothing to do with OP. She is wanting advice about PIP for MH.
I hope you are getting support.

That's a really interesting perspective. I describe DM as having 'severe' mental health difficulties. She was sectioned in 2017 and has never recovered, mentally or physically. She's on so many drugs. She needs 24/7 care. She literally can't even make a cup of tea. 'Severe' is just a way of describing her needs.

Severe is used by HCPs to describe some patients’ conditions. It isn’t not used in mental health conditions. One example is SMI - severe mental impairment - which may have a physical or psychological aetiology. Another example is severe asthma - one type of asthma that a small minority of asthma patients have.

How else would you suggest people describe their condition? i say my son has severe autism and learning disabilities, becsuse he's 15 non verbal challenging behaviour, goes to a school for children with severe and profound learning disabilities, will never live independently etc etc .

Severe is used by HCPs. For example, bipolar is classed as a 'severe and enduring' mental illness.