Ok who wants to swap £2500 a month in benefits for my husbands MS and my epilepsy, narcolepsy and fibromyalgia.

[bluebirdblackbird]

Well according to a lot of people on here we are on a good thing.

the 20 seizures I have in a week, chronic pain and night terrors, losing my memory after a seizure, pissing myself, hallucinations. They are all great fun. Not to mention the amount of times I have been accused of being drunk after a seizure.

or there is my husband. Diagnosed with progressive MS. Cronic Pain, shaking, cronic pins and needles, weakness in limbs plus losing mobility. Had to give up his teaching job 4 months ago after gradually reducing hours.

Not to mention the judgement when we use a blue badge because we look ok in that moment. And apparently labour are going to find us both work. Yippee cant wait to meet the employer who is going to take us both on. I am sure pissing my chair on a reg basis won’t matter to them or the losing counciouness at least a couple of times a day.

i am just fed up of yet another they are on benefits and get money and it’s not fair stamp stamp stamp. The bastards have saved up for a holiday- it’s not fair. The bastards have a mobility car but they look fine, OMG- they have got new carpets or a new sofa.

since I am guessing they none of the moaners would actually swap places with us if they could then STFU.

oh and that pip that is easy to get- my husband gets lower rate for both and that is despite providing all the evidence and appealing so we are off to tribunal. He can’t even dress himself most days and he can’t hold a pan safely or manage his medication plus many other things. If he stays on the points he is on he will lose his pip completely under these new labour proposals.

but most people know someone who’s friends, aunts, nephews, stepdaughters, cousin twice removed who lied and got it. I was taking to a lady in a wheelchair who does not get any mobility component of pip at all.

Agreed, but clearly it's becoming an issue..

The government says spending on PIP is expected to grow by 52% from 2023/24 to £32.8bn by 2027/28. The number of monthly new claimants in England and Wales, where the main condition was anxiety and depression, grew from an average of 2,200 a month in 2019 to 5,300 a month last year.

This is simply unsustainable and what is jeopardising the claims for the people like the OP who really need it.

I wouldn't swap, and I'm sorry for your troubles.

I do know people who take the piss though. It is perfectly possible to be both sympathetic towards you, but have no time for malingerers.

Must be other benefits too, you wouldn't just get pip and nothing else

OP, anyone begrudging you can fuck off. This government is shit

I have MS it’s shit, I receive PIP only, but yep if anyone would like to take my MS and get my PIP good luck to them, they would soon regret it. Look after each other OP, wishing you all the very best.

I have painful and debilitating physical health conditions and mental health conditions (won't list everything here) and don't get 2500 a month on benefits. I get just over 500 month PIP, which I didn't have to go to tribunal for (that's how messed up my health is) , and work full time from home.

I wouldn't mind not working and being able to get more than what I earn now in benefits. At all. That would be wonderful. Life would be so much more worth living.

Not sure I'd actually swap, better the devil you know and all that.

Again I agree but I think we need to be also mindful of we have a failing nhs, shockingly horrific mental health services especially in some parts of the country and we've just been through a pandemic which has really effected a lot of people. Also the world is such a different place to even 10 years ago people arent out and about getting fresh air and exercise there behind screens.So I don't think its that surprising overall people are struggling more.

I've just been diagnosed with MS, and I'm not even going to bother applying. The shit that you have to go through is abhorrent.

I'm so sorry op.

It's not about people who have genuine illnesses. Obviously anyone who genuinely can't work should be assisted by the state. However, I think that there is a lot of misunderstanding on both sides of this argument. Working people get frustrated by the number of people saying "we only get £2.5k a month", because £2.5k is a good salary after tax, and they may be struggling to survive on that as a family. It is a bit of a smack in the face when some people complain that it's not enough to live on. I think some benefits claimants don't realise how little people are left with after tax, etc. And working people still have bills.

Additionally, some people do game the system. And others could work but don't. So they could receive PIP plus work part time, but make a life choice not to. For example, I used to work with someone who was legally blind, but with adaptive technology and a guide dog, came to work every day and was in a high flying career. Others would make a different choice.

Another person who is deaf that I know has never worked. Ever. I get that it is more difficult for them to find a job, for example they couldn't work in a call centre, but they could work. The PIP should be available to both the people discussed but to support them to independently live (clue is in the name PIP), and not be a golden ticket to not ever working when you can.

I'm not saying this applies to you OP, but that's the point. When people who could work even with disability, it makes life difficult for those who literally can't.

I hope you and DH are OK.

Edited to correct spelling.

This. As someone who volunteers at the CAB it’s really upsetting the number of people who come in to complete their PIP forms and then say “oh well I suppose I’ll just play the mental health card again”. As much as I love volunteering there when I help those in real need it’s really difficult to hear people think they can just use mental health as an excuse.

Those genuinely in need should have help and that’s what your situation sounds like. I don’t think anyone thinks you shouldn’t be on benefits. Your situation is what the benefits system has been designed for.

I 100% agree with you. I work in an industry where we have contact with people who need MH support and it is just utterly woeful in this country. I get so frustrated trying to get people help they clearly need and constantly get fobbed off.

It feels very chicken and egg. The benefit bill needs to come down so there is money to invest in MH services, but without MH services helping people they won't be able to come off benefits/not go on benefits, and round and round we go.

In the meantime, the OP and other PPs pay the price.

Can I just say I know its early on but it's so nice to have a benefit thread that is full of people actually listening, being polite, mindful and understanding without all the name calling and nastiness these threads often bring 🥰

OP hugs for you. Unfortunately as always the minority have ruined it for those that actually need things like PIP and DLA. My oldest gets DLA because he has 3 diagnosed medical conditions and needs loads of support including a designated long term specialist support school placement (they are like gold dust and he got one easily). You would not know he has these conditions to look at because other than being very small for his age you can't see them. He also has a blue badge though we only use it when he needs it.

Unfortunately I have seen a shift in the last few years were some parents actually want there child diagnosed with these conditions and in some cases it's to get benefits. One particular parent I know is determined both her kids have these conditions despite multiple professionals saying they don't.

There are people abusing the system and unfortunately that means genuine claimants have a much harder life because of it. My advice would be don't speak to anyone about what you get as you don't know there motives.

I’ve found disabled people equally as judgmental. The lady who received some disability benefits who had a go at my daughter and asked why she was receiving some disability benefits also - because she couldn’t visibly see her disability. People can be ignorant. The benefits my daughter receives do enable and facilitate her to work which is the point of PIP after all. It’s not an unemployment benefit. But then she is judged for being able to work. The best way we have found to deal with it all is not to tell anyone, not to discuss benefits whatsoever, not to make it anyone’s business. I suggest you also do the same.

There’s always going to be a section of society that works hard and doesn’t get enough to comfortably get by. They will look at a benefit claiming neighbour who appears to live in garden centres eating coffee and cake and be resentful.

There will always be that overlap, and the people they are angry with are not the OP and others on this post.

I hope everyone who needs support still has it after the coming restructuring. I know how scared people are.

I think that is the bit people miss - PIP is an in work benefit, many people in receipt of it (like me) work. But it enabled me to reduce my hours to part time, which I hope to be able to keep going in for many years now my condition has stabilised (not cured, just not getting worse)

Without it, I wouldn't have been able to afford to buy a 2nd hand car when mine was written off by an idiot, and then couldn't have got to work.

And mine is one of those invisible disabilities which means I look fine(ish) but am in pain every day.

If two people can't earn 2.5k a month there is something very wrong with thos country plus your not getting it do you have any idea the extra washing the extra clothes bedding etc cost? Because no matter how many times you wash they will start to smell of piss

Your jealous over people who smell of piss and can't help it

I agree with the whole keeping it to yourself as nothing good comes from it. I would even go as far as keeping certain diagnosis private where possible and only on a need to know basis. Nobody even knows I have bpd and bipolar apart from medical professionals. Which I would also be mindful of when people say they have friends/family/colleagues, neighbours etc on pip when they don't need to be. It's highly unlikely you know the whole the story

Same I work but can only work part time

Another person who is deaf that I know has never worked. Ever. I get that it is more difficult for them to find a job, for example they couldn't work in a call centre, but they could work. The PIP should be available to both the people discussed but to support them to independently live (clue is in the name PIP), and not be a golden ticket to not ever working when you can.

It’s incredibly hard to work if you’re deaf. It’s not just whether you can use a phone, it’s communicating with your employer and your team, understanding and being understood. There’s a huge lack of awareness about the way deaf people make sense of the world around them and the extent to which they need to fill in the gaps in communication. Many workplaces just don’t have the willingness or the capacity to accept and accommodate the needs of people who are deaf.

Errr are you okay? Your post makes no sense (grammatically or literally).

I don’t think the government has ever said they are getting all disabled people into work. But there is a scale, and clearly some people are never going to be well enough to hold down a job. But there are people at the opposite end of the scale to you, who can manage to do lots of things but can’t work. Despite what posters say on here, we all know someone who is in the category of those the government is trying to get into work. I certainly know a couple.

The sheer number of claims is the issue. I know that posts like OP's are designed to shut down debate but the reality is that the current system is unsustainable and things need to change. I know OP doesn't feel like the level of financial support for disabled people is great but it is enough to encourage those who feel that they don't have any better options or are borderline cases to attempt to live a life on benefits rather than work or seek for their income to be topped up by PIP/DLA.

There was a thread recently created by a parent that realised that their child required some additional help due to having autism. They suggested that they had only just realised that they needed to put in a more effort and time than the average parent and therefore were contemplating claiming DLA for the child. They were encouraged to do so by other posters, many in the same kind of situation already claiming. The obvious elephant in the room is that there are a hell of a lot of kids that need more effort and time spent on them than the so called 'average' child. They won't all be formally diagnosed but kids can just have different needs and we do have to ask ourselves at what point is this extreme enough that it qualified for extra help from the state.

From my children's friendship circle I know extremely shy kids that need a lot of extra coaxing and support, very fussy eaters, children that struggle to regulate their emotions and highly anxious children. I would go as far as to say over half have something notably 'difficult' about them and only one has a diagnosis and is by no means the 'hardest' child to raise. If everyone put in claims for DLA then where would that leave the system? I know everyone always argues that the claims would be denied but the struggles are very real and I have seen claims granted for less.

Just to be a bit provocative- 3 people in one family claiming? That is in itself unusual. Most families wouldn’t have a single person claiming so 3 in one family is a lot. You can see how people might be suspicious even if genuine.

❤️