Would I have any chance of getting PIP while pregnant?

[99Samblaze]

Hi everyone, I’m just wondering if anyone has been in a similar situation or has any advice. I’ve heard that it can be difficult to be awarded PIP while pregnant because some people see pregnancy related difficulties as temporary, but I’m struggling quite badly with anxiety and depression and have been referred to the prenatal mental health team.
On top of that, I’m suffering from severe pelvic pain, to the point where I have to lie down after sitting for around 10 minutes.

Mentally, I feel completely exhausted and overwhelmed, and even the simplest everyday tasks take me forever to get done. My husband does most of the cooking before he goes to work because I struggle to manage everything myself. I’m also worried about how PIP would view my situation, as I’ll soon have a newborn as well as a toddler to look after. Would they hold that against me and assume I’m coping because I have children to care for, even though I’m genuinely struggling both physically and mentally? I’m not expecting anything I’m not entitled to, but I was wondering whether I might have a chance of being awarded the standard rate of PIP?

I heard also on FB forums that it’s extremely difficult to get PIP, has anyone got it after going birth?

Thanks

Help from your GP to see what treatment is available for anxiety in pregnancy would be a start, followed but using the free prescription service your entitled to due to being pregnant. That is help available to you right now.

But it sounds like you want the cash.

I do get maternity allowance and getting therapy is very expensive.

Money is on that happening pretty quickly.

Okay so you're wrong to say you don't get benefits. You get child benefit too, no? And free treatment for various things while pregnant/a new mother. So no need to be sniping about how much you've paid in but 'deserve' more. You're getting what you've qualified for. You have 50k for therapy if you want it and cba to see a doctor to go through the NHS.

It’s nothing whatever to do with being a tax payer. You need to be eligible for the benefit to claim it. With £50k in the bank it’s now obvious - to me at least - why you’re asking about PIP. You don’t qualify for UC because you have too much in the bank. PIP and UC are not interchangeable. If you’ve paid tax and your last two years NI contributions are up to date you’d be better off applying for New Style (contribution based)ESA. If you’re not well that’s more appropriate than PIP.

Pregnancy isn't a disability, wtf did I just read.

When I was really desperate with anxiety, I called the Dr and someone from Mind who is based in the clinic called me back to offer wellbeing sessions and one to ones. Also I think you can be referred for talking therapy.
Presumably a high priority with two small children.

Why did you have 2 pregnancies so close together? Why do you think it will take years before you get better?

Hi, my mum has stage 4 cancer and was recently awarded PIP. My dad has taken over all household duties too. Please let me know if we can help at all with an appeal etc. I am so sorry.

Rubbish innit ? What’s actually happening is that government doesn’t want to tackle the real problem - deeply entrenched worklessness going back generations, UC claimants doing the minimum hours for maximum benefit, huge corporations expecting the tax payer to top up their wage bills and greedy private landlords who put up their rents in line with UC increases every year.

So disability benefits become the low hanging fruit, and every successive government forgets one thing. You can cut the benefit but it doesn’t eliminate the need. It just shifts the cost to another part of the budget - in this case social care. The crude tools of narrowing eligibility and means testing do more to hurt the genuinely disabled than they do the people playing the system because with every round of benefit cuts, more and more genuine disability gets screened out and people lose support.

Skip upthread and read this posters’ subsequent comments. She hasn’t applied for PIP yet because the main cancer charities told her she won’t qualify yet.

OP, you will obviously not get PIP for undiagnosed and unmedicated depression and anxiety. I say that with knowledge. You have absolutely 0 chance, as is correct. If you're struggling, see your GP.

This post has to be a wind up? Two kids, teaching job between pregnancies, no diagnosed condition, 50k savings? Unbelievably grabby if real.

Perhaps you would like to tell us how it really is then.

I mean this with the the best intention-make the most of your mat leave with your child benefit, maternity allowance and savings. Utilise your GP for any medication or therapy you need- I don't know your area of course, but you should usually be prioritised for some talking therapy after this birth.

Then make a plan to build your independence. You've done supply teaching, so ask around for anyone in your area who might want some tuition. You could do this online and sitting down. Had you registered as self employed and done this between pregnancies, you would have been entitled to the full amount of maternity allowance (I'm assuming at the moment you'll just be receiving the base amount). Then, as you build up your capability you could return to your supply work full time.

Now, please delete this thread for your own mental health. This has got to be just about the worst day for someone struggling with anxiety. I'd be on my knees if I'd been in your position on this thread, and I'm not 39 weeks pregnant with mental health problems

That’s me. I did apply for pip and was turned down. The cancer charities helped with the application but they thought it was unlikely that I’d get it, but not impossible. The facts are that I just didn’t get anywhere near enough points on the descriptors for daily living and mobility. I can get dressed and washed and walk and follow a route, feed my cat, etc, and I work (full time from home). I know several people with stage 4 cancer and most aren’t eligible for pip (yet).

So please everyone stop saying that @daisypond hasn’t even tried.

Certainly. As I said upthread. Successive government doesn’t want to tackle the real problem - deeply entrenched worklessness going back generations, UC claimants doing the minimum hours for maximum benefit, huge corporations expecting the tax payer to top up their wage bills and greedy private landlords who put up their rents in line with UC increases every year.

So disability benefits become the low hanging fruit, and every successive government forgets one thing. You can cut the benefit but it doesn’t eliminate the need. It just shifts the cost to another part of the budget - in this case social care. The crude tools of narrowing eligibility and means testing do more to hurt the genuinely disabled than they do the people playing the system because with every round of benefit cuts, more and more genuine disability gets screened out and people lose support.

If government really wanted to support disabled people they would look properly at the assessment system for PIP because it isn’t fit for purpose. The assessment criteria are too narrowly drawn and don’t reflect many of the important aspects of disability, and the standard of assessment and decision making processes within the DWP are appalling. 66% of appeals go in the claimants favour which indicates serious fundamental flaws in the system and a lack of care for the claimants. Fixing this so that decisions are right first time and actually reflect the evidence would eliminate the need for appeals and would save the tax payer a fortune.

🍿 👀

Apologies @daisypond I didn’t catch the updates. It read as though you had been advised not to claim. It seems so unfair that you have to wait until you’re so much sicker to claim a benefit that would help you now.

You can get therapy via the GP. PiP isn’t going to help anxiety and depression

Unfortunatley PIP is very specific .

You'd need a way to counter this, and I don't think there is one. You can argue your husband makes it easy for you, and that you do it for them because you have to, and you don't do it for yourself because of your mental health, but you're still going to have to accept that you DO do it for your kids, so they're going to argue that you CAN.

They're not being snobby, they have really strict guidelines to apply. You can see them yourself. There's plenty of advice about filling things in as if it was your worst day, CAB, etc - but you'd need to be cautious there because you'll be presenting your parenting on your worst day as your "standard", and while lots of people do believe you need to exaggerate to be awarded anything, you'll need to stand by anything you've put in writing to a government body...

It's tough because you've clearly had a rough time, and you're probably also at that stage of pregnancy that is really hard, and you're right that you've paid taxes. You're not unusual in thinking that means you deserve some help back, however little it is... but that's not how they work. It's on ability, and even if you can't make yourself look after yourself, you're soon going to be looking after a toddler and a baby... you have to be able to see the juxtaposition.

There's not going to be an easy way to argue that you look after your baby and toddler competently but can't look after yourself.

PIP accepts that living with disability can be expensive. The assessment is designed to assess the claimants’ likely extra costs due to disability and contribute to it so that as far as possible their disability doesn’t disadvantage them at work or in society generally. You’re not asked about extra costs because PIP doesn’t assess them directly - it does it via an assessment of how well you can cope with a range of activities which would likely incur costs if you had difficulty in completing them. The level of likely cost increases with the amount of difficulty you experience
This is absolutely right. This is why pip and DLA are means tested. It was considered, initially, that anyone who met the criteria would be those who incurred extra costs.

However, with 'form filling experts' now taking over, it isn't such a straight forward assumption.

Also, you mention a carer who would be otherwise working, hence the list of income directly related to the disability.

That's not always the case though. Many mums opt to stay at home because they want to and can afford it. If the carer was one of them, than it can very much be the case that they are no additional costs.

Look I am sorry that you’re finding things difficult but this is not what PIP is for.

I think you need to consider more long term ways in which you can help yourself. My advice would be to use your savings on some mat leave, therapy and a bit of childcare. Then try as hard as you can to get back into work. And try to avoid having any more kids until you’ve got your mental health in a better place, you’ve got some savings and a secure place to live.