Just finished mammoth form (statement), and DLA mobility form has come through the letterbox.....not sure about eligibilty?

[hazeyjane]

I am concerned by the, 'dla care component may be reassessed' part (ds has had high rate care since he was one). He can walk, but is unsteady and has a 'drunken' gait, he can't walk for any great distance and tires and loses tone easily. He has had a walker, but we have just given it back and he will be reassessed as to need for one when hee starts preschool in April. He has no speech and limited understanding, so he would certainly have no clue about danger (but thetn I suppose most 2.6 year olds do!)

Is it worth me applying? Or best to wait until dla renewal forms come through in November?

There should be an aaaagh in the title, in between (statement)... and ...Dla mobility form!!

Well of course that sounds like he should get it, but as you say, there is a risk. I chose to wait with DD2, but she didn't use a walker. Remember the test is how far he can walk without severe discomfort, not how far he can walk full stop.

We got highest rate and will be getting mobility component when DD turns 3 in Feb. Like your boy DD cant speak and walks unsteadily. She does not follow instructions or walk alongside me going down the street holding hands/reins etc. No indication of pain but she just stares about, sits down, or tugs in other direction. I put all this down in detail on the forms including her having no understanding of danger or heeding 'stop' and had someone call me to ask how far we could walk and how long that would take. Theres thresholds but I cant remember the details - I imagine you would meet them too.

Plus I pointed out that even if we can manage a bit longer or easier I have to keep in mind I might have to carry her back and shes heavy now.

big wave to you btw

I may have said that we have no way of kow whether she is in pain or not. She sits down wont budge - cant tell me why- I dont know she could be in pain...

thankyou.

I haven't actually read the forms yet, Lougle putting it off after a mind numbing 17 pages of Pathfinder questions!). I hadn't realised that about the 'severe discomfort' thing. Ds seems to have wonky reactions to pain and discomfort, which is a part of the genetic condition that he has a likely diagnosis of, so asserting whether he is stopping and falling or crying to be picked up out of pain or tiredness would be difficult.

He has recently started some pretty severe headbanging and hitting himself, which sometimes happens when he is tired, overwhelmed in discomfort (again, difficult to tell). If this happens when we are out, I try to put him in the pushchair, partly to stop him hitting his head on the pavemnt and partly to distract him. He is being assessed by the learning disability team wrt to this. I guess this sort of thing would be relevant.

To be honest, he spends a lot of time in the pushchair, because I wouldn't be able to carry him (he is 15kg) very far, and he is so erratic with walking, wandering off into the road, not understanding about holding hands and lyong down to try and lick the pavement, or rub his cheek on it. I keep on trying reins, but then he gets incredibly frustrated, and starts hitting himself.

Hello First, I must go back on our thread, I keep forgetting about it! Hope you and your girl are doing well

Hi hazey - I think the average 3 year old can go out for a quick trip with a parent with a bit of hand hold across roads, plus a bit of calling and prompting. We cant and tend to use buggies for all the reasons described above and thats what the extra cash is for now that we have a 15kg child and it really is hard. I think we may even qualify for a disabled badge for parking...

I dont feel at all bad about asserting that there may be discomfort associated with walking. Fine it isnt clear shes in pain or I would stop making her walk and practicing short trips but beyond that I just dont know. All I know is I still get about with her the way you would with a toddler who's just begun walking and thats not usual at 3. We will be getting the high rate for mobility

Discomfort isn't just physical. If it leads to emotional distress, that can be classed as discomfort.

My DS who is 7 and ASD/ADHD receives LRM as he needs someone who can supervise him out and about so he doesn't danger himself so it sounds like you should definitely apply!

LRM should be fairly straightforward, it's whether you can get HRM that is trickier. My DS went down from HRC to MRC (as he got more settled at night) but gained LRM. The financial impact was 6 of one, half a dozen of the other.

My DS has just been awarded higher rate mobility (wasn't really expecting it) and he cannot walk far without being in a lot of pain, has poor balance, falls often and needs to stop frequently.