The limitations on your ADLs are an important part of your hearing testimony, and sometimes the details of your ADLs can help to establish your disability claim.
Sometimes those details ring so true, that you just know the person is telling the truth. There is no direct correlation between these details and a person's ability to work full-time. They just strongly reinforce the claimant's credibility.
I spend a lot of time looking for those details.
For example, I had a recent hearing with a claimant with fibromyalgia. Due to her pain, she was unable to do her hair. So her husband, every morning, would help her with her hair and put it in a pony tail. It is a touching story, and implicit in its telling is that no one would give up that aspect of her life if there were a choice.
At another hearing, a 56 year old woman told the judge about how her illness had impacted her relationship with her young granchildren, because she was unable to participate in most of their activities due to her chronic pain and fatigue. No grandmother would give up this special time with grandchildren if there were any choice.
Stories like these humanize the claimant, and drive home the point that work is not possible. My hearing preparation is not complete until I have these details.
It is also always important that a mother or father of a young child be able to describe limitations in their ability to care for a young child. I have to remind my clients to be honest about their limitations, even if they are embarrassed about lack of ability to accomplish all activities that they think they should be able to perform. These descriptions are often heartbreaking to hear, but help explain how the disability has impacted their lives.
Posted by: Steve Butler | November 18, 2009 at 04:17 PM