Universal Credit (UC) and PIP together

[purenarcotic]

I wouldn't even say yes with a 'but' tacked on the end. Always 'no' unless you have no trouble doing that thing unaided and "safely, to an acceptable standard, repeatedly and in a reasonable time" even on a bad day.

Yes I can dress myself but...
NO, I cannot dress myself safely without assistance due to my balance issues. For example, I recently fell and injured myself while attempting to get dressed without help (see GP notes on page x of attached evidence)
NO, I cannot dress myself to a reasonable standard as my [disability/injury/medical condition] means I am unable to judge what clothing is suitable / can't do up zips and buttons / often end up wearing dirty clothing / etc. because xyz
NO, I cannot dress myself repeatedly as putting tops on or off exacerbates the pain in my shoulder. For example, if I spill food on myself after getting dressed I have to spend the rest of the day in soiled clothing as it would be to painful to change my clothes.
NO, I cannot dress myself in a reasonable time as I move very slowly and need to stop and rest due to pain and fatigue.
(For example - add more detail to your own answers obvs)

If doing one activity means you won't be able to do another in the same morning/day/etc., make that clear.

Look at the descriptors for each activity to see which you think applies to you and use that wording in your answers.

I tend to do a lot of ‘yes but’ because we’re doing them for MH such as depression and when I’m chatting to service users, they don’t physically need assistance or supervision (and for many they are on their own with children so they have to force themselves up and about regardless of how rubbish they feel) so for them it is a ‘yes but’ rather than a no e.g ‘yes I can get dressed but it takes so much mental energy to do so I have to go back to bed until the children are ready to be collected from school’ / ‘yes I can walk unaided but I cry all the time whilst doing so become I feel so low / I am constantly stopping to check whether my abuser is following me, which means it takes twice as long to go anywhere’ etc etc (these are crap examples but you get the gist I am sure). Those with more complex MH tend to already have it in place by the time they come to us. I agree though that where you can say no, say it. And with the linking it all together, that’s massively important I think.

 

[purenarcotic]

Sheila I don’t know to what extent you accessed services when Matey was around, but we will do supporting letters for PiP claims. We can’t comment on anything medical (obviously), but what we will do is link any MH with the previous / current abuse in support essentially. To say that your experience is consistent with someone who has been through abuse and we expect this sort of thing and we would be concerned should PiP not be given etc etc. I don’t know if your services will offer you the same, we all operate quite differently.

 

[SheilaNaGig]

I’m so grateful to everyone for all this really good advice and support.

I looked at it all last night but couldn’t reply because my anxiety suddenly shot up to quite an alarming degrees. Thought I’d better leave it til this morning so I’d be able to sleep.
And now trying to read it again this morning, feeling really triggered and anxious again.

This is going to take a while, I think.
One step at a time.

 

[iona]

I tend to do a lot of ‘yes but’ because we’re doing them for MH such as depression and when I’m chatting to service users, they don’t physically need assistance or supervision (and for many they are on their own with children so they have to force themselves up and about regardless of how rubbish they feel) so for them it is a ‘yes but’ rather than a no e.g ‘yes I can get dressed but it takes so much mental energy to do so I have to go back to bed until the children are ready to be collected from school’ / ‘yes I can walk unaided but I cry all the time whilst doing so become I feel so low / I am constantly stopping to check whether my abuser is following me, which means it takes twice as long to go anywhere’ etc etc (these are crap examples but you get the gist I am sure). Those with more complex MH tend to already have it in place by the time they come to us. I agree though that where you can say no, say it. And with the linking it all together, that’s massively important I think.

I'd rephrase most of those as 'no's too

 

[SheilaNaGig]

Sheila I don’t know to what extent you accessed services when Matey was around, but we will do supporting letters for PiP claims. We can’t comment on anything medical (obviously), but what we will do is link any MH with the previous / current abuse in support essentially. To say that your experience is consistent with someone who has been through abuse and we expect this sort of thing and we would be concerned should PiP not be given etc etc. I don’t know if your services will offer you the same, we all operate quite differently.

I had some help from Gaia, so far as they were able. I suppose they’ll still have records.

That’s a good suggestion, thank you.

 

[purenarcotic]

I hate to sound awfully cold and pragmatic, but those dreams etc, make a note of when you have them and how they effect you the next day. It’s useful for the application.

 

[SheilaNaGig]

.

 

[SheilaNaGig]

I hate to sound awfully cold and pragmatic, but those dreams etc, make a note of when you have them and how they effect you the next day. It’s useful for the application.

It’s all the time.

Sometimes every night for weeks at a time, then I get a break and I think it’s starting to pass off and then it all stats up again. Almost as if once it stops when I’m exhausted from it, and then when I’ve recovered some energy it starts up again.

 

[SheilaNaGig]

The stammer is much better in terms of no longer being every single day, but still completely debilitating when it occurs.

 

[purenarcotic]

Part of the problem was that because it’s was coerced and emotional with only limited physical abuse, they were unable to help me as much as rye wnt d to.

I think that’s quite poor tbh, abuse is abuse regardless of its form and hierarchies should not be applied. Might be to do with funding restrictions though I suppose (not that that’s very helpful to you...).

May well be worth asking if they’ll do you something regardless. Even if it’s just to confirm you accessed the service and what you disclosed. It provides a context.

 

[purenarcotic]

It’s all the time.

Sometimes every night for weeks at a time, then I get a break and I think it’s starting to pass off and then it all stats up again. Almost as if once it stops when I’m exhausted from it, and then when I’ve recovered some energy it starts up again.

Are you getting any support? That sounds incredibly tough. Hugs. Xx

 

[purenarcotic]

It’s like the abuse itself though, isn’t it. There are periods of quiet where you think you can breathe out and then... I don’t think it’s surprising that it’s playing out that way.

 

[tufty79]

I am so sorry Sheila - I recognise everything you're describing and it's horrible.

Gentle hugs to you.

 

[SheilaNaGig]

I think that’s quite poor tbh, abuse is abuse regardless of its form and hierarchies should not beapplied. Might be to do with funding restrictions though I suppose (not that that’s very helpful to you...).

May well be worth asking if they’ll do you something regardless. Even if it’s just to confirm you accessed the service and what you disclosed. It provides a context.

They were very keen to help but we kept going round in circles with what was actually available to me.

 

[SheilaNaGig]

I think that’s quite poor tbh, abuse is abuse regardless of its form and hierarchies should not be applied. Might be to do with funding restrictions though I suppose (not that that’s very helpful to you...).

May well be worth asking if they’ll do you something regardless. Even if it’s just to confirm you accessed the service and what you disclosed. It provides a context.

Yes, I think they’ll do that for sure. I hope, anyway!

 

[SheilaNaGig]

Are you getting any support? That sounds incredibly tough. Hugs. Xx

I had some EMDR which helped but it’s all ramped up again since the second lockdown.

Not being able to add in any extra memories, life, friendships has allowed it to burgeon I think. And of course a pandemic with lockdown is perfect for developing agoraphobia and OCD

 

[purenarcotic]

I had some EMDR which helped but it’s all ramped up again since the second lockdown.

Not being able to add in any extra memories, life, friendships has allowed it to burgeon I think. And of course a pandemic with lockdown is perfect for developing agoraphobia and OCD

Yes that’s true, this has just made it a bazillion times worse. Well if you ever wanted to talk about anything, my PMs are always open. X

 

[SheilaNaGig]

Thank you x

 

[tufty79]

Bingo. I had the agoraphobia/panic attacks ready and waiting to relapse in 2020. Along with traumatic intrusive memories, local triggers and lack of hope of new good memories, people and experiences.
You're helping me make sense of me as well with this thread, if that's ok?
Will delete quote, on reflection.

 

[purenarcotic]

I have no idea if you like these sorts of things, but there is an online course called ‘own my life’ (sorry, it’s a bit of a wanky name). It is more trauma informed than The Freedom Programme, though unlike Freedom it isn’t rolling. It is delivered online in a group setting. I think courses are an incredibly personal thing and absolutely not for everyone, but just putting it out there.

Home | Own My Life Course

Course for women and practitioners about domestic abuse.

www.ownmylifecourse.org

 

[tufty79]

Nicking that - I've been thinking bout doing the freedom program but wasn't sure whether it was exactly the right thing.
I remember Jessica Eaton/Taylor? being red hot at trauma focussed stuff a few years ago - think I might go looking for her Stuff again.

 

[purenarcotic]

Nicking that - I've been thinking bout doing the freedom program but wasn't sure whether it was exactly the right thing.
I remember Jessica Eaton/Taylor? being red hot at trauma focussed stuff a few years ago - think I might go looking for her Stuff again.

She is, she is very anti-psychiatry. She is part of a movement called ‘drop the disorder’ which challenges the labelling of abuse victims as being disordered. They note that BPD in particular is diagnosed in women who have been subjected to abuse and trauma, so argue women are labelled as having something inherently wrong and disordered within them, when instead we should see it as a normal response to trauma. I think it makes some good points, but am slightly wary of the whole of psychiatry being vilified, particularly the use of medication. It’s good the conversations are taking place though, we need space to explore this stuff I think.

 

[Edie]

She is, she is very anti-psychiatry. She is part of a movement called ‘drop the disorder’ which challenges the labelling of abuse victims as being disordered. They note that BPD in particular is diagnosed in women who have been subjected to abuse and trauma, so argue women are labelled as having something inherently wrong and disordered within them, when instead we should see it as a normal response to trauma. I think it makes some good points, but am slightly wary of the whole of psychiatry being vilified, particularly the use of medication. It’s good the conversations are taking place though, we need space to explore this stuff I think.

A lot of mental health workers including psychiatrists hold that view.

 

[tufty79]

That's it! I've followed drop the disorder in the past; my mate got tagged with eupd and it was absolutely disastrous in terms of reducing the therapy and help available on the NHS, and all her interactions with them got reframed as war on both sides.

My cmht has been reassuring me for years that I "just" have cptsd not a personality disorder. I mistakenly got sent alllllll my medical notes when I'd just asked only for letters that my cmht had sent me, so I could evidence my pip review, in October this year.

For the last 2 years, they've been writing in my notes that they think I may have eupd, and when I phoned to ask wtf was going on, they told me not to worry about labels too much. Never explained why they lied to me about their diagnosis suspicions though. I won't ever go near them again for MH support even in crisis

we've got a trauma informed survivor led crisis line and house, and a 24h freephone mental health support line up in Leeds, which have been fucking immense the last few months and i have been lucky enough to get through to a lot of sound women Taylor Swift fans who get into fangirl conversations about OMG THE LYRICS in the last few minutes of my call

 

[purenarcotic]

A lot of mental health workers including psychiatrists hold that view.

I know, it’s interesting to see what these conversations will result in in terms of longer term changes to the field.