I went on medical leave from work back in August, and was covered by short-term disability insurance by my job. They approved me for the STD benefits but when those ran out I applied for long-term disability (through the insurance company, not social security), and I just got word that I've been denied. In the denial letter they basically said there's not enough hard evidence that my symptoms are real and disabling. I guess it doesn't matter how bad one's symptoms are if there's no imaging or test results to back up your subjective experience. I've gotten loads of tests and imaging over the years and a few things have shown up here and there but nothing that they would count as disabling. How does one provide hard evidence of chronic pain, fatigue, and all the other invisible symptoms we suffer from? Any ideas?

Posted by emily-b at 2023-01-23 22:43:55 UTC