ME/CFS - Been refused DLA - Advice needed

Hayleyg22 wrote:

I applied for DLA recently after my diagnosis of ME a year ago. I have today received a letter advising i have not been awarded either care or mobility.

What i find strange is that the reasons outlined in their letter as to why i had been refused competely contradict what i have said in my application form.

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Reading their explanation seems like they have not even read my application form, it may as well have been someone elses!! What i am concerned about is they advised they had a letter from my GP.

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I believe my form was very detailed and accurately described the difficulties i face day to day, i was honest and to the point, explaining the illness fluctuates. I also submitted my initial diagnosis letter from the consultant and a letter from my occupational therapist which was written for my ESA application, advising of my symptoms and that work related activities at present would be counter productive.

So i am very puzzled as to how they are coming to these conclusions when my appication form is saying the complete opposite.

My main question is:Is it possible the GP has said different and they have gone with his advice?

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Also, what kind of evidence would the tribunal need? I intend to get some from my O/T and consultant but need to know what the tribunal would want.

Thank you in advance, any advice wil be much appreciated

Here's a guess for you. The Decision Maker at the DWP got out the Decision Makers' Guide which has information like that provided on the link you were given:

www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/specialist-g...e/care-and-mobility/

They decided that your condition fell into the "Mild Functional Restriction" category - possibly based on what your GP said. After that they simply filled in the rest of the boxes to match that description.

What you saw was NOT intended to be a reproduction of what you said on your form. It was what the DM believed to be the real facts of the matter - and in your case that was not what you had said. Many people working for the DWP (and ATOS) are encouraged to take a very sceptical view of the "claims" made about their health by people filling in claim forms - especially for ME/CFS.

In accordance with the usual procedure with ME/CFS, they decided (remember this is my guess) in advance that you are a wholly unreliable witness of your own health and have "unhelpful illness beliefs." Anything you say would therefore be completely disregarded. The worse you believe yourself to be, the more they will write you off as a "nutcase".

And yes, get testimony from your OT. Don't rely on the DWP sending them a form, get them to send a letter to you giving a detailed description of the ways in which your illness limits your mobility and requires intervention for your care - addressing specific matters such as food preparation, eating, dressing, bathing, going to the toilet, taking medication, individually.

I doubt if your consultant will be prepared to provide that sort of detailed breakdown, but a consultant-supported diagnosis can be invaluable.

Exactly what you have to challenge, you should be able to find out when the DWP send you their documents.

Any appeal you make must be based on as factual-sounding as you can make it. The worse you think yourself to be, the more likely they are to think you "hysterical" or melodramatic or "just depressed". Sick, possibly very sick, but calm and sensible has to be the route.

I hope you will also be able to challenge their "expert guidance" with individual analysis by experts who know your needs. But don't rely on the DWP to get it for you!

Good luck.

Thank you very much for this, that makes a lot of sense. I have just been trawling through the DLA posts and seen this reply.

I was correct, my GP had put that my CFS is 'mild' and as with self care/awareness of hazards/difficulties getting about etc.. all GOOD. I have since changed GP's after making a complaint, as my GP had only seen me 3 times for around 10 mins at a time this year, and had never asked me about my daily life. After a telephone call where he was very rude and made me cry, i decided that he clearly wasn't knowledgeable nor supportive of CFS patients.

To cut a long story short my O/T submitted the same form which was accurate, describing how i am moderately affected etc, however after re-consideration they still refused to award me any rate of DLA.

I have my tribunal next Tuesday and will be represented by my M.E support worker. I am hoping that they are not going to take my GP's form into consideration and base their decision on that, especially when my O/T's form contradicts that (who works at an M.E clinic) and i have seen her a lot more over the past few months. I just want to be as prepared as possible and explain my condition in the most objective way i can.

Hayleyg22 wrote:

Thank you very much for this, that makes a lot of sense. I have just been trawling through the DLA posts and seen this reply.

I was correct, my GP had put that my CFS is 'mild' and as with self care/awareness of hazards/difficulties getting about etc.. all GOOD. I have since changed GP's after making a complaint, as my GP had only seen me 3 times for around 10 mins at a time this year, and had never asked me about my daily life. After a telephone call where he was very rude and made me cry, i decided that he clearly wasn't knowledgeable nor supportive of CFS patients.

To cut a long story short my O/T submitted the same form which was accurate, describing how i am moderately affected etc, however after re-consideration they still refused to award me any rate of DLA.

I have my tribunal next Tuesday and will be represented by my M.E support worker. I am hoping that they are not going to take my GP's form into consideration and base their decision on that, especially when my O/T's form contradicts that (who works at an M.E clinic) and i have seen her a lot more over the past few months. I just want to be as prepared as possible and explain my condition in the most objective way i can.

Hi H22,

Unfortunately Consultants etc, do seem to use the word "Mild" with many conditions.

One of my many conditions is SLE (Lupus), and when my Consultant described it as "Mild" I obviously tackled him on this.

He said it was a medical term, and meant that I was not suffering a "flare up" at that time, and that Lupus was a progressive incurable condition, therefore it did not mean "Mild" in the normal sense of the word.

Good luck with your Tribunal, please let us know how you get on.

bro58

Hi,

Just found this re : CFS/ME also :

www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/specialist-g...al-illness-cfs.shtml

bro58