The Functional Capacity Strategy
How to Win Your PTSD Disability Case Using the Functional Capacity Argument
What is PTSD?
PTSD stands for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and has recently been deemed a real illness in medical and psychiatric circles. PTSD can result from a number of reasons such as:
- a bad accident
- a hurricane (or other natural disaster)
- living through a traumatic event (or just witnessing one)
- physical abuse
- rape or sexual assault
- war and other military event
PTSD causes the affected individual to feel afraid or stressed even after danger has passed. Additionally, it can disrupt a person’s lifestyle to the extent that they are no longer able to work at even entry level, low-pressure, and/or unskilled jobs. Not only this, but it seriously impacts the people around the individual suffering with PTSD.
Certain problems can arise after the onset of PTSD including the following:
- angry and uncontrollable outbursts
- feeling alone or helpless (or both)
- feelings of guilt, sadness, and/or worry
- feelings that the event is happening again, more commonly referred to as “flashbacks”
- recurring nightmares about the event and difficulty sleeping
Using the Functional Capacity Argument to win your PTSD disability case
The most commonly used strategy that a Social Security Disability attorney employs when presenting your case to a Social Security Administration adjudicator or judge is what is called the Functional Capacity Argument. This strategy is oftentimes used to show the adjudicator or judge that your medical (or mental) condition has rendered you incapable of working and earning a living. When this is the case, you should consider hiring an attorney who is experienced in presenting PTSD disability cases.
One of the most powerful tools that you and your Social Security Disability attorney can employ is the RFC (Residual Functional Capacity) form or checklist. Your attorney will prepare and develop this checklist pursuant to your disability claim so that your physician or specialist who has been treating your case can fill the form out. This checklist, when completed by the medical professional will provide the SSA adjudicator or judge with the exact information they are looking for relative to your specific claim.
The importance of the RFC form lays in the fact that your treating physician or specialist uses specific work capacity language which adjudicators and judges are concerned with and looking for. Additionally, the language of the checklist focuses on the 2 primary issues of your PTSD disability case – your job performance and how reliable of an employee you are.
