A Shining Moment of Victory and Hope, Followed by the Crash of Reality

[viridian5]

Without fanfare or a written notice through snail mail, my retroactive pay appeared in my back account this week. I discovered it while going to online banking. The figure felt unreal to me because I know the longterm disability insurer will demand a chunk of it sometime in the future. Originally I thought it would be ½, but the more I think about

Comments

[mayatawi]

A couple things:
1) I got your card, and it was lovely, and I did pass on the message, and, well, ♥

2) I can send you DVDs of Deepwater Black! Would you prefer AVI files, or TV-playable DVDs?

3) I don't know how feasible this is for you, considering the financial situation and, well, that you already have a lawyer (or two), but my mother has a friend who's on disability, and she said that the best way to actually get things done is to find a lawyer who is disabled him/herself, and who's gone through the process. Because they'll know what you're dealing with, and won't be so inclined to dismiss you. So maybe that's an idea? (Ideally, a lawyer with chiari, but they probably don't have directories for that sort of thing.) (Then again, there is the internet.)

[viridian5]

1) Yay!

2) TV-playable please. It would be cool to see it on a larger screen.

3) Way back when, I called an MS society for leads on lawyers. The MS people hadn't even heard of Chiari. It's a rare condition, though it may be that part of what makes it rare is that not a lot of people know much about it so it's harder to get diagnosed. I don't know if there'd be a directory of lawyers with disabilities in general, let alone one with Chiari.

I'm really hoping I won't need LV soon. Last time we spoke at the beginning of the month she said she was told that my Medicaid/COBRA case was fifth in the line to be worked on by Medicaid. If I could just get these things started I could be more of my own advocate and not have to depend on LV.

[lilymoon1]

Hmm, I'd be tempted to tell the long-term disability insurer to go screw themselves and not give them a cent since they decided you weren't disabled enough to suit them...but I suppose in the long run that it would only hurt you. Still, don't be in any rush to pay them anything and definitely don't pay the first amount they tell you. They're wanting something for nothing, that's for sure.

[viridian5]

When I applied for longterm disability their paperwork gave me two options: agree to have them take the monthly SS money out as they paid me, which would have left me with only $600 a month, or let them have it later when I won SS, which is the choice I made. If I didn't sign off on one of those, they wouldn't give me any money, so they actually have a signed contract from me.

I intend to look for a way to doublecheck any figure they demand.