Blog

Can Chronic Pain Qualify You for Long Term Disability?

Many employers offer LTD (Long Term Disability) benefits for those people injured on the job. But what about chronic pain that has developed over time and now makes it impossible for you to work? This is an area where there has been some confusion.

People get their claim rejected all the time for chronic pain. Recently, there was a case where a woman was rejected for a LTD claim in which she was disabled due to fibromyalgia. She took the insurance company that rejected the claim to court and won.

Chronic pain is one of those disabilities where the problem isn’t visible at first glance, like it would be with, say, a broken arm. With a broken bone you can see the cast on the arm and the x-rays of the broken bone and know the person is unable to perform certain tasks. Chronic pain is happening on the nerve level and the person is experiencing extreme discomfort and moving around is very painful. 

So what can a person do if they are starting to experience nerve or other body pains as a result of working? Here are some tips that will help in the long run:

• Seek medical treatment right away. Putting off treatment for pain is the worst thing you can do. Not only will you continue to suffer the pain, but you are also sending the message that the pain is “not that bad”. Get treatment ASAP.
• Document your treatment. Your medical professional will keep records of your treatments but it is also important to keep your own journal. Record your pain, treatments and any other information related to your issue.
• Get physicians diagnosis and opinion in writing. It is important to document the chain of thought of the treating physician.

These tips can help you with your case should the pain grow to be incapacitating and permanent. A disability attorney can help you build your case should you need assistance.