News and Blogs

In addition to causing restrictions that may make it impossible to continue working, some people’s disabilities require them to treat our very frequent basis or cause symptoms that make it physically impossible for them to go to work five days a week on a continuous basis. In determining whether you are disabled, administrative law judges […]

Through the nearly 40 years I have handled Social Security Disability cases, I have seen a lot of claims. A great many of these claims have involved some type of mental disease or defect, which can come in many forms. One of the most common forms of mental illness from a disability perspective and is […]

A lot of people who apply for Social Security Disability (SSD) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) claim to be disabled due to musculoskeletal issues. One of the most common musculoskeletal disorders that can cause disability is osteoarthritis, which also happens to be the most common type of arthritis. Osteoarthritis is also known as degenerative arthritis […]

Lupus, or as doctors refer to it systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is a chronic inflammatory disease that causes your immune system to attack your own tissues and organs. The inflammation lupus causes can affect numerous body systems including your joints, skin, kidneys, heart and lungs, and brain. Lupus also can cause severe fatigue, fever, discomfort, […]

A lot of people apply for disability due to asthma. The problem with many of the claims is that the severity of the asthma is not documented very well. One way to document the severity of asthma is to show it causes severe episodes that require you to go to the doctor or to the […]

Lately we have been requesting that all our hearings before administrative law  judges be in “person hearings.” Previously many of our hearings were on a large video screen screen by judges who were sitting in distant locations. By requesting “in person hearings” we feel that we are giving our clients a much better chance of […]

Many of the clients that come to see us for help in their disability claims tell us they have a slipped disc in their back. It seems that a lot of people have the wrong idea about what is really wrong with their back. The fact is, a disc cannot slip. The disc is not […]

If a person files an application for disability benefits, the Social Security Administration usually has a three-step process to determine whether the claimant is disabled. The first step is called an Initial Application and if the claim is denied at that level a claimant can request a Reconsideration. These are both Administrative in nature and […]

Spinal stenosis is simply a fancy medical term for the narrowing or pinching of the open space in your spinal canal. It is most frequently used in conjunction with a diagnosis made by a physician or radiologist viewing an MRI or CT scan of the spine. The term “spinal stenosis” does not denote any particular disease process, […]

The new kid on the block for back surgery is the artificial disc.  Many physicians currently use disc replacement surgery in an attempt to cure spinal problems.  Most commonly, disc replacements are used in the lumbar and cervical spine. The use of disc replacement surgery in the cervical spine is rather new but lumbar surgeries […]