Can You Get Disability for Panic Attacks?
Disability for panic attacks is available for Ontario residents. This is usually granted under the individual’s long-term disability insurance. However, long term disability benefits are only available to individuals that have suffered from this condition for more than 90 days, and the condition is expected to last for a year or more.
The process of obtaining long term disability can be complicated and confusing. This is especially true with mental health conditions. Since a mental health disorder is not something that you can “see,” the person making a claim must be able to prove the disorder exists through medical records and treatments.
Anyone who does not suffer from panic attacks cannot truly appreciate how debilitating these episodes are when they occur. Even a mild panic attack can make a person freeze and become unresponsive or cause them to start crying, shaking, or lose control. Severe panic attacks will debilitate the individual and can even lead to additional medical issues such as heart palpitations, fainting, and high blood pressure.
What causes panic attacks will vary from person to person. Most people that suffer from panic attacks have already been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, and anxiety is what triggers the attack. Sadly, these attacks can come at any time and in any place. Many people suffering from anxiety and panic attacks find it challenging to maintain employment because of this condition.
Are Panic Attacks Considered A Disability?
Canada recognizes panic attacks as a disability if they have been diagnosed by a medical professional. The government further acknowledges that these conditions, panic attacks, and anxiety disorders are all particular to the individual, and each case must be addressed separately. Anxiety impacts a person and their life in many different ways and levels. This is why it is necessary for a complete medical evaluation to be correctly diagnosed with this disorder.
Getting Disability for Panic Disorder
If you believe that you need to get disability for panic attacks, the first thing that you should do is seek medical advice. You will need medical proof that you have an anxiety disorder and that this disorder is impacting your ability to work and live your life as you did prior to the onset of symptoms.
It is also essential that you follow through with the medical treatments given to you for the condition. The insurance company will automatically deny your application for long term disability benefits if they believe you are unwilling to do anything to help the condition improve.
The next thing that you should do is speak with a long-term disability lawyer. The insurance company is going to be very aggressive about denying your claim. They will look for any reason to deny the validity of an anxiety disorder claim, including active surveillance of the applicant and monitoring of social media accounts.
Something as simple as hugging family members in your driveway and laughing with them as they depart from their visit can be seen as “proof” that you do not have anxiety attacks. The insurance company is not interested in the fact that it was your family that came for a visit, and you were saying goodbye. They don’t care that even though it was your family, you were laughing nervously because the situation was so stressful that you felt an attack coming on. They simply have pictures of you hugging people and laughing in your driveway.
Get Help
This is why it is so vital that you have a lawyer manage your application for long term benefits. Your lawyer will make sure that the insurance company does not try to manipulate information like the scenario stated above to their own advantage so that they can deny your benefits.
Mental health disorders affect more people in Canada than all forms of cancer combined. These illnesses can make it impossible to function through a daily routine. Thankfully, with the right treatment and therapies, many of these conditions can become manageable over time.
During that time, you have the right to make a claim against your long term disability insurance so that you have an income coming in during your recovery. After all, that is what these policies are meant to cover.
Also see our article on: Can You Get Disability for Anxiety in Ontario
