Benefit shenanigans

In the last month or so I have been plucking up the courage to dive into the murky depths of benefit claims, looking particularly at claiming for disability benefits. The experience is proving to be baffling and at times upsetting. I wanted to provide a first-hand account of my experiences which I hope will add an individual perspective to the current debates about how much help the state should provide to its most vulnerable members.

My decision to claim for benefits has not been an easy one. I have been brought up in a society and culture which takes pride in individuals "standing on their own two feet" (even if that is with the aid of walking sticks!). So to claim money makes me feel uncomfortable; the word "scrounger" echoed in my mind as I filled in the form.

My application is being considered against the wider backdrop of cuts in benefits and a spotlight which is being shone on "fake disability" claimants. I would never condone pretending to have a disability when you don't (why would you use sticks if you didn't have to?) but I think the perception now is that anyone who claims to be disabled must be faking it. Especially if their disability is a hidden one.

Take my neighbour as an example. She has chronic back pain, made intractable by a botched operation, and is in almost constant pain. She can walk, but not very far. She also has a disabled blue badge, and has been a victim of verbal abuse: "What do you have one of those for when you can walk?" So speaks the "expert" member of the general public.

And the suggestion that the shift in public perception about disabled people has caused an increase of anti-disability sentiment is not just anecdotal. This article from Huffington Post reports a rise in disability hate crimes and questions whether there could be a causal link:

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2012/09/13/hate-crimes-against-disabled-people-acpo-police_n_1880733.html

Food for thought.

As for me, this claim has brought to light my own insecurities about how I view my condition. Filling in a form which quantifies your disability is actually very difficult, especially when the condition is as variable as mine is. But it's also more than a little alarming to read back what you've written and realise  this is what I live with every day. When you are soldiering on through day-to-day difficulties you can brush aside the reality to some extent, but when you are faced with a written measure of how far you can walk without severe discomfort, the whole thing becomes much more real.

Watch this space for the verdict by the Benefits Office...