sasha_feather | Meeting with disability lawyer

Met with my disability attorney today. He's a very nice man, but definitely a talker, so I am trying to determine and remember what is actually important from all of what he said.

Because I'm well under 50, this may be a harder case than some. He talked about how a lot of my jobs were ones where I used my brain, so I'll have to talk about why I can't do these kinds of jobs anymore. He seemed to want to know what the causes were for my fatigue and facial pain, for which I was like, no one knows.

Do you miss out on fun things, social events? Talk about examples. The example he gave was someone who missed the wedding of a favorite relative.

Don't under-report. Many people are embarrassed by their symptoms, but under-reporting is lying.

But don't whine! (not sure what he meant here). Be disciplined in what you say.

Be specific. Answer questions and give specific examples. Don't go off on tangents.

I am supposed to get a list of my filled prescriptions from the last few years from my pharmacy. This will show how much I use them / need them.

I asked him if I could practice what to say, but he said no, then it will sound like you are rehearsing. Just be yourself.

Dress conservatively and professionally. (But practical footwear is fine). Don't wear your hat into the courtroom (we can ask if I can put it on once I'm in there, to protect me from light sensitivity, but, take the buttons off).

The hearing is on March 5th, arrive early.

That's really all I got and the appointment was about 45 minutes. So, that was confusing!