Many cases of vertigo are temporary and might not meet the severity and duration requirements for disability under SSA rules. A specialized attorney can help you gather and present medical evidence to support your claim.
A lawyer can also help you keep a “symptom diary” to document your symptoms and their impact on your life. This can be a handwritten journal, your phone or computer notes, or a chart or spreadsheet.
How Can a Lawyer Help?
Vertigo is a common issue that can result from a vestibular balance disorder. If the dizziness is severe enough to interfere with your daily life, it can qualify you for disability benefits. To prove this, you must include proof showing that your vertigo or balance issues drastically impact how you function. A disability attorney can help you build strong vertigo disability claims by ensuring you submit accurate documentation. They can also advise how to document your symptoms best, including how often the episodes occur and how long they last. This information will allow you to establish that your vertigo is disabling and should be rated by the SSA as such. You can obtain a higher rating if your dizziness is caused by an injury or illness in your inner ear or brain, such as vestibulocochlear nerve damage, Meniere’s Disease or certain medications like Streptomycin. If the symptoms are secondary to injuries or illnesses in your neck or spine, you could also receive a higher rating.
Documentation
Vertigo is a sensation that causes you to feel as if you are spinning, flipping or falling. It is a symptom of an underlying condition such as Meniere’s disease, vestibular disorders and head trauma. Allergies, illness and some medications can also cause it. In some cases, vertigo is so disabling that it qualifies for disability benefits under SSA’s disability rules. To claim vertigo disability, you must prove that you have a medically determinable condition that prevents you from working. An experienced long-term disability lawyer can help you gather the necessary evidence to support your claim. In some cases, the vertigo symptoms are so severe that they completely prevent you from working. When determining your residual functional capacity (RFC), the SSA will examine your impairments. The more limitations you have in your RFC, the less likely you are to qualify for a sedentary job. The SSA will consider whether your vertigo, balance issues and tinnitus make it impossible for you to work even in a low-stress office job.
Medical Tests
Vertigo is a condition that makes your surroundings feel as though they are moving. You can have various medical conditions that cause it, such as inner ear issues, tinnitus, or hearing loss. If you have labyrinthine-vestibular dysfunction or Meniere’s disease, the SSA considers it one of its disability rating schedule impairments. To meet this criteria, you need to have documentation in your medical record that indicates you have frequent balance problems and tinnitus, and you must undergo an audiometry test and an ocular motility exam. Many veterans who are diagnosed with this disorder also have additional underlying conditions. They may qualify for TDIU or Total Disability Individual Unemployability, a benefit meant to compensate for the inability to work due to a disabling condition. A letter from your doctor explaining that the dizzy spells caused by your vertigo are so severe you can no longer work would help you get this benefit.
Expert Witnesses
For many, claiming disability due to migraine attacks and vertigo is a long process. They must gather enough evidence, file their claim, appeal if necessary and then attend their hearing. These hearings have expert witnesses hired by the SSA and can be either medical or vocational experts. A lawyer can help you prepare for these experts and cross-examine them. These experts can have a huge impact on whether or not the judge finds you disabled or not.
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Having a nexus letter from a doctor that connects your migraines and vertigo with your service connection in the military is important. It is also helpful to have statements from buddies and family who can describe how often you have dizziness or migraines and their effects on your life. Also, having a journal where you write down the details of your symptoms is good evidence. The SSA will consider these along with the rest of your proof.
