I am a 55 year old truckdriver. In February of 2003, I had a fall from a
loadrack in one of my company's trailers. Since that day, I have had 5
surgery's, 2 elbow nerve intraptions, left & right, 2 carpotunnel
surgery's, left & right wrist's, and a cervical c5 & c6 neck fusion. All
this was done through workmans comp, which I am still on. Since the
accident, I also am experiencing migraine headaches and cluster
headaches, which can last up to 5 days. I was put on nortriptolyn and
gabitryl, to help control the headaches. I was also put on zomig to
relieve the headaches. I was told I will be on these meds for the rest
of my life. I applied for ssd in Nov. of 2003, since then, I have been
turned down twice. I then hired a attorney, and filed for a hearing. It
has been almost 7 months, and still no word. I also have a attorney
for the workcomp case. I have gone through physical therapy, work
hardening, and had multipal fce's. I have been terminated from my job
because of all my restrictions. A little while after my accident, I
started researching the disability web sites. I realized then what I was
in for, so after discussing the situation with my wife, we sold our home
and rented a home. We used the money we made on the home, and paid the
rent for the whole year. I still get my workcomp checks, but it is far
less than what I was making at the time of the accident. As far as my
physical condition at this time. I still get all the headaches. I still
have bad neck pain, and I can't hold anything like a razor, in my right
hand, for long periods. I am currently being treated by only the
neurologist, and I only see him every three months for the headaches.
All I would be really happy with from ssd, is the period from which the
accident happened, with the 5 month waiting period taken off, to the
time I was released from the neurosurgeon, which is a little over a
year. I don't know if the headaches will put me on permanant disability
with ssd. The headaches are keeping me off as far as workcomp is
concerned. The one thing I will tell everyone is this, no matter how
long you think you'll be off of work, or on disability, get a attorney,
and research everything you can about your situation. Make sure you do
everything you can to have enough money to last for a long period of
time, even if you were told that your situation won't last long. Try to
stay one step ahead and do everything your told to do, get all your
doctors statements and keep all medical bills in a file for future
reference, and most important, stay positive!!
RNG
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