Can You Get Disability Benefits for Insomnia?

Sleep is an essential function, allowing your body and mind to recharge. Not getting enough sleep can result in poor coordination, reduced attention span, lack of energy, and difficulties with concentration and memory. Most people experience occasional bouts of sleep deprivation in response to common life events like personal troubles or stress at work. But severe, chronic insomnia can hurt your immune system and put you at risk for additional health issues, such as heart disease, diabetes, and depression.

Chronic insomnia is the medical term for a long-term pattern of disordered sleeping, defined as having trouble falling or staying asleep at least three nights a week for three months or longer. If your insomnia is caused by an underlying impairment that keeps you from working full-time for at least one year, you might qualify for Social Security disability benefits. (Veterans with service-connected insomnia may be eligible for compensation from the VA.) Before you apply, it's important to know what evidence you’ll need for the best shot at getting your claim approved.

Is Insomnia a Disability?

The Social Security Administration (SSA) awards disability to people who can show that they have a medically determinable impairment that prevents them from engaging in substantial gainful activity for twelve months or longer. In order to do this, you’ll need medical evidence of functional limitations that either meet a “disability listing” or rule out all full-time jobs.

The SSA recognizes that symptoms of insomnia—such as impaired coordination, slowed reaction time, and fatigue—can prevent you from working on a regular basis. Jobs that involve heavy machinery or driving will almost certainly be ruled out, but even easier, sit-down jobs with less risk of injury might be too challenging if you’re too tired to concentrate on simple tasks.

Most disability applicants who are awarded disability benefits aren’t found disabled based on insomnia alone. However, because insomnia is often a comorbid condition—meaning that it exists at the same time as another disorder—the combined effects of insomnia and other impairments can be enough for the agency to find that you’re disabled.

How Can You Get Disability for Insomnia?

When you first submit an application for Social Security disability benefits, a claims examiner with Disability Determination Services will review your file to determine whether you have one or more medical conditions that prevent you from working for at least twelve months. The examiner will then look to see if you have medical evidence of a condition that meets the requirements of a Blue Book listed impairment that can qualify you automatically for disability benefits.

Qualifying by Meeting a Listed Impairment

Social Security doesn’t have a specific listing for insomnia, but there are several listings for conditions that often cause or overlap with chronic insomnia. These conditions might include:

• cardiovascular impairments such as coronary heart disease
• diseases of the digestive system and related gastrointestinal problems
• neurological impairments including complications from diabetes, and
• mental disorders like anxiety and depression.

Even if you don’t meet the requirements of a listed impairment, you can still qualify for benefits under what’s called a “medical-vocational allowance” if your insomnia symptoms prevent you from working at any job.

Qualifying by Showing Your Insomnia Keeps You From Doing Any Job

If the claims examiner handling your case doesn’t find that you meet a listing, the examiner will then look to see what functional limitations you have that restrict what kind of job duties you can safely perform. The process of deciding what you can and can’t do at work is called assessing your residual functional capacity (RFC).

Your RFC is a short description of physical and mental activities that reflect the most you’re capable of doing in a work environment. A typical RFC for somebody with insomnia may include restrictions such as:

• no driving, working at heights, or with moving machinery
• no fast-paced assembly line or production jobs
• no work involving hand-eye coordination or fine motor skills
• a limitation to simple, repetitive, and routine tasks
• the need for additional breaks to accommodate naps, and
• a certain amount of reduced productivity due to fatigue.

Social Security uses your RFC to determine whether you’re currently able to perform jobs that you’ve done in the past. If you can’t do any of your past work, then the agency will determine whether you’re able to perform any other jobs in the national economy. (This is sometimes easier for claimants 50 years of age and older thanks to a special set of rules called “the grid.”) If your insomnia symptoms rule out all work, you’ll be considered disabled.

How Do I Prove That My Insomnia Qualifies for Disability?

Your medical records are the most important part of your disability claim. Social Security uses evidence found in your doctor’s notes, physical and mental examinations, and documented treatments to help decide whether you meet a listing or what limitations to include in your RFC. Quality matters as much as quantity, so it’s important to become familiar with some of the terms and definitions that let the agency know how serious your insomnia is.

How is Insomnia Diagnosed?

Chronic, severe insomnia can be primary, meaning that your sleep problems aren’t the result of another illness, or secondary, meaning that your insomnia is the symptom of an additional underlying condition. The causes of primary insomnia aren’t well understood, but secondary insomnia can often resolve with treatment of the condition that’s causing the sleep deprivation.

What Are the Symptoms of Insomnia?

Insomnia is mainly characterized by difficulty falling or staying asleep, but disruptive sleep patterns can impact other body systems and cause additional symptoms, including:

• daytime somnolence (fatigue and tiredness during the day)
• irritability, depression, or anxiety
• decreased concentration and increased errors
• tension headaches, and
• gastrointestinal symptoms such as stomach aches or constipation.

How is Insomnia Treated?

Treatment for chronic, severe insomnia frequently involves a combination of cognitive behavioral therapy and improvements in your sleep hygiene (environment and daily routines that are best for healthy sleep patterns). Medications that can help with sleep onset and maintenance, such as melatonin, are sometimes also prescribed.

What Records Do I Need to Show Social Security That I’m Disabled?

The SSA will be on the lookout for evidence of ongoing treatment that shows you’ve tried to reduce your insomnia symptoms. Ideally, this means you’ll have most, if not all, of the following in your medical records:

• clinical notes from a dozen or more doctor’s visits containing the physician’s observations on how you’re looking, acting, and feeling
• a sleep study with an EEG (measure of electrical activity in the brain)
• lab tests showing abnormal levels of blood oxygenation or reduced pulmonary function
• physical examinations showing any issues with your range of motion, sensitivity to pain, or tenderness to touch
• mental examinations that demonstrate how your insomnia affects your memory and cognition
• a list of medications you’re taking as well as any side effects you have as a result, and
• documentation of any prescribed sleep hygiene apparatus, such as a CPAP machine.

Because insomnia is so frequently associated with an underlying physical or mental health condition, you’ll also want to make sure that you submit evidence relating to that disorder as well. For example, if your insomnia is caused by post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), you should provide therapy or counseling records that can support the PTSD diagnosis as well. Keeping a nightly sleep journal can be a useful source of information, as is getting a medical source statement from your treating provider.

Is There a VA Disability Rating for Insomnia?

Insomnia doesn’t have its own diagnostic code in the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities (38 C.F.R. §4). As a symptom, however, it can contribute to an increased disability rating for another disorder. Returning to PTSD as an example, symptoms may be evaluated under the General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders, which assigns VA ratings in intervals of 0%, 10%, 30%, 50%, 70%, and 100%, depending on the extent to which your functioning is limited. For more information, see our article on how VA disability ratings work.

How to Apply for Disability Benefits

Filing for Social Security is a relatively straightforward process. The SSA provides several ways for you to start your application for disability benefits.

• Submit your claim online using the SSA.gov portal. This method has many benefits, such as giving you the option to save your application and return to it later.
• Call Social Security’s national number at 800-772-1213 (TTY 800-325-0778) from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, to speak with a representative.
• Go in person to your local Social Security field office. You can use the locator toolhere to find the office closest to you.

Make sure to save your claim confirmation number so you can track your application. If you’re applying for VA benefits, the process works much in the same way as it does with Social Security. Check out our article on filing for veterans disability benefits for information on how to submit your claim for VA compensation.

Disability Benefit Amounts for Insomnia

Social Security doesn't award benefits based on the type of medical condition you have. Rather, the amount you'll receive if you're approved depends on whether you're eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). SSDI eligibility is based on your work history and how much you've contributed to the program in payroll taxes, while SSI is a needs-based benefit available to people with limited resources. You can learn more in our article on SSDI and SSI monthly check amounts.

VA benefits are calculated differently, using a combination of your disability rating and your living situation. The higher your VA rating, the more you’ll receive in monthly compensation, and the VA will increase your benefits if you have a dependent spouse, children, or parents. (Visit the VA website listing the current disability compensation rates to see the tables used to determine monthly benefit amounts.)

What If My Insomnia Claim is Denied?

Both Social Security and VA disability applications typically involve multiple appeals. If your Social Security claim is denied, you have 60 days from the date of the denial letter to submit an appeal. You can also appeal a VA denial, but the timeframe is much more generous–you have one year from the date the decision letter was sent to you.

Not everybody who gets a denial wants to appeal, however. If you’re thinking about trying to return to work, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations to help you perform your job. (42 U.S.C. §12112(a)(5))(2026). For people with chronic insomnia, these accommodations could include flexible work schedules, frequent rest breaks, a light box or sun-simulating desk lamp, or a “doze alert” app for fatigue.

If you do choose to pursue an appeal, consider getting help from a disability attorney (preferably one with experience dealing with the VA, if you’re seeking veterans benefits). Your lawyer can gather your medical evidence, correspond with the SSA or VA on your behalf, and represent you at a hearing. Disability attorneys don’t get paid unless you win and many offer free consultations, so there’s little risk in asking around to find a lawyer who’s a good fit for you.