About 3 million persons in the US have epilepsy.
Epilepsy is a condition which may be considered disabling by the Social Security Administration.
They key is how severe the claimant's eplilepsy is, how often seizures occur and whether the claimant adheres to prescribed treatment (and still has severe symptoms of epilepsy that interfers with full-time work).
Some information Social Security will definitely need includes:
a definite diagnosis of epilepsy
documentation for the type(s) of epilepsy you have
the onset date
frequency of your seizures
description of your seizures and what symptoms accompany them
medications and treatment you are on and have tried in the past
Social Security often approves benefits for daytime seizures that cause you to convulse or lose consciousness - or--
Nighttime seizures that cause severe complications during the day: problems like confusion, sleepiness or difficulty coordinating your physical movements.
Social Security will want to see that you have been on anti-seizure medication for at least 3 months and you are still having seizures at least once a month with the medication.
As with any impairment, the impairment must have lasted or be expected to last for at least 12 straight months OR to end in death. Documentation of your diagnosis, severity frequency of symptoms is the key.
The appropriate medical specialist to treat epilepsy is a neurologist.
Epilepsy is evaluated in the Social Security Listings (the "blue book") in Section 11.02
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