Poll Ptsd As A Disability

[Abigail]

So I'm looking over the college applications for my top choice schools because they are international (I'm looking at Canadian schools) and there is a place to check whether I consider myself to have a disability or not, "including mental health disorders."

I never ask for help, so I want to check no because "I can handle anything, don't give me slack." But I'm afraid that I'm not being honest with myself with what I can and can't handle. My symptoms still weigh heavily on me and affect pretty much everything (my sleep, ability to go outside, I never relax or feel safe, etc). But is that a disability?

I know they are going to know eventually what a mess I am. I have to wait to resume therapy until I get there because, at least this school, seems to have a lot of mental health support (like, a lot) and it will be free.

Thank you!! xxx

 

[Go Hungry]

Yep, it's considered a disability here in the US. Not sure about in Canada though. I identified as disabled the last time my employer asked.

 

[scout86]

There are a lot of comments on here from various people doing "school with PTSD". At some point, it becomes a challenge for a lot of people. If you can get it set up so "the system" works with you, it's a big plus if you need it. I didn't know I had PTSD when I was in college. My college career was complicated and I'm sure, now, that PTSD was a factor. If I'd known then what I know now, my life would have been a lot different. (Probably in good ways.)

If I were where you are now, I'd put it down. You may never need any extra help because of it, but I think it's better to take advantage of it if you need it. Especially if you have a chance to explain. Then I'd tell them what you said here, that you think you're perfectly capable, just have this issue.

 

[Lady of Longbourn]

Yes...Here in the US it is under the Americans with Disabilities Act and I get paperwork from my college. There is no shame in it and it has helped me many times. Your teachers don't know what the cause is just that you have the paperwork and by law they have to follow it.

The office at the school will help you with the paperwork and you will need doctor proof to back it up. The office staff at the school will help you if there is an issue with any of your teachers. I had to be hospitalized one term and they did everything for me, they did all the paperwork to get it cleared all the way to the dean.

It takes less then half an hour to sit down and get all the paperwork done with the office. It's worth it. :tup:

 

[Fadeaway]

I highly recommend it that way it is there if you ever need help. I got the paper work several times but never followed through.Then when I needed the extra help, I didn't have it.

Please don't make my mistake. If you don't need the resources great, it is still there as a safety net if you do.

 

[NovemberStar]

Go for it. I wasn't diagnosed with PTSD when I was at Uni (I was misdiagnosed) but my mental illness severely impacted my studying at times. Ticking the 'disability' box meant I had a lot if support available. I didn't take up all things on offer but they included: having and extra 10 mins per hour of an exam; being able to sit an exam in a smaller room (not a huge hall), having lecture notes copied (the support office would pay a student with good note taking and writing $5 per set of notes which were photocopied for any student with a disability). I was able to get extensions for assignment deadlines, and I cent remember but probably other things too. Oh - I could withdrawn due to health and my academic record would state it was health related (or put in a way that made not blight my academic record).

It REALLY helped take a lot of pressure off. And it enabled me to graduate twice (two degrees).

As I got more well and had a long period of stability, I was able to be a note-taker and contribute back to the system in place for other students with disabilities.:)

Edited to add - registering as having a disability also means the statistics for those graduating more accurately reflect the number of student who have disabilities and still succeed in studying. Not everyone with a disability will make it known - but can you imagine how inspiring and encouraging it would be if stats kept showed 'hey - see - there are a LOT of students with disabilities who have graduated despite having extra challenges' :)

 

[Deleted member 1860]

Definitely sign up for the assistance of disability services. Even if you don't use their accommodations, it is an invaluable safety net given that you never know when a downward spiral may hit. If you don't have the accommodations in place then you may get little to no slack if something unexpectedly goes wrong. If things are bad enough and you have to drop out of school, you will have wasted much money. So yes, I'd say that you should set your pride aside and sign up for these services. Its not a matter of being strong and doing it all on your own. If you have symptoms that legitimately affect your studies, then it is worth it to get the extra help.

 

[Lucycat]

Here in the UK there is a different attitude to it. It is not about whether any diagnosis causes disability, but rather whether you as an individual are disabled. Therefore there is no list of conditions that give you an automatic right to any help. But if you declare that you have difficulty with x,y,z in a day to day setting then help should be supplied specifically to address and support that difficulty.

 

[Deleted member 1860]

@Lucycat,
I wouldn't say that here in the US that those with PTSD have an automatic right to ANY accommodation. We have to consult with our doctor and the doctor has to explain why each and every accommodation is needed. Its not like there is a standard list of accommodations for each disorder and if you have that disorder you qualify for all of those accommodations. So no, I wouldn't say that its all that different in the UK. I'm not sure why you're making such statements given that you are unaware of how disability accommodations truly work here in the US. (I think the difference lies in that you yourself have personally decided to not seek out accommodations. I think that's great as your PTSD appears to not be a severe as it does not affect your studies.)

 

[Lucycat]

@Solara I think you are misunderstanding my point - I am clearly not getting it across well. The thread title struck me 'PTSD as a disability'. I was meaning that PTSD is a 'diagnostic label', but may or may not be regarded as a disability depending on the individual's take and specific symptoms.

I am not suggesting that people should not get any help they need.

I never ask for help, so I want to check no because "I can handle anything, don't give me slack." But I'm afraid that I'm not being honest with myself with what I can and can't handle. My symptoms still weigh heavily on me and affect pretty much everything (my sleep, ability to go outside, I never relax or feel safe, etc). But is that a disability?

So here it is - I believe it is the sleep/ ability to go outside/not feeling safe etc that is the disablity ( or not as determined by the sufferer, ) not PTSD per se. Does that make sense?

that's great as your PTSD appears to not be a severe as it does not affect your studies.

Just to be clear I am studying with The Open University - entirely online. But this is not relevant to the original question.

 

[Hashi]

In the UK a disability is something which affects your ability to carry out everyday activities, and that this is expected for a period of 12 months or more. So I think it would be unusual for someone with a PTSD diagnosis for it not to come under this definition. Studying at university is an everyday activity, for a student.

@Abigail, although your question is about PTSD and the definition of disability, it seems to me that the actual question is why do you never ask for help? And how might you get past this and ask for help that's available and appropriate?

 

[Abigail]

@Abigail, although your question is about PTSD and the definition of disability, it seems to me that the actual question is why do you never ask for help? And how might you get past this and ask for help that's available and appropriate?

So I think you totally nailed me here @Hashi . I've been thinking about it and kind of reflecting on my life and how I really feel, no filters on anything (I write it down so that I don't forget as my memory I swear just gets worse), and you're totally right. I don't think my question really is "Is PTSD a disability" but really it's about my inability to seek appropriate help for myself. It's kinda similar with me being dyslexic and it is so very rare that I even mention it because I don't want to be treated differently.

I definitely need to figure out how to accept that I need help and that asking for it is okay. It will probably take more time than "okay, you guys are right, I'm good now" because I couldn't even ask for a math test extension without sobbing and shaking because I thought my math teacher would start hitting me.

I am making an effort to learn about the range of support methods that are available while trying to track my symptoms and memories that I often have flashbacks from and kind of put together why I'm suffering a certain way and how I can fix it. It's kind of hard right now, being therapist-less, but I am doing what I can. Because I went to the gym yesterday (first time since back from my Canadian road trip and first time I've let myself leave the house in a while) and let me tell you, how I was anxious, shaking, and in tears just being in public and being so afraid of everything is not how I want to live my life.

I know that I don't want to keep suffering like this, but it's still hard to reach out.