Fibromyalgia, a debilitating disease that causes serious pain throughout the body's muscles, joints, tissue and tendons, as well as chronic fatigue, is a disabling disease on its own. The pain that it causes is often severe enough to significantly disrupt people's lives. Unfortunately, those with fibromyalgia also tend to suffer from additional disorders, such as lupus, cervical and low-back degenerative disease, depression, irritable bowel syndrome or rheumatoid arthritis, among others.



The symptoms of fibromyalgia, coupled with the symptoms of another serious disease, can become absolutely debilitating. It's not uncommon for those with both fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis, for example, to find themselves unable to live a normal life. Eventually, the pain may become so severe that they're unable to work enough to support themselves, perform simple errands or even household chores. In situations like these, those suffering from the disease might qualify for Social Security Disability benefits.

Fibromyalgia and Social Security Disability:

SSI or SSDI benefits can provide monthly assistance so that the people facing the pain of fibromyalgia and any other disease can concentrate on treatment and pain management without attempting to work.

The first step to win fibromyalgia Social Security Disability benefits is to file an application and apply for SSI or SSDI. The application is extremely thorough and will ask for a full medical history as well as doctor's records showing the severances of the disability. When people do suffer from both fibromyalgia and another disease, most lawyers and other experts suggest using the other disease as the primary reason for filing, since fibromyalgia is not listed by the SSA. While it's not impossible to be awarded benefits when the primary disability is not a common SSA listing, the application might be more easily accepted with fewer questions if the applicant files for Social Security Disability under one of the more typical listings.

Consider Contacting a Social Security Disability Lawyer:

Working with a lawyer for Social Security Disability to plan out and organize an application for SSI or SSDI can be extremely beneficial. The expertise that they've accumulated by working on hundreds of Social Security Disability cases lets them help others avoid simple mistakes and common errors that would slow down the acceptance process.

Whether the applicant decides to file primarily under fibromyalgia or under an alternate disease like lupus of rheumatoid arthritis, listing all of the symptoms and conditions of all the diseases the applicant suffers from is crucial. The SSA will evaluate the person's limitations as a whole, so including information about fibromyalgia, even if it wasn't the primary disability in the application, can only help.

Other Considerations with Fibromyalgia Social Security Disability Claims:

People with fibromyalgia often have a variety of different symptoms that vary from day to day, or might even vary based on the weather or time. Symptoms might include pain throughout the entire body, and especially on tender points such as the back of the head, between shoulder blades, on the front sides of neck, in the upper chest and several others. Additionally, extreme fatigue, numbness and tingling, severe headaches and irritable bowels are also common symptoms of fibromyalgia. If the applicant suffers from any of these symptoms, they should be sure to document them with their doctor, as well as in notes or diaries of their own. The more proof the SSA can view in an application for Social Security Disability, the more likely they will be to quickly approve it.