Sustaining a spinal cord injury can be quite devastating as it can result in physical and emotional challenges. You may not be able to work again because of this injury while requiring ongoing medical care. Thankfully, you might be eligible for social security disability (SSD) benefits. To know if you are eligible for these benefits, consult with a Boston social security disability attorney. The sooner you see an attorney the sooner you might get the benefits you need.
What are Spinal Cord Injuries?
Spinal cord injuries impact your spinal cord, which runs from your brain through the middle part of your back. Your spinal cord is responsible for transmitting messages between your brain and other body parts. Thus, spinal cord damage can disrupt your body’s normal functioning.
Common Effects of Spinal Cord Injuries
You can sustain a spinal cord injury in many ways such as car accidents, sports injuries, falls, and violence. This injury can affect your body in many ways, depending on its seriousness and where the damage is located. The following are common effects of this injury:
- Paralysis. Depending on where exactly the injury is, an injury to the spinal cord can lead to partial or complete paralysis. If you sustain partial paralysis, you may still make movement in the injured area while complete paralysis makes this impossible.
- Loss of sensation. An injury to the spinal cord can lead to a loss of sensation close to the affected area. Thus, you may not feel pain, touch, or temperature in here.
- Blow and bladder issues. If you sustain a spinal cord injury, you can experience bowel and bladder control issues. This can result in incontinence or the use of adaptive devices.
- Chronic pain. Chronic pain associated with spinal cord injuries can be managed with treatments that depend on the severity of the pain and its location.
- Difficulty breathing. If you experience difficulty breathing after sustaining a spinal cord injury, you may need a ventilator to breathe.
Eligibility for SSD Benefits
To determine if you are eligible for SSDI benefits, the SSA follows a process. The agency will first determine how long you have been working and how much contribution have you made to the program. Also, they will consider the seriousness of your medical condition and determine if it qualifies as a disability. In addition, the SSA also determines whether your injury’s effects meet or equal its list of impairments and your ability to perform previous related work.