Universal Credit

Hi thanks for the advice

The good news is that I got on my journal yesterday and was honest and said I was not feeling well and that I am beginning to make phone calls and seek help and I'll speak to GP next week hopefully and the work coach responded positively and didn't sanction me and I've been booked for next appointment in two weeks.

I can't fault the job centre/work coach so far. It's early days but hopefully as long as I work hard to at least speak with people a bit more I'll he OK. Easier said than done sometimes but for now I move on. 

I'm so sorry to hear of you're knee by the way and honestly it makes no sense DWP would force you back into work in the condition you describe. 

I did mention a WCA in my journal to the work coach, and was told that will only happen after I've been issued a sick note first, which as yet I've not been.

I have said I definitely want to work and feel given some time and speaking to people and getting some extra support it will happen sooner rather than later. I've got no issue actually working on a computer, it's my relative strong skill. I get interviews. I secure some jobs, my CV shows that. Problem is I can't at moment stay employed longer than 4 or 5 months, since 2018 that is. I was employed for 7 straight years at ASDA but since then I've been in a constant triad of jobs. At least I've kept getting jobs but my reliability is starting to look questionable to new employers the more this continues. It's going to be questioned and I would have to explain around it. That's always going to be worrying when I'm being interviewed. It's stressful enough dealing with interviews. Rejection is common. I don't want to work retail but I seem to know where else I could realistically go for. I don't have much in way of qualifications and being I'm now in my 30s the support is not quite there like it is for under 25s I guess. Apprenticeships I like the idea. But I don't have my English and Maths uo to standard.

I can do this it's just I need to somehow rebuild my confidence and somehow find a way to improve my social skills and get back out the house more. I hate it really. I don't won't to be a loner and it's like I'm my worst enemy. So weird and draining. I've been looking after myself now for 4 years as my Mum is not actually living with me, she's away long term living with and taking care of my Step Nan who's vulnerable and needs daily support. So basically I spend every day waking up, empty house, nobody to talk to and I find it hard to get moving. Only I can change this I'm told and it's correct of course. I don't know what I'm good at either. 

I honestly would want to work probably for MetOffice or something but I'm no good with numbers lol so I stick to looking for warehouse work and retail which is kind my default thing even though this is probably not exactly an ideal job sector sometimes. Customer service.. serving customers face to face.. doesn't work for me. I can be an order picker in online. Again, issue is I think I suffer some form of sensory overload and spending 12 hours all day working and not talking to anyone and coming home to emptiness.. it's tough mentally. That was mozt recently at Amazon. Massive place. LOADS of walking. Loads of people. My god its a maze and sometimes I'd definitely start feeling a bit overloaded by it all after a few days of that. It's whereas everyone around me has their 'groups', I am of course on my own at every stage. 

Fundamentally I am so confused how to change course.

I'm just in a horrible rut right now and as said feel constantly burnt out. Going in circles. I need to break than circle. I've been on a gradual slide in recent years and feel sorry for myself too much. Its embarrassing sometimes. I can't change the past or change who I am and I know there are people far worse positions than me despite my issues.

Thanks everyone for your advice

First I would talk to stepchange and get the money problem attended to , I did this with a DRO last year , It is easy to set up as they will send a big pack to guide you and you can talk to them for help, They are very nice people .


The DWP on the other hand is a whole different ballgame , Request a  limited capability assessment or get 3 sick notes in a row from your gp and then they will automatically make an assessment appointment for you 

I have been volunteered! for the seetec work and health program, and they seem to think I will be back in work in 15months, despite the fact I damaged my knee badly last year and waiting for injections for the pain as the nerve has been damaged and difficult to walk , Also ongoing diagnosis for hearing loss and dizzy spells and waiting for MRI scan results.
I had the work  limited capability assessment and im ok to look for work despite I cant hear anything on my left side and hobble around in short bursts. I could ask for reconsideration but will probably just go back to my gp for another sick note.

confidence is a muse hard to catch

thank you for taking it in with moderation

I'd take it as a compliment sure. It's definitely from the heart and articulated to my best ability. Not withstanding some annoying auto-correction with my phone. Not the best device to use I know. 

You're poem is really touching actually and I am grateful I had some effect on you at least. I'm not very confident right now to say the least, so I'll take any compliment I'm given.

Hey Mat

I wanted to tell you that ( depending how you look at it ) your posts might have positive ( inspiring in this instance ) effect on someone, reading them felt like deja vu and it made me come up with a poem, romantic poets style, so not a happy one, but still.... 

if there is someone thinking it's to discouraging i'll delete it

      Awful truth

Botomless sadness drowns me today

To see my mirror image strangled

In his unwilingness to give up

to his last breath trying futily reach out

His calls for help returned like an echo

words sharp as razor cuting my heart open

bleeding out knowing the awful truth

neither his nor mine are to be answered

MatBurns91 said:

I was diagnosed with Autism sometime around 13 or 14 but I have no idea how I would get medical 'proof'. Would I have to ask a GP for this in the NHS? I mean I'd assume I would? 

How to get your medical records:

https://www.nhs.uk/using-the-nhs/about-the-nhs/how-to-get-your-medical-records/

MatBurns91 said:

Being I've never been sanctioned before I don't know how severe it would be.. would it be all money for the current assessment period or some percentage?

Universal Credit: Sanctions:

"If you fail to do what you have agreed in your Claimant Commitment without good reason, your Universal Credit payments may be reduced for a set period. This is known as a sanction."

https://www.understandinguniversalcredit.gov.uk/already-claimed/sanctions/

I don't have any social worker or anything like that with me right now.

Since I left school I effectively been managing myself in the 'real world' as it were. I was employed for seven years sort of just comfortably coasting on auto pilot between 2011 and 2018. The real deterioration started to hit in 2018 when I lost that job due to a combination of stress from a 'consultation process' regarding change of work processes/redundancy proceedings etc.

I feel like I have worked hard to put on a mask to function at work and in life on general. I actually looked after myself and kind of managed OK for a long period. I was not too bad looking, I looked perfectly normal but just had a peculiar and sometime strange way of acting in terms of body language and way I express myself. Not making eye contact correctly. That sort of thing. I cycled a lot and found this kept me sane and was a way to sometimes blow of stress. But since leaving longer term work, over time, I've deteriorated as I keep saying. It's something that gets worse over a long time. A sort of repeating loop of good days/bad days/good weeks/bad weeks.. except the bad weeks are becoming more common and have turned into many weeks and only short spells where I can bring myself back up again. I've put on weight a little overall recent years and am losing confidence. It's horrible really.

Part of my issue is I don't have much idea what I am good at, what I want to do. My education was dismal and I do beat myself up about it. The area I'm from doesn't help, as its frankly poor for education  standards so my own issues kind of condemned me I guess. It's painful to think about because I feel that my school years were what ultimately messed me up from the start. In my opinion I was put in the wrong schools at most stages.

My issues were not understood really when I was younger - pre diagnoses. I was not diagnosed with Autism until 13/14 and Autism back in the 90s/early 00s was less understood and in the public space.

Fundamentally I don't think I'm incapable of functioning well, but I do need support to manage anxiety as its something which can really mess me up and it's a long term thing that can get worse without support. I know this.

Being 30 I'm unable to access a lot of the support that has to be given to those younger people by law. And honestly the support available when I was a kid seems far less than apparently is now being offered today. I don't know. I think ultimately I was failed by the system and have until now just trued to make the best of the cards I'm given. But I am really starting to lose myself recently. It's like my life is beginning to spiral a bit out of control.

I do speak to Mum a little. She understands and tries to help I think. She can't really do much really at this point. I feel bad for her that I am more of a burden than anything. I feel very bad about the whole thing. I'm just existing right now. The future seems pretty grim. No prospect of decent employment, high debts, no prospect of any sort of quality of life to work towards. Can't make friends, have no connections, no prospect of a girlfriend.. you know.. I sound like a broken record so I'd stop for now. Hopefully I've articulated my feeling is a somewhat understandable manner.

As for as my housing situation/family support - I am a lodger really. That's a positive I guess. The environment is not the best I don't have hot water or heating for example, but the main thing is I'm with a roof over my head. I want to leave and find somewhere else but right now my options are pretty grim on that issue because of things like my credit rating/debt, the fact I'd be classed as lower priority for social housing, the fact I'm on benefits and not in work, not to mention my mental health. Many issues really.

Hi the thing is I did make a claim for PIP I think it was back in November last year and was scheduled a telephone interview in December at some point. I was still employed at that time in my most recent job which ended/terminated in February this year. I didn't answer the call like an idiot. I asked for a mandatory reconsideration last month, March, but have yet to hear back on it as of today 28th April. I was told it could take weeks to hear back so maybe still time yet. 

I've been in denial I guess and in my own mind saw PIP as a sort of defeat and acknowledgment that I am in some way weak and disabled and embarrassing. The fact my mental health is all over the place, I'm a nervous wreck.. I have no friends or proper social skills.. I kind of pretend to myself I'm normal but clearly I'm not as much as I desperately want to be normal. But yeah I've probably shot myself in the foot with that one. Hopefully they'll at least give me another appointment. I'm not even sure how it would go to be honest. Physically I guess I'm OK. I can cook, I'm living ON MY OWN! But I'm terrible with budgeting and money if I'm being honest. I cannot in any real sense build relationships or make friends which is an issue at work. I can be very much targeting and seen as weird and it causes me to feel very on edge, self conscious and uneasy and can lead to anxiety attacks. A lot of time people in public might not see anything terribly bad. It's when I return home to an empty place. That's when things can get ugly shall we say. I have eating issues related to stress. Some use alcohol or even drugs. I use food to numb the pain. And just go a bit crazy. Like a sort of mental breakdown.

I was diagnosed with Autism sometime around 13 or 14 but I have no idea how I would get medical 'proof'. Would I have to ask a GP for this in the NHS? I mean I'd assume I would? 

Being I've never been sanctioned before I don't know how severe it would be.. would it be all money for the current assessment period or some percentage?

Being sanctioned is a possibility, my concern is that you haven't submitted evidence of having autism which would back your need for additional support and adaptations being made. Job centres from my experience are malicious and deliberately not inform you of support or help in order to hit their targets of sanctioning individuals.

By submitting and providing a record of autism spectrum disorder or a mental health diagnosis to them their are less likely to be able to sanction you. At the minuet your an easy target for the work coach to fulfill their quote of sanctions or referrals.

I would speak up, but i wouldn't do it without having someone who can back you up. The work coach is less likely to give you the runaround or miss inform you and if they do you have someone who can bear witness. Do not speak up alone, You'll get nowhere.   

Thank you for this. I am just so anxious about being honest or being not believed. Sounds weird but I just end up nodding and agreeing to anything I'm told but I will try to speak up. My worry I suppose is being sanctioned. Should I really worry about this or risk it?

Or do both?

I would skip the GP and request a 'Needs Assessment' through the local authority

There is no such thing as 'Lazy' so stop putting yourself down. I would go into the Job centre with a friend, family member or Advocate and request a limited capability assessment to place you onto the limited capability work group which could double the amount you receive and give you the breathing room to recover from burnout. It is assessed, but not as dismissive as the PIP assessment and is often carried out over the phone. Limited capability are often given breathing room to recover and sometimes don't have to see a work coach regularly. 

I would then, once the you have recovered from burnout wait a few weeks to a months before requesting support to find employment or training. Like i tell everyone employment schemes like the 'Shaw trust health and work programme' don't work and will often stress people out, so avoid them. 

the debt i would contact an organisation 'welfare right' to help budget and get control of the debt. the longer you leave it the less option you'll have to deal with it. 

I would definitely advise speaking with your GP as a priority, and asking if you can be signed off work. Explain the symptoms you have stated here, and also request a full health check. 

Unless you've had one recently, I feel it would also be worth booking an appointment with an optician for an eye test, especially as you feel that your vision has deteriorated.

As for your debt, have you considered contacting Stepchange? They are a free debt charity that provides confidential debt advice and solutions for your circumstances (link below, which should open in a new window).

https://www.stepchange.org/

Wish I could get a warehouse job, tried for months to get a warehouse job

MatBurns91 said:

bankruptsy

you wouldn't be allowed to gain income from any source for few years,

it means homelessness,

I thought about it too, and while I feel, or maybe just hope that I am in a slightly better mental and physical condition,

I can't endure full time job anymore, just like you, because it's to much stress

 I do not think I would survive a month as a homeless

that was the last of ''rational'' choices I had

You could try and see your GP and get signed off as sick, this could be used as a reason not to have to visit the job centre on a regular basis.