Many people in Houston, Texas, even if they have a hard time admitting it, suffer from depression. Far from simply being a bad day or a bad week, depression can paralyze people’s ability to work or even do daily life activities for weeks or even months.
A diagnosis of clinical depression is a mental disorder that can qualify a person for Social Security disability benefits for mental conditions.Of course, a diagnosis means a person has to actually visit a doctor and get a professional opinion that he or she is indeed clinically depressed and needs treatment for that mental condition. However, more evidence is also required before one can get disability benefits.
As with any other medical condition, physical or mental, a person has to show that, even with treatment, his or her depression is so serious that he or she cannot reasonably be expected to work. So even someone who has depression, however serious it may be, will likely not be able to get disability if he or she can control the condition with medication and counseling.
Moreover, the depression has to be expected to last for at least 12 months and have some degree of permanency to it. In other words, someone who might have slipped into depression for a specific reason, like a death in the family, may have an uphill battle when it comes to getting benefits.
Still, a Texan who has had to quit work because of his or her depression may want to consider filing for Social Security Disability, as these benefits may be necessary to help that person maintain his or her livelihood.