Mental Disorders

Mental Disorders afflicts many adults throughout South Florida and in Palm Beach and Broward Counties. There is a huge variation of the causes and nature of mental disorders. In order to qualify for Social Security Disability Lawyer and Attorney Randy Zeldin, Esq. will help you to present medical evidence that the disorder imposes on an individual's ability to work for at least 12 months.

The following are categories of mental impairments that may be considered for Social Security Disability Benefits:

1. Organic Mental Disorders are psychological or behavioral abnormalities associated with a dysfunction of the brain. Some of the diseases included as an "organic mental disorder" include Alzheimer's Disease, dementia; Pick’s disease; Huntington’s disease and Creutzfeldt-Jacob disease.
2. Mental Retardation is typified by lower IQ scale or incapacity evidenced by dependence upon other for personal needs and inability to follow directions, etc. A diagnosis of mental retardation requires significant deficits in adaptive functioning, in addition to a low IQ. An IQ in the range of 71-84 is borderline intellectual functioning, rather than mental retardation.
3. Anxiety Related Disorders can mean recurrent obsessions or compulsions; irrational fears; panic attacks; recurrent recollections of a traumatic experience. Phobias are irrational fears of a specific object, activity or situation. Panic disorders are sudden, often unpredictable and very intense feelings of anxiety, fear, terror or impending doom.
4. Somatoform Disorders - This refers to multiple physical symptoms of several years duration, beginning before age 30, which significantly alters life patterns or disturbances of vision, speech hearing or use of a limb. These disorder results in marked restrictions of daily living; maintaining of social functioning; maintaining concentration, persistence or pace or repeated episodes of decompensation.
5. Personality Disorders exist when personality traits are inflexible and maladaptive and cause either significant impairment in social or occupational functioning or subjective distress. These includes specific diseases such as paranoid; schizoid; schizotypal; histrionic; narcissistic; antisocial; obsessive-compulsive.
6. Autism Disorder is characterized by qualitative deficits in the development of reciprocal social interaction, in the development of verbal and nonverbal communication skills and in imaginative activity. The condition starts in childhood and continues as a lifelong disability. It is a brain disorder which impacts an individual’s ability to communicate, form relationships and respond appropriately to the environment.
7. Psychotic Disorders – This is a broad category of disorders but includes conditions such as schizophrenia; paranoia and other mental disorders. Disabling consequences of these diseases include delusions or hallucinations; catatonic or other grossly disorganized behavior; incoherence; illogical thinking; blunt/flat affect or inappropriate affect; emotional withdrawal and isolation. The disease must result in marked restrictions of daily living or social functioning in order to qualify for SSD. Schizophrenia is an example of a psychotic disorder.

   Unfortunately, many Social Security Disability claimants have psychological and psychiatric disorders, which qualify for disabilities. More unfortunate is that a large percentage of these individuals do not obtain the mental health care that is required. Sometimes individuals, particularly men, are ashamed to acknowledge the need for mental health care and refrain from getting treatment. Other times there is an inability to pay for mental health care, due to lack of health insurance or an inability to pay. Without medical care, the afflicted claimant will not improve and will have no evidence to prove the mental health disability.

   There are many free or low-cost mental health facilities in Palm Beach and Broward Counties. In Broward County, the House of Hope and Stepping Stones are two options. In Palm Beach County, South County Mental Health, Jerome Golden Center, Sandy Pines and the Mental Health Association of Palm Beach County, are all available options.

If you or a family member of love one is unable to work due to a mental disorder, please contact Social Security Disability Attorney and Lawyer Randy Zeldin, Esq., representing individuals in Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Boca Raton, Delray Beach; Boynton Beach; West Palm Beach and Ft. Lauderdale.