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        Supporter's Corner >> Supporter's Corner >> Getting Financial help from the goverment
        
(Message started by: lucyng on Mar 9^th, 2007, 5:59am)

Title: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by lucyng on Mar 9^th, 2007, 5:59am

Hello, everyone!
My co-worker and good friend of mine suffers from cluster headaches. I just recently familiarize myself with the symptoms of it by finding this website. I'd like to first congratulate everyone that's been involved with this. It's really filled wth very good info. Thank u!
I'd like to know more about any kind of financial help that's being offered out there, as well as goverment help like filing for EDD.
My friend may have to quit his job soon since his CH cycle just started, and I'd like to find out more ways to help him.
Please, any advice will be greatly appreciated.
Thank you! =)

**Lucy** :)

Title: Re: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by nani on Mar 9^th, 2007, 8:15am

Hi Lucy, if your friend is episodic, why would he have to quit his job? Only a few chronics I know are unable to work due to clusters.

Title: Re: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by lucyng on Mar 9^th, 2007, 3:36pm

Well, he mentioned to me that his CH cycle may last 2 weeks or 2 months. If it's the long case then he may have to either quit or ask for medical leave. Of course I'd prefer him to ask for leave, but he the job won't pay him for the absent time. That's why I'm wondering if there's any help from the government, such as EDD. Will he qualify for EDD if he needs to?

Title: Re: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by LeLimey on Mar 9^th, 2007, 3:42pm

A 2 month cycle is not a long one and if I only got hit for two weeks a year I'd be on my knees thanking God.
As Nani said, alot of people here are chronic which means they get hit day in day out, year in year out and they hold down jobs. I seriously doubt if he would get any assistance if he was only getting hit two months a year at most.
Its a horrific painful condition and in a lot of ways I think being episodic is harder as you "forget" almost how bad it is until it comes back and with such short cycles its hard to adopt coping techniques.
Get him to come along here and we'll discuss med options and coping strategies with him and help him all we can :)
Helen

PS Thank you very much for caring about what one of our fellow clusterheads has to go through

Title: Re: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by nani on Mar 9^th, 2007, 3:43pm

I can't see a reason why someone would have to take leave for CH. Even at their worst, CH attacks generally last less than 2 hours. With proper meds, an attack can be aborted within 15 minutes. All he would need is an understanding boss and a place to be alone.
What is EDD? Social Security Disability requires someone being unable to work for at least a year, if I'm not mistaken. Has he visited here? He might really benefit from the knowledge and info we have to offer.

Title: Re: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by TonyG1 on Mar 9^th, 2007, 3:56pm

Agree with Nani and Helen ! This past cycle for me wasn't a bad one BUT the cycle prior to this past one lasted almost 6 months ... I managed with medication and continued to remain gainfully employed. There were days that it was tough as I generally get hit at night so the sleep deprivation factor kicked in http://bestsmileys.com/sleeping/18.gif ; however, I think I may have called in sick 2 days during that cycle

Title: Re: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by BMoneeTheMoneeMan on Apr 23^rd, 2007, 12:30am

on 03/09/07 at 15:43:45, nani wrote:

What is EDD?

Thats the California state Employment Development Department. Its the state unemployement office.

Lucy, tell your friend not to quit. Dont let the beast win that fight. Tell him to get to work every day and to give 100%. Due to the cycle, his work performance might suffer, so tell him to give 125% to make up for it.

Dont let the beast win, and dont give up pre-emptively.
FIGHT

Title: Re: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by orovillemike on Jun 11^th, 2007, 2:40am

HI I KNOW HOW YOUR FRIEND FEELS I STARTED ONLY GETTING HIT ONCE IN AWHILE

NOW ITS NIGHTLY I ONLY SLEEP 2 TO 3 HOURS OF BROKEN REST AT NIGHT BEEN TOLD NOT TO EXSPECT MUCH HELP FROM THE GOV. IM STILL WORKING NOW AND ITS HARD BUT ITS BETTER TO BE DOING SOMETHING THEN JEST SITTING IN A BAD STINK HOLE

Title: Re: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by Patrick_A on Jul 6^th, 2007, 10:19pm

on 03/09/07 at 15:43:45, nani wrote:

Hello Nani,
I personally have went out on Short Term Disability for my CH's.
Oxygen never helped me. Imitrex gave me Rebound HA's that were worse than the original CH's and during the peak of my cycle I was suffering 5 to 7 3/4 hour to 3 hours for each CH all while I was trying to get enough sleep for the next day at work. Yea, needless to say, The math didn't add up so I had to go on STD.

Patrick_A

Title: Re: Getting Financial help from the goverment
Post by Lenny on Jul 28^th, 2007, 12:20pm

Hi Lucy,

As for myself,i had my mind set to never allow the beast to control my life (and was pretty good at that)..

In the summer of 2000-2002 (cant remember which year), i was chronic at that time and have been till this past november 2006.... i was getting hammered day and night for appr. 3-months (this is what we would call a cycle within a cycle),this is the only time that i allowed the beast to rule my life (he mentally broke me) there were many days that i would inject myself as many as 7 times a day to get the beast to leave only to come back as little as a half hour -2 hours later with a vengance.....

My doc told me that i had to stop the inj.(they were creating rebounds) to get it out of my system (i remember posting about this "rebounds")only to be laughed at the time,there was nothing written regarding imitrex and rebounds at that time... Tell your friend to suck it up and to remind himself that it will be gone.....BTW i was out of work for 1-1.5 months if i remember correctly..........

Just to clarify for those that might ask a ? or 2........

1) As far as oxygen.....for whatever reason it was not much help for me (12-15 lpm - w/ non-breath.)...

2) At the time they had to take me off of lithium(bad blood work) happens all the time with me "lithium"...

3) the only prev.meds that ever seemed to help was the combo of lithium and verap. (one without the other was useless for me)...

4) I am one of those idiots that will only call my doc when i cant take it anymore... my ego (edging god out) not very bright ;;D...

5) BTW..i did not apply for disability (used a good portion of my savings)...

PFDAN to all.................Lenny

p.s. this has nothing to do with above.........yesterday i had 1 on my left side ( if i recall correctly ) the last time i had 1 on that side was 1990,91 or 92...(strange)