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Can One Make Any Money After Getting Iu?

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griffcher

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Schedular (non-mental) is different than IU in that you can still work. If I have lost an arm and a leg and i'm 100% schedular I can work all I want. The key word here is schedular.

IU is defined differently. IU is not a schedular rating, it's only for those that aren't 100% schedular that are considered unemployable.

Jerr

Jerr,

Yes. I understand that. But in response to the question about what would people on the outside think of a veteran working when he is getting compensated for being unable to work - I was making a point of how would people on the outside know what the veteran was being compensated for (i.e schedular rating or being unemployable.)

I do not think that most people on the outside would make any distinction between whether a vet was receiving a schedular disability or disability for being unemployable. Nor would they make the distinction between if the vet were drawing 70% or 100%.

I do not understand the argument that a vet on TDIU cannot even work part-time or sporadically (if they are capable of doing so) because of what people might think.

Granted, once a person on TDIU or SSA starts working at all, it might start the process in the direction that a determination may eventually be made that they are no longer "unemployable." (i.e. the agency may later determine their condition has improved and that they are capable of self-support). But even then, the Vet will not lose all benefits; they will retain their schedular ones. AND that is a whole different issue than the argument that Vets shouldn't work at ALL because of what people might think.

Income is only one thing a person gets from working. Most people DO want to work, at least at a job where they feel like they can accomplish something. You hear it over and over and over again in here - "I wish I COULD work!" (Not for the extra income - but the wish that if they could hand their VA check and earn every penny by working they would do it in a heartbeat). I think it was Halos that said in one thread "When I became disabled, I lost part of myself" or something of that nature.

Working is not only about getting an income. Working involves many things.

My husband LOVED to teach. For awhile he had to take off from teaching. But I could still see how much he missed it. He taught Sociology. I teach Speech Communication. He dropped by my classes regularly and often got involved in the class discussion - or I would ask him to cover certain sections or topics for me.

I saw what teaching did for him. It fed his soul. When he walked in that classroom, a special part of him came to life. He lit up and the students lit up.

Later, though he was already on SSDI, he made plans to return to teaching. And yes - he reported it to Social Security. In fact, he took his contract to Social Security the day he received it in November 2006 - though he wasn't actually going to start teaching until January 2007. They calculated his earnings and determined that he would still be eligible for SSD. (He was only scheduled to teach one class).

He did not return to teaching - as his condition worsened in January, and he died February 5. However, he hung on to that possibility of teaching until he could no longer do so. He waited until a few days before the semester started before he told the Director for sure he would not be able to teach that semester. At that time, he still had hoped he could teach the NEXT semester though.

I do not understand why so many people are so insistent that anyone on any type of disability should not be allowed to work AT ALL, despite the fact disability rules do allow people to work some and still be considered disabled, as they are not capable of working ENOUGH to support themselves.

I do not understand this on the basis that working provides so much more than merely making an income. I don't understand why if someone is LEGALLY disabled, but they are capable of working SOME, and they want to try that - why so many people want to call them frauds, and judge them, and indicate other people will judge them, etc.

A person who is disabled has already lost A LOT. Why take away that which does not necessarily have to be taken away?

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We have been over the IU/work debate many times. If IU people want to risk losing their 100% rating then they should go back to work and see what happens. To me it is not worth the risk. I think every vet who can't work should be rated 100% schedular because work is a central activity in an adults life when they are working age. However, if it is for a mental condition part of being 100% schedular is being unable to work.

I don't care what people think, but I do care about losing the benefits I get from being P&T and IU for the last 8 years.

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Ok I will put my 2 cents on this one. Having IU P&T for ptsd. I have been IU for 3 years now and am only 36. Well to tell the truth I miss working. My wife just left 2 months ago and one factor there were many is that she did not like the fact I did not work. We were married for 13 years and have 2 small children. I live in a town I hate and moved here for her job. I bought a house for my family and now am stuck with the house and the 1800 month house payment. Some times I think it would have been better to stay at 50% and kept working even know it would have ended in disater.

I guess my point is really think about what you want yes with the va and ssd and my union pension I make more money than when I was working. Also being young plays a role also I guess if I were in my late 40s or 50s I would look at it different. I had a old good vietnam vet at my old job I was telling him I was going for the IU and he told me not to do it. Said I was to young and what was I going to do with my life. And he was right.

My typical day is wake up with the kids when I have them get them off to school come home get ready for the gym. Go to the gym ( I am in better shape than when I was in the corp ) So good the last va appt I had they took me off my high cholerstal and blood pressure meds. I have lost 20 lbs. And gained a but load of muscle. I go to the gym 5 days a week sometimes twice a day. Now this is not something I enjoy But I know If I dont I will turn to the bottle or something else to pass my time. My va shrink tells me to keep doing it and how big I have gotten he knows if I dont keep working out I will turn to something else.

Ok now I have heard so many times that I need to find a hobbie find something I enjoy. Well its not that easy I dont know what I like I miss being in the corp miss my friends miss my brothers and dont know what I am going to do with my life. Sometimes I feel worthless and if I did the right thing going for iu.

So yes I understand how it feels not to work. And I do miss it. But also know I cant due to my ptsd. It is a struggle every day.

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We have been over the IU/work debate many times. If IU people want to risk losing their 100% rating then they should go back to work and see what happens. To me it is not worth the risk. I think every vet who can't work should be rated 100% schedular because work is a central activity in an adults life when they are working age. However, if it is for a mental condition part of being 100% schedular is being unable to work.

I don't care what people think, but I do care about losing the benefits I get from being P&T and IU for the last 8 years.

John,

Now that is a totally valid argument and an argument that I understand very well. The risks most certainly need to be considered 587 times before a person makes the choice to try to work. I certainly agree that anyone on any type of disability benefit who asks if they can work needs to be warned very directly that though the laws say you can work, as long as the work is not "substantial" they are running a very big risk of the potential of the agency eventually determining they are no longer disabled and stopping their benefits. This, of course, would be devastating for someone who truly couldn't work enough to support themselves.

But that is a totally different argument than the argument that people who do try to work are frauds, or people who lost their benefits probably lied about working and got caught, or that the law says that in order to be disabled you cannot be capable of working at all, or that it is morally wrong to work part time if the government is paying you disability benefits.

I would certainly not advise someone to just leap into trying to work. In most instances that would probably not be advisable, unless the person was recovered somewhat, or had received additional training and now could do a job they previously couldn't do, or something - AND were sure they were willing to take the risk of potentially losing benefits.

I certainly don't agree with the advice that it is okay to work as long as you keep your income below substantial gainful. Again, if a person is capable of working that much and intentionally keeps their income below the threshold in order to keep their benefits - they are gaming the system. And I do agree that there are plenty of people out there gaming the system. But I do not agree that everyone who works is gaming the system. And again, I think that some (though certainly not most) of the people who do not work also game the system.

I understand this has been debated before. Though I wasn't involved in the debates there does seem to be a "it has already been settled" type of air about the issue. Apparently there are other people who do not realize the issue has already been settled, because the question keeps coming up.

I also think that people who ask deserve respect and accurate information - and facts as well as opinions. I don't see anything wrong with letting people know that going back to work does not always constitute fraud, is not always wrong, and though it might not be a wise choice - due to the risk of losing benefits - that it doesn't always result in a loss of benefits.

The misconception that a person has to be totally unable to work in order to be approved for / or receive benefits causes many people to lose benefits they could have received.

Many people who apply for disability have worked reduced hours, or missed a lot of work, prior to stopping work all together. That person can often be adjudicated disabled at the point their income dropped below substantial gainful, rather than at the point they stopped working – if the drop in income was because of their disability. But often the agency just uses the last day worked as the disability onset date – and the claimant doesn’t realize they can ask for earlier entitlement.

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  • HadIt.com Elder
Ok I will put my 2 cents on this one. Having IU P&T for ptsd. I have been IU for 3 years now and am only 36. Well to tell the truth I miss working. My wife just left 2 months ago and one factor there were many is that she did not like the fact I did not work. We were married for 13 years and have 2 small children. I live in a town I hate and moved here for her job. I bought a house for my family and now am stuck with the house and the 1800 month house payment. Some times I think it would have been better to stay at 50% and kept working even know it would have ended in disater.

I guess my point is really think about what you want yes with the va and ssd and my union pension I make more money than when I was working. Also being young plays a role also I guess if I were in my late 40s or 50s I would look at it different. I had a old good vietnam vet at my old job I was telling him I was going for the IU and he told me not to do it. Said I was to young and what was I going to do with my life. And he was right.

My typical day is wake up with the kids when I have them get them off to school come home get ready for the gym. Go to the gym ( I am in better shape than when I was in the corp ) So good the last va appt I had they took me off my high cholerstal and blood pressure meds. I have lost 20 lbs. And gained a but load of muscle. I go to the gym 5 days a week sometimes twice a day. Now this is not something I enjoy But I know If I dont I will turn to the bottle or something else to pass my time. My va shrink tells me to keep doing it and how big I have gotten he knows if I dont keep working out I will turn to something else.

Ok now I have heard so many times that I need to find a hobbie find something I enjoy. Well its not that easy I dont know what I like I miss being in the corp miss my friends miss my brothers and dont know what I am going to do with my life. Sometimes I feel worthless and if I did the right thing going for iu.

So yes I understand how it feels not to work. And I do miss it. But also know I cant due to my ptsd. It is a struggle every day.

Calnight, old buddy, old Jarhead pal, have I ever got the job for you!

Keeps ya busy, keeps ya thinking, helps other veterans, great need for you.

Lousy or, in my instance, NO pay.

But, VERY rewarding.

Ya gotta be a little crazy to want to do it, buy, hey, one Marine to another, we KNOW we meet that job requirement, right?

I'll be in my office a little after 0800 this morning.

214-548-7828.

Edited by LarryJ
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Calnight, old buddy, old Jarhead pal, have I ever got the job for you!

Keeps ya busy, keeps ya thinking, helps other veterans, great need for you.

Lousy or, in my instance, NO pay.

But, VERY rewarding.

Ya gotta be a little crazy to want to do it, buy, hey, one Marine to another, we KNOW we meet that job requirement, right?

I'll be in my office a little after 0800 this morning.

214-548-7828.

Great idea! And good point - That even people who cannot "earn a living" the way our society has set up the "work world" still have SO MUCH to offer (even if it doesn't fit into the neat little packages that employers want it to fit in in order to pay you).

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