OK, so here's the deal. I applied for disability about two years ago, and kept getting denied. So I sought out a lawyer and got an appeal---my hearing was in august of this year. In november, I received an "unfavorable decision" from the judge. Of course, my attorney filed an appeal on that decision that same day! We are still waiting.

Here in one of the "reasons" that I was denied:
One symptom of my mental illness is that I isolate (really bad). Of course, that just makes me worse. I also have bad back problems, and while I'm isolating, I usually don't do anything physical either, which makes my back pain worse (doesn't help the depression either). My doctor, psychiatrist, and my therapist all thought it would help me to at least do some light excercise and get involved in group therapy. Since I am a recovering alcoholic, they encouraged me to keep attending A.A. Well, I was doing all that, on the advice of my doctors, But the judge used that against me and stated that I had a very "active social" life, and "engaged in excercise on a regular basis," therefore it was not possible for me to have any disability. (Keep in mind, that I did not offer that information to the judge or the lawyer; that was all on my doctors' notes,because they would always ask if I was still doing all the stuff they suggested.) Now, I'm scared to death to get involved in any type of group therapy or excercise because I'm afraid that will continue to be used against me!

Anyway, here is the main point of all this. The community college in my area is offering some free classes, starting in January, specifically for mental health patients. They're not career based, but are therapy based. there are group therapy sessions and classes about dealing with your mental illness, etc. So it would pretty much like what I'd be doing at the mental health place only at the college. I would very much like to go these, but I'm worried that, if I do, that will be used against me again. Can they deny me for that?