ETA:I realize the title of the post is stupid- of course they are welcome, Im just.. stupid and irritated and ARGH haha.

But yeah, any ideas, please share!

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So, like... when things go wrong, sometimes you end up qualifying for extra help here and there. Because the application processes and the systems that govern that help are exceedingly complex, you get these people who are supposed to help you qualify for that help, and then help you when the system that provides the help inevitably screws up with no warning so you cant try to plan or budget for this circumstance. And the probalem with having unreliable assistance- which is a frequent situation- is that it can even do more harm than good. Many people dont plan for, say, their food assistance to be cut in half with no warning whatso ever- like happened to me. I got a letter on the second of this month saying, basically `Hi, screw you! We are now giving you 65$ for the month because of some reason that we are going to be horribly vague about, but we feel there has been a change in your circumstances [which we obviously won`t talk about here because that might actually give you information to work with].`
Did I mention I received that in my mailbox on the 2nd? yeah I think so. My food stamps reset on the THIRD.

Lucky for me I just assume I will never have any money and always work toward having a back up food supply and building up my pantry, but it is a slow process and I have about 2.5 weeks of food stocked. But a lot of people arent able to do this, even bit by bit.

There are so many problems with this: First, no warning. If you do this it can almost do more harm than good to provide assistance, giving an unreliable source of support sets people up for failure if they dont understand it is unreliable or if they are unable to adjust their budget to cushion for the possibility of having the rug pulled out- they might as well not have it, really in some circumstances.

Nothing has changed with my situation. Seriously. Even with the COLA for SSDI? Those are actually the numbers we put in when I applied for SNAP because I applied in November and the COLA was kicking in in the first of the year. Even with the COLA, my tested income is so ridiculously low it is not even worth mentioning.

Also: Ive done the math on my eligibility for benefits. I clearly make the cut by actually a bit more than I was getting. I did the math before I even applied and Ive done it several more times pretty much every which way [using the most up to date version]. I used to assist people with applying for food stamps and ssdi and ssi, so... I think this is actually some sort of error, not just me throwing a tantrum.

Another thing that makes me think it is an error is that when I look at my .gov account online, where everything is documented- all the letters that go in and out regarding any programs, etc... the letter regarding reduced assistance is not there. At all. But my benefits have clearly been cut, and it indicates in the payments that they are recouping them. FROM WHAT?

Meanwhile, Im on a special diet [results of not being on said diet are pretty awful], have 16 dollars and 25 cents a week to spend on food and my case worker cant bother to call me back. I have literally called her five times at this point over two weeks; the last time I couldnt leave a message because her voicemail is FULL. I left a message with her supervisor but I dont have any real high hopes for that either, considering she doesnt seem to be a particularly effective supervisor in the first place. Its difficult to go down there because it is an hour on public transit each way, and I would rather not because it is a pretty sketchy area.

Anyone notice that?
The public assistance places have a tendency to be in more dangerous and inaccessible areas? Around here, they are less likely to be close to public transportation or have fewer bus routes go by them.
Im really not sure that makes sense.

I also spent over an hour on the phone just waiting for someone at the department of transitional assistance to answer me in the order that my phone call was recieved.

That was a good time.