That's an excellent point. Just having a serious sounding diagnosis and getting treatment for it will not get you a darn thing. You have to make a convincing argument that the diagnosis prevents you from working. The lawyer doesn't have to prove that, exactly . . . just make a very reasonable argument, which the Social Security Administration finds plausible.

In my case, my lawyer didn't have to make the argument. I made it myself, on that 13 page questionnaire that I filled out. I really thought I would get turned down, and then I'ld let the lawyers do the arguing. That's often how it goes. To my surprise, the SSA thought my argument was good enough.

If I were 10 years younger than I am, I doubt they would have approved me. The older you are, the easier it is to get approved (all other things being equal.)

You don't need to make any argument, if you are totally blind. It is assumed that blindness makes you automatically disabled from working . . . even if you can sing like Jose Feliciano. Of course, if you start selling records, you will lose the benefit.

Other illnesses that get you automatically approved are Lou Gehrig's disease and end stage kidney failure that puts you on dialysis.

Lots of people suffering from Cancer were told that they could still get a job.