I think my case is atypical but I got mine in 2-3 months and they paid me for 2 years backward to compensate, which I've never heard of and didn't expect. I didn't use a lawyer, but I did have a very good shrink and someone who knew me for a long time also write on my behalf.

I think what happened was that there was such an obvious and huge discrepancy between the level of functioning prior before and after becoming ill that it was overwhelmingly obvious that something was terribly wrong. I had to resign as a professor at a major university. My case was probably also helped by the fact that I continued to try to find work, but never managed to be able to function well enough to sustain it for more than a few months. I did have hospitalizations as well. Though my illness is primarily PTSD, which you would think would not qualify as that serious or permanent, my case was severe enough that I got permanent disability.