Financial assistance: How do I get started in this maze?

This is the first time I've talked to anyone about any of this. I've put it off for so long, for probably the same reasons many do. It's humiliating, tedious, feels silly when you're feeling decent or having a good day, as well as the fear of having your issues dismissed as something minor, and just an all around hassle, and then of course, there's the stigma that will get attached to you as someone 'with a problem', especially if it's mental issues, and then the ol' family grapevine lights up and everyone you've ever known now knows you as the 'one who lost his mind'.

For me, right now, it all comes down to money, i.e., needing financial assistance. That's what has 'coaxed' me out of my shell to talk; the fear of being homeless, carless, and having to scrounge for food on the steet. If it weren't for me living with my Dad right now, I would be homeless and without a car. If it weren't the financial fears, I would just continue bottling it up.

I have both physical and mental health issues. I would like to see if it might qualify for some financial assistance but I don't really know how to get started. I've poked around some, and even filled out a medicaid app a couple years ago, but it's all very confusing and I don't know how to go about it properly and I know I didn't fill that app out right. I even called the SS number the other day and got confusing info from them on the phone.

I presently have a part time janitor job, but in my opinion, it's a job that I should not be working, as it agitates my physical problems. I have back, knee and feet trouble, and it stresses all of them, even to the point where I end up in the floor in pain on occassion, and hobbling around more frequently. The only way I can do the job I have now is by taking lots of unscheduled breaks, and I can only do that because I'm working by myself.

In normal times, I would seek out a job sitting down, but those jobs aren't as plentiful even in good times, and certainly not now. I just can't do the same work that I used to.

And on the mental side, stress is the biggest thing, and it has manifested in various self-diagnosed disorders, such as social anxiety, extreme mood swings, manic depression, frequent anger and rage, and more. My present job is actually very low stress, but because I've never had a release, I essentially have 40 years of built of stress and I'm basically losing it. I can no longer do any job that has people related stress, such as customer service, or even working closely with coworkers. When I say that I 'can't do it anymore', what I mean is, that I'm afraid I'm going to snap someday if I keep working those kind of jobs.

This stress has resulted in various smaller accidents and injuries. I've almost gone off the road more than a few times. My Dad one time suggested I try driving a bus, but I'm afraid I would end up killing a bunch of people. The stress destroys my productivity on the job, as well as at home, and there is much I just can't list here. I've also been fired from three jobs as a result of stress, blowing up, as well as physically being unable to perform the job due to back and feet issues.

Whether or not I qualify for financial assistance is one thing, but I certainly do need it. There are types of work that I could do. I'm not totally disabled, but that work just isn't available right now, or I can't find it. It seems all of the assistance I've heard about so far revolves around being disabled. Well, I can still technically work, even though I'm hanging by a thread at this point.

Do I have any chance at financial assitance, and where do I begin? How do I get the ball rolling properly? I do not have health insurance so I can't start going around to doctors, and I just don't know the proper starting point. Am I supposed to just go to a psychiatrist and an MD and tell them that I'm looking to see if I qualify for financial assistance for my issues, or am I supposed to start by filling out some goverment form first? How do I get help paying for these doctor visits just to see if I qualify for anything? Will the government consider what my cairopractor has to say, or do they dismiss that information?

When I called the SS office, they said two things that didn't seem to mesh. First they said that I had to already be unable to work. Then they said that a doctor could say that I shouldn't be working. Well.... there's a remote possibility that I might qualify for the second criteria, I don't know. Should I be working jobs that cause me pain such that I either can't do the job, or have to take a couple of hours worth of breaks during the shift? Do the assistance programs take into account job availability at all.

Any help getting started on this is greatly appreciated, including other websites and guides. This is the most frustrating part, just not knowing how to get started and getting mixed and confusing information. Also, is there any service that you can just sit down with and they will help guide you in the right direction?

Hi, spaceboy, sorry you are in this predicament.

You pretty much have to have a documented background of not being able to work for a diagnosed illness. In other words, you have to have a medical doctor that finally pretty much says, "Hey, you shouldn't still be working" and/or a past with documented jobs where you were dismissed because you could not do the work.

Or, you grew up getting financial assistance for illness and have switched over from your care-taker/parents getting it to you getting it yourself.

As far as straight financial assistance, not certifiably disabled or anything, check with your city, county, state, and private non-profit agencies: Missouri Department of Social Services Home | Your Potential. Our Support to see what you might qualify for.

Were I you, I would see if I could figure something out with your father, taking some courses to train in something you might find less stressful or some way to use your driving services, etc. I would find a local low income clinic and get a physical, see if you could start addressing your physical difficulties in a straightforward, documented way to see what you've "got" and get an idea of where you might go from here. Your county community college might have vocational testing services that could help (age doesn't matter anymore, people of all ages are going back to school now) or maybe you could do something like start your own janitorial services company and hire part-time workers, etc.

I would get my health totally checked out at a local non-profit clinic if I could and I would talk to my father, see what he was willing to provide that I could rely on (like room and board so you don't have to worry about that and can concentrate on other things) and go to a local college to see what they may have to offer for skills testing and retraining and ideas for alternate jobs I might like to do/be qualified for as well as the State agency JobsMoGov - New Premiere Employment Resource for Missouri - for Job Seekers

Thanks for the advice, I appreciate it.

spaceboy what helped me a lot was to get into therapy. I went to a clinic that had lots of experience working with low income people. I also got physical health care and diagnosis. You could start seeing a therapist, this way you'd get evaluated, diagnosed, get some help with coping skills, and be building records and documentation up of what you are experiencing.

Then I applied for state and eventually federal assistance. All this can be uncomfortable and confusing, but very worth it.

Perna's ideas are great too.

You can find out who the helping agencies are in your area, see if there is help available with filling out forms, going through the application process.

I think it will be important for you to keep telling people what you are going through, and getting diagnosed.