I just got another letter from my congressman Lane Evans. The letter he sent me said that the hearings for disability are now taking 22 months. I first filed on July 1, 2004 after loosing my voice in 2003. I started the request for appeal in February of 2005 and Social Security told me it would be a year. As I am self-supporting and only have a small pension it is very difficult to get by. I really want to work, but cannot find anything I can do for sufficient pay.I had to give up my part-time bookkeeping job because I could not answer the two phone lines, or wait on customers. The job also had the duties of Office Manager, and Store Manager, and my boss had other businesses. I could not be left alone in the business, as our technicians were almost always out on calls. I also struggle with fatigue.
I tried a freelance writing job where I worked from home and sent my articles by e-mail Word attachments, for consideration to purchase at a small weekly newspaper. I was only paid $20 for each article they bought. I had to leave my computer on all day and take frequent breaks from the keyboard as my neck and shoulder muscles get too stiff. I also have arthritis in my fingers and a cyst on my right ring finger that gets larger the more I type.
I thought the freelance writing would be the perfect job for my medical conditions, however this paper liked my writing so much they started asking me to do much more writing. The pay barely covered my expenses and I became so exhausted from woring late, due to the need for frequent keyboard breaks, that I nearly collapsed twice with complete exhaustion. I am even having trouble cleaning my house and taking care of the yard, etc. I used to work full-time and yet I kept the house, car, and yard spotless. I don't know how I did it, as every chore is so exhausting now that I have to sit down often.
Has anyone else experienced this type of fatigue? Is it possible I could have "Chronic Fatigue" and how do they diagnose that condition?
Karen (Kitty) - ABSD Illinois
