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Ask HN: I'm disabled and out of money. Now what?

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Re: Ask HN: I'm disabled and out of money. Now what?

#181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It’s unclear to me that this case would be covered though? It’s not hard if you lose your legs or arms. Pain and related topics are likely excluded from your standard policy.

I am not an expert on disability insurance, so I recommend everyone do their own research and speak to a disability insurance independent broker to get tailored advice, but if you have a "true own occupation" and "partial disability" coverage, then I think you would be covered, e.g. if you are a programmer that can no longer code more than half time due to carpal tunnel, I would think you could collect 50% disability…

Right, not an expert either. But you moved the goalpost a little.

Carpal tunnel is a medical condition. You can take an xray and see inflamation and rule it.

You can't really do that with pain or brainfog. There is no test "how real is this persons pain".

Re: Ask HN: I'm disabled and out of money. Now what?

#182

I'm not sure what the cause of your chronic pain is, but I would highly recommend reading John Sarno's "The Mindbody Prescription." I've dealt with chronic pain for years and it's the only thing that's had any effect. Please, please , don't write it off until you've read the book. Note that Sarno's work focuses on back pain, but it applies to all types of chronic pain (including migraines, which he discusses in the b…

Sarno's work comes up periodically on HN, and I always have to chime in to say that it cured my RSI. Everything is still completely, 100% cured at 15+ years. As a developer, I have no idea what I would have done without it, my career would have been over. Here are my previous comments:

From 2016: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12990976

From 2021: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26120633

Re: Ask HN: I'm disabled and out of money. Now what?

#183
Could you volunteer any of your time to help an organization that does something that is important to you? If you can, I would recommend connecting to a non-profit or public benefit organization and seeing if they have needs that you can fill, even on a limited time basis. If possible, try and do this in-person, so that you can see the fruits of your work, and the witness the appreciation of those who receive it.

Volunteering to help others has several benefits; You will have a tangible and meaningful impact on others; You will see that your skills are useful, and you are capable of employing them; You will form real human connections with other people in a context different than the one you're currently experiencing.

Another outcome of helping other people is that you will form a network people who know about you and what you can do. It's possible to use that network to earn a modest living, doing side jobs and small contracts. This is not the end-game of volunteering, that is still the help you provide to others, but it's a nice side-effect anyways.

Since you are someone with technology skills, I can tell you that there are many non-profit organizations who need a little bit of tech help, or a lot of tech help, and cannot find someone to do the things they need for nothing, or a even a reasonable amount of money. Don't be afraid to work for free, the thanks you will get are more than worth it.

There's a talk by Sandie Metz that I've shared with a lot of people called "Madame Sandie tells your future"[0] and I would give that a watch, it's quite inspirational and may help you to shift your perspective in a way that helps.

[0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOM5_V5jLAs&t=216s

Re: Ask HN: I'm disabled and out of money. Now what?

#184

I’m sorry to hear about your situation. It may seem hopeless at times but remember working at startups is quite challenging and you did that - and faced challenges lots of people wouldn’t care to try to. Your current assets and your psychology are two different things. Every improvement you can wring out with the latter, could be the piece of strength you need to deal with the other. Seek out any way you can to build…

Wow downvoted for trying to be encouraging? Guess I need to practice that more, I honestly intended the words compassionately.

Re: Ask HN: I'm disabled and out of money. Now what?

#186

I'm not sure what the cause of your chronic pain is, but I would highly recommend reading John Sarno's "The Mindbody Prescription." I've dealt with chronic pain for years and it's the only thing that's had any effect. Please, please , don't write it off until you've read the book. Note that Sarno's work focuses on back pain, but it applies to all types of chronic pain (including migraines, which he discusses in the b…

Q: My life is falling apart on all fronts and I'm struggling with physical and mental health issues; what should I do? A: Read this book. Only on HN...

Bashing people trying to help is usually a reddit thing, but here we are.

This website is a text based medium. Literally the only thing that can conveyed here is information.

Books, as you are aware, can contain even more information and advice than this website.

If the person was looking for something other than information and advice, they would be looking elsewhere.

Re: Ask HN: I'm disabled and out of money. Now what?

#187
On the work side, I am surprised no one has suggested freelancing. Yes, bidding on sites like Upwork isn't a great way to make money especially in the USA, but given your situation, it's a way to earn something working on your terms and no more that you want or can.

Re: Ask HN: I'm disabled and out of money. Now what?

#188

Not to derail this thread or to sound like I am criticizing OP, but everyone should take this post as a reminder to look into having a disability insurance policy. Your megacorp may offer a policy, but look into getting your own guaranteed renewable non-cancelable policy, as it provides greater protection. The Bogleheads wiki has a good page describing what is important to obtain in such a policy.

Since we're on this topic: any notably good insurance companies that folks would recommend if we're talking privately purchased disability insurance?

Mine is through Principal, because it covers mental and nervous system issues too. It was the only one that did when I was looking.

I'd also like to add that if you end up collecting, DI payments are TAX FREE. The second I found out this existed I got a policy asap lol

Re: Ask HN: I'm disabled and out of money. Now what?

#190

I'm not sure what the cause of your chronic pain is, but I would highly recommend reading John Sarno's "The Mindbody Prescription." I've dealt with chronic pain for years and it's the only thing that's had any effect. Please, please , don't write it off until you've read the book. Note that Sarno's work focuses on back pain, but it applies to all types of chronic pain (including migraines, which he discusses in the b…

While it might be a possible reason for OP's pain, a lot more often, it's actual physiological issues.

I read this book and it did nothing for me. I had actual medical issues, and I kept going to different doctors and physios until I found one that found the issue and solved it.

OP needs to go see a sports physio and neurologist.

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