Friends, Family & Carers Forum

[Former-Member]

It is a hard one @Sophie1.  Mr D  on DSP but would love to be working; I honestly don't know if he would cope, but suspect he would find it difficult, particularly if there was workplace stress, a major problem previously.

Like you & Ms S, I don't put any pressure on Mr D to get work/study etc.  It is not the money side of things that concerns me, more that Mr D doesn't feel he has something meaningful to do. Ms S might be content in a homemaker role but Mr D is not and he is a dreadful cook to boot 😬. 

Are there part time/ flexible options in her line of work?  Would some sort of volunteer work be an option?   

I am mindful that whatever my perceptions are, I do not want them to 'silence'  or negate any ambition Mr D has, I do this by acknowledgeding the loss and grief of his diagnosis and what that entails whilst actively supporting the things he can realistically achieve.  As we are in our mid 50s when people ask what he does I now say he is lucky enough to be pretty much retired, managing  our farmlet. Noticed Mr D repeat this to strangers but I would like to see him involved in volunteer work not related to mental health. (He enjoyed doing some previously but did not resume it after his major crisis).

We effectively live on the equivalent of one and a bit wage (his DSP payment is small due to my income) but the discounts really help. Fortunately our expenses are not too high,  groceries seem to be our biggest expense and I am wanting to cut our serving sizes down to help reduce both the $$ and our weight 😀. There are plenty of websites about frugal living. 

[Shaz51]

hello @Former-Member, @Sophie1

@Sophie1with my mr shaz , he can not cope with having a Job , he has been through sooo many jobs until he had a breakdown which put him in hospital

the specialist want to put him on the sickness pension but he said no

We effectively live on the equivalent of one wage

so we and self employed with a very low income which I keep on cutting back due to when mr shaz is unwell

[Smc]

@Shaz51@Former-Member@Sophie1, same boat here.

I'm on DSP due to persistent depression (largely due to MI carer related strain) and Hubby is on Newstart with absolutely minimal work requirements. Honestly, his job services provider is more interested in keeping him functionally on top of anxiety (also carer stress related...funny that) rather than pressuring him to increase his hours and therefore income. That is something that we really appreciate.
We have at times been on less. I wouldn't have applied for payments if it wasn't for the fact that without them I couldn't travel to do stuff for my parents, and because of Hubby's reduced income earning capacity. Until things got to that point, we were getting by on one Newstart payment plus family payments for our Youngest. (Which we also still get of course.)

It's a total blessing/Godsend that we own our house; rental expenses would have topped out our budget many times over. I've been thrifty-cooking and otherwise finding low cost options for things for years, but if we think something's important, we commit to finding a way of doing it. So we've bought or done a few things that theoretically should have been "out of reach" for a family in our financial position.

I'd love to see Hubby being able to work more consistently. His skills are unique in Australia. (Not kidding there- the only other person we've found doing what he does is a lady in England.) He's good at passing on what he knows to other people, but can't work consistently enough for a trainee to be a possibility. He has trouble putting in enough consecutive hours to keep his own skills up to level. If he could put in the hours, even on a part time level, we could probably say "thanks and goodbye" to Centrelink, but that's not the case for now, and we don't know when or if it will be so.

[Sophie1]

Thanks @Smc@Shaz51@Former-Member 

the insight is invaluable - I am concerned that MsS has already burnt bridges with a couple of employers due to time off when she has had her episodes or clinic time - I really don’t want to see that happen again - although it probably will... she will not qualify for Centrelink as they recognise same sex defacto  partners now and in the past I earnt too much - not sure now as I earn less than before - also the whole Centrelink Newstart process was so stressful for MsS she didn’t cope well - she would rather scrimp on things and not have to deal with the queues and the questions as to what is wrong with her and why can’t she hold a full time or even part time job down ... fortunately she is skilled but not in a highly paid skill set - but it is one she can do part time if she can commit to regular days without fail - normal sick days ok but not the kind she incurs when meds not right or headaches in play like they are now ... sometimes I wonder if the headaches are a sub conscious defence mechanism to keep her from working ??? Also I have no idea how to access employment agencies who specialise in job seekers with MI - is there such a thing or only if you are on Newstart ? I don’t want to pressure her - but I wonder if an employer who knew at the outset about her condition would make life easier for everyone and the job sustainable ???

[Smc]

@Sophie1, two Centrelink pointers.

If your income has dropped significantly within a financial year, you can ask for her eligibility to be assessed on the basis of an estimate of this financial year's income. It's something they do with caution, because if you overestimate, you can end up having to pay them back, but if you can make a realistic case, they may go with it.

Re. MI support, if MsS is assessed as having a medical condition of any sort that reduces her ability to work, their standard practice is to refer her to a disability employment network. This is the position my Hubby is in. He's a little unusual among their clientele, as he has a lot of "employable skills", but due to anxiety and recurring carer related incidents, he can't work full time, or even consistent week to week part time hours. (Some weeks he gets quite a lot done, other weeks are totally out the window.)
It would mean having to do a bit of "jumping through hoops", but if MsS can get a job capacity assessment from Centrelink that shows she has a reduced ability to work, she (and therefore you) may get more support than she does currently. Is she currently seeing a psychologist? If so, a professional letter of support can go a long way towards helping get there.

As to whether she can access disability employment networks independant of Centrelink, I don't know. Centrelink's assessment is usually their guideline for gauging a person's eligibility. It may be worth enquiring.

[Former-Member]

Reliability was an issue for Mr D too @Sophie1, I had to ring him in sick when he went AWOL or had presented to hospital, a couple of times I had to see if he had even been at work that day as he had not come home 😢. I used to think he played on his illness as if a coworker said he looked unwell he was out the door in  flash and off to the doc, but now I realise he was trying to be stoic but when he could not hide it from others only then would he act.

Centrelink + MI = 😬. I had to do most of the running around to get Mr D on DSP,  he was too unwell at the time.  Still would not cope.

Yes there are job agencies who specialise in employment for job seekers with medical issues, they often have  "ability" or "plus"  at the end of their trading names. Mr Darcy was told he needed to be registered with Centrelink to access their services when he took a CV in.

This page may be of help to you re: income and DSP.

https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/enablers/income-test-pensions/30406

[Sophie1]

@Smc Thx for the pointers - gives me the idea that there are next steps worth taking with Centrelink -  yes she has a psychiatrist and a ptsd psychotherapist / social worker ... they would both support any movement MsS expressed interest in - when she has her headaches stabilised I will propose this pathway to her ...:  however just a question - do you have any knowledge of disability employment networks and how they treat bipolar II / depression / anxiety / ptsd clients ?? ... have you heard of good experiences here ??

[Sophie1]

Thanks @Former-Member i just looked through the pages on DSP and it’s pretty overwhelming - a lot to take in and I’m not sure how MsS would cope going through the process - esp while these headaches aren’t treated ... once that stabilises I think a disability employment  agency via Centrelink could be good - assuming they can find part time work and an empathetic employer .. thanks for the info ... if her headaches don’t stabilise then I don’t know 

[Smc]

@Sophie1, sorry, employment network providers can be very different from one place to another, so I can't give you any pointers there. Depending on the area you live in, she may only be offered one option, or she may have a choice of two or three providers. If its the latter, you could ask at Centrelink whether any of them have a background in working with MI clients.

[Smc]

Another possible avenue is to find out if you can get a community advocate to support MsS, and they may be able to give you local advice. Community Health Services sometimes employ disability advocates, or ask a local MH or Carer's support group.