- •Other titles in the series include:
- •Overcoming chronic fatigue a self-help guide using Cognitive Behavioral Techniques mary burgess with trudie chalder
- •Important Note
- •Isbn: 978-1-84901-132-7
- •Infection
- •Increased heart rate
- •Increase in blood pressure
- •Visual disturbance
- •Immunotherapy
- •Figure 2.1 a vicious circle of fatigue
- •Introduction
- •Increase or change your activities
- •Important facts about targets
- •Improving your sleep
- •If you sleep too much, reduce your sleep at night
- •Improve your sleep hygiene
- •Important facts to consider when planning anactivity program
- •Increasing your activity levels
- •Important facts to consider when planning an activity program
- •Figure 8.1 How aspects of our lives interconnect
- •Figure 8.2 The ‘Responsibility Pie Chart’
- •Figure 8.3 The formation of (negative) core beliefs and possible consequences
- •Identifying a new belief
- •Figure 10.1 How anxiety affects us
- •Figure 10.2 Common physical signs of extreme worry and anxiety
- •Introduction
- •Information for people who are receiving benefits
- •Income Protection (ip)
- •Voluntary work
- •Introduction
Information for people who are receiving benefits
If you have been ill for some time you may be receiving welfare benefits. Understandably, you may have concerns about how your income will be affected if you return to work. You may feel that you are ready for some part-time work, but are unsure about the financial implications.
The following paragraphs summarize the most common benefits claimed by people with chronic fatigue syndrome.
Incapacity Benefit (ICB) can be claimed in the UK if:
statutory sick pay (SSP) has ended or you cannot claim SSP;
you have paid National Insurance (NI) contributions;
you have been incapable of work because of sickness or disability for at least four days in a row, including weekends and public holidays.
Income Support (IS) can be claimed in the UK by people aged between 16 and 59 who:
are on a low income;
are not working, or work less than 16 hours a week on average.
Severe Disablement Allowance (SDA) has not been available to new claimants since April 2001. However, existing claimants can continue to receive it. A person who is incapable of work and who would previously have claimed Severe Disablement Allowance may be able to claim Incapacity Benefit.
New work rules for people on Iincapacity benefit
If you are receiving UK benefits you may be aware that there are rules that determine how much work you can do without your benefits being affected. Below is some information about work rules that were introduced in 2002.
Any person in the UK receiving a benefit on the basis of incapacity (e.g. Incapacity Benefit, Severe Disablement Allowance, National Insurance credits, Income Support, Housing Benefit, or Council Tax Benefit) may do paid work for up to 16 hours a week and earn no more than £92 a week for 52 weeks.
In addition to this, a person may be able to do one of the following:
extend the above for as long as their illness or disability is considered sufficiently severe that they are treated as meeting the threshold of incapacity without undergoing a medical assessment;
work and earn no more than £20 a week, at any time, without a time limit;
do supported ‘permitted work’ and earn no more than £92 a week without time limit.
Under the new ‘permitted work’ rules, the definition of ‘supported permitted work’ is work that is supervised by someone who is employed by a public/local authority or a voluntary organization, and whose job it is to arrange work for disabled people. This work could be done in the community or in a sheltered workshop. It also includes work done as part of a hospital treatment program.
An eligible person in the UK undertaking work under the permitted work rules will not need their doctor’s approval to do so, but they should tell the office that pays their benefit before starting work. As long as the permitted work rules are observed, their earnings will not affect their Incapacity Benefit and/or Severe Disablement Allowance. However, Income Support, Housing Benefit, or Council Tax Benefit could be reduced. It would therefore be advisable to seek advice from the office that pays your benefit before taking a job, so that you are fully informed of your position before starting work.
When permitted work is available, you must apply to the benefits agency to get a permitted work form (PW1).