Social Security Disability with PTSD

How Social Security evaluates PTSD

Social Security first checks whether the condition meets a mental-disorders Listing, but most cases do not turn on the Listing. They turn on the severity shown in the medical evidence and are usually decided on residual functional capacity — what a person can still do despite the condition. For PTSD, that means whether a person can sustain attendance, pace, and workplace interaction, and tolerate ordinary stress and change, full time. Approval depends on more than a diagnosis — we must demonstrate the severity and duration of your symptoms, how they affect everyday activities, and your ability to work.

Evidence that matters

• Mental-health treatment records — the diagnosis, the trauma history as documented, medication and therapy, and the response.
• Any VA records or ratings, hospitalizations, or crisis contacts.
• A statement from the treating provider on concentration, pace, attendance, and tolerance for supervision, coworkers, and the public.
• Statements from people who witness the triggers, the avoidance, and the sleep disruption.

Representation

Representation ties the treatment record to the functional areas the decision turns on, secures specific opinions from the treating providers, and meets the common denial rationale — 'engaged in treatment,' 'some improvement noted' — with the longitudinal picture and the workplace-specific limits. A denial that misreads that record is a candidate for federal court.