Eunice Kennedy Shriver passed away on Tuesday August 11,2009. She was the founder of the Special Olympics and a lifetime advocate for people with intellectual disabilities. The Special Olympics is a movement of sports training and athletic competition for those that have intellectual disabilities. Shriver believed that people with intellectual disabilities deserve the same opportunities and experiences as others.

No matter what the disability, a person still has a talent, a skill, and a gift to give to the world when encouraged doing so. Using sports as a display of abilities brings about respect, acceptance and inclusion. Persons with disabilities benefit by seeing in themselves that they too have talents and it helps them to feel better about themselves. It also serves as a teaching tool to those who may have thought that disabled people were useless until they were afforded the opportunities to witness their grand performances.

The venue of sports has a way of bringing people together from all walks of life, nationalities, cultures, races and backgrounds. Along with the exercises, discipline and vigorous training that it takes to be athletically fit to play a specific sport; building character, strength, strong muscles, and team work.

No wonder the Bible is full of metaphors that compare the Christian life to that of an athlete. Since everyone seems to be able to relate to sports, God used these metaphors to help us understand the Christian life. No matter what physical or mental state we are in, we all have talents, skills, and gifts that have been given to us by God. But many times we are not encouraged to use them or to even find out what they are. Which is especially frustrating for those that have disabilities. Instead we must go after them, train, and master our skills like an athlete does for his specific sport. Athletes know what their talents and skills are and will train in that specific sport. Some people spend their time going after a talent that they do not have because they like it. Or because someone else has the talent that they want. But not athletes, they will not train in a sport that they do not have the talent for. They are content with their own God given abilities and not the abilities that someone else has. They know that they can find their significance and place in society by using their own God given talents and skills. Which is what Eunice Kennedy Shriver did to help the intellectually disabled find their significance through the Special Olympics.

When you go to a Social Security Disability hearing and you decided to do it alone without a disability advocate or attorney the chances of winning your case may drop or this may severely hurt the chances of being awarded benefits you really need.

Here is a very strong argument that you may not have heard before when it comes to getting adequate representation from disability advocates, and it happens to be based on experience from advocates that have been in the business for well over a decade.

A disability advocate was contacted by a claimant that was denied during their SSDI hearing. Advocates obtain a copy of the recording of the hearing process, as all SSDI hearings are recorded for just this reason. When the advocate listened to the audio tape, he noticed a few things that stood out immediately as proof that having an advocate on your side can really make a difference.

The hearing in question lasted less than a total of ten minutes, despite the fact that the average hearing typically goes for at least thirty minutes. When a hearing doesn’t even take twenty minutes, red flags are thrown up.

During the hearing in question, the judge never made an effort to advise the claimant that she had a right to fair representation.

Finally, the judge didn’t take the time to ask the claimant about any recent medical treatment since her initial application, nor did he try to gather any updated medical information so that her record could be updated, meaning that the SSA did not have her most recent information on file, and was lacking evidence that could have helped her in this process.

If this claimant had an attorney or another representative with her, this would not have been allowed to happen. She would have had someone on her side who could have informed her of her options, and made sure that the judge had all of the pertinent information, old and new.

From here, then, you have a choice between two options. There are advocates that will work to represent the claimants, or you have the choice to choose an attorney to hire, for this you can choose a lawyer that mainly handles these claims or one who is not a specialist in this line of law.

Neither of these options can provide you with a guarantee that they will be successful in securing the benefits that you are making the application for. This legal representation will guarantee that you will be ready for your hearing and properly prepared. This is one of the best things you can do when applying for Social Security benefits, as these professionals will know what to look for when it comes to making your best case.

There is no reason not to come equipped with an advocate on your side when applying for SSDI or appealing a decision regarding your SSDI and SSI benefits. Having SSDI experts on your side provides you with relief that someone is in your corner who knows what they are doing when filing for disability insurance or appealing a decision.

If you are like most of us, you have a medical condition and have questions as to whether you may qualify for Social Security Disability Benefits. This article may help you find answers.

First let?s start out by answering the question, what is SSDI or Social Security Disability Insurance?

SSDI is a government insurance program that offers compensation payments for people who apply for this benefit and are qualifying disabled people. Social Security Disability Insurance is a disability benefits insurance program organized by the Social Security Administration (SSA). This coverage purpose is to offer a wage supplement for individuals who were working in the past who develop a debilitating health or disability condition which will prevent them from working.

In order to be potentially eligible you must have paid FICA taxes and also meet all the Disability guidelines. SSDI is not for people who have a short term illness which will keep them out for a short period of time. This program has been designed to offer long term benefits with sever, long-term health problems.

To apply for Disability Insurance it is best that you seek help such as an SSDI advocate. A good example of an advocate that can help you with the entire process from application to representation is Freedom Disability of Shelton CT. In order to be eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance, you need to have and submit the application which must be approved by the SSA better known as the Social Security Administration.

Note: Approximately two thirds or 2.5 million applications are rejected every year. When you first apply for disability insurance these applications are reviewed at state level.

To increase your chances of success rate, it is highly recommended that you search for Social Security Disability Advocates like Freedom Disability that have the expertise and who specialize in the application and appeal process.

If you were receiving benefits, but the Social Security Administration decided that you no longer qualify, you may wish for your benefits to continue during the appeal process. You must make this request within ten days of receiving notice that you are no longer eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits. You can only request that your benefits continue if you are appealing a decision that you no longer qualify for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits because your medical condition is no longer disabling.

The Social Security Administration sets the determined standard fee rate for all organizations such as Advocacy, attorneys and other professional organizations. Currently the fee for representation is set at 25% of the retroactive dollar awarded amount.

One of the biggest problems that most people make when applying for SSDI or Social Security Disability benefits is to go through the process unprepared and not having all the facts. When you file for SSDI the examiners who review your case file do not become aware of the lapse in time as to when you decided to file a claim to the actual time the claim was submitted. By being proactive and obtaining all the proper paperwork and information you need to file for your claim will give you a good advantage on pleading your case for disability income. When you have everything you need and you feel confident you need to get the ball rolling with the filing process.

There are a number of reasons why people put off their filing for social security. In some cases, they seem to be simply hoping that the condition they are suffering from is going to improve, or that somehow the job that they are doing is going to be able to accommodate their disability. Most individual tend to simply put off their filing of their application because of the work involved or they feel that they are incapable.

Many claimants end up feeling caught up in the process because they are worried about filing for disability and becoming denied. Unfortunately, when you are denied by your SSDI or SSI application, it may mean spending a great amount more time pursuing your claim by climbing the appeals ladder. For many of those applying, this is a scary idea and it leads them to stress themselves out about applying at all. Luckily, there are ways that you can eliminate or lessen these fears and focus your attention on properly and completely preparing

When you decide that you want to apply for these SSDI and SSI benefits, the first thing that you should do is to find out more information about having someone on your side, such as an attorney or an advocate. You can file as soon as you feel that you are ready, but you should not file until you have worked with a professional and determined whether or not you are fully prepared. Your attorney or advocate will be able to tell you if he or she feels that you will qualify for disability, and will help you shape your application or appeal accordingly. With any additional support you may receive from possibly an attorney or disability advocate you will be able to go through the process smoothly do to the fact there there will be no gray areas determining whether or not you are well prepared.

If you are not working because of your disabled status or condition, then it is time to find out more about applying for SSI or SSDI benefits. When you have someone that is fighting on your side with you, it will make it easier for you to prepare your case and to determine whether or not you are prepared to file your claim.

A good tip if you ever need legal representation is to choose your attorney carefully and spend some time doing as it should not be treated as the weekly shop. This could not be more emphasis on the need to hire a professional disability advocate, if you take a disability claim with the court. Disability is the right and the expertise of an experienced lawyer can bring to the court should not be underestimated, their experience in court is essential. The law of disability is a highly specialized area which means that the lawyer dealing with general problems that can lose points for a disability lawyer may be immediately visible, its deep knowledge can make or break the case.

If you are already in the appeals process after a lawyer can speed up this process because he knows how important it is to have benefits reinstated. Go online and local businesses and national research as necessary, to find his lawyer, then follow the link to your site, comments from former clients who often represented are available for all. Look especially for cases that resemble their own, which should give an idea of its capabilities, you can also have friends who can recommend a good law firm specializing in disability law. His life is in the hands of his disability lawyer as far as their doctor, these professionals have your life in your hands!

Your research must remove lawyers with experience of at least five years in the case of the Law on disability, ideally should have at least 3 years of practice in their particular state. Act on Social Security, disability insurance and long-term disability are all areas of the disability of his counsel must be paid in one important aspect is that the type of work they specialize in every day. A proxy does not tell you what is happening or not honest about their chances not worth using. See the process of choosing a lawyer, as an interview, you will meet three to find one that you would be able to represent you as you need.

If you do not feel happy doing this alone, take along a friend or relative for you and note the information. Even if it is not uncommon for lawyers to waive the fees for initial consultations, the time is still important and will be a sign of respect, if they are well prepared for the interview, as they will. Your disability lawyer should be someone who is honest and realistic about the process, the business and its opportunities; honesty between you two is very important if the case moves forward but does not become dismayed if you do not find the right lawyer immediately in May the process will take time.