Am I Disabled? (Quiz)

You will answer this question once you are able to determine which medical conditions are considered to have a disability and which are not. The Equality Act of 2010 was the one that provided a definition for what constitutes as a disability which you will see later on.

You are considered to be disabled when you have the following conditions:

• you have a physical or mental impairment as reported
• That certain impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal regular activities such as work
  

Some medical conditions are already considered as disabilities. The following are these medical conditions which can affect how the person does some important things in life:

• Cancer such as skin growths that need removing before they become cancerous in affected people
• a visual impairment which means you’re certified as blind, severely sight impaired, sight impaired or partially sighted as reported
• multiple sclerosis
• an HIV infection even if you don’t have any symptoms as reported
• a chronic and long-term disfigurement such as a chronic facial scarring or a skin disease
  

These kinds of disabilities have been covered in Schedule 1, Part 1 of the Equality Act 2010 and in Regulation 7 of the Equality Act 2010 (Disability) Regulations 2010.

Know if you have an impairment recently

You are considered to have an impairment when your mental capacity or physical capacity has been minimized in such a way. This impairment shouldn’t make you stop doing important things but it can make the execution of this important stuff difficult for you to the reduction of your normal capacity whether physical or mental.

Conditions which aren’t impairments in the Act

There are conditions that can’t be disabilities from the Act. These are the considered conditions to not create impairments in affected people:

• Hayfever
• tattoos or piercings in people
• voyeurism or exhibitionism in affected people
• a tendency to set fire to things in affected people
• a tendency to steal things in affected people
• a tendency to physically or sexually abuse others in affected people
  
  

Addictions

An addiction to alcohol or drugs might not indicate if you have a disability. However, some people who have this addiction can qualify as a disability when there is alcohol or drug dependence or the person is going through depression and thinks that substances or alcohol is the only way to minimize this mood dysfunction.

Recognize if your impairment’s long term

You can consider that your condition has made a long-term impairment on you when the condition has been causing dysfunction on you for a year. This can be indicated when you feel the adverse effects of having this condition such as having rheumatoid arthritis from lupus and some suicidal tendencies in depression.

The following are some guides that could indicate that your condition will affect you in the long term:

• it has a substantial adverse effect when it occurs as observed by the patient and loved ones
• it could well occur again as observed

Your impairment might even affect you for life even if it has passed for a year which is still considered as this disability. The definition for this impairment is considered in the Schedule 1 of the Equality Act 2010.

Recognize if the effect of your impairment is considered substantial

This is where there is a substantial effect on how you do some regular activities in your life due to your impairment. The following are things to consider if you are having the substantial effect in some activities in your life:

• taking longer with everyday activities such as getting dressed, going to the toilet or preparing meals because of pain, if you didn’t take your painkillers or other medications that might affect how you do some things
• finding it hard to go out on your own due to a phobia, physical restriction or learning disability as reported
• being unable to focus on watching TV or reading a newspaper because of mental health complications
• finding it hard to speak to people and preventing socialising due to you having Asperger’s Syndrome and can’t always comprehend what people mean
• having seizures which trigger you to lose awareness of your surroundings as reported
• being unable to read a book without a helping aid due to a learning dysfunction such as dyslexia
  

Some of these effects can be minor when you can refresh some of your broken limbs or too much concentration by resting.

When your condition’s getting worse as reported

When you are showing signs that your condition is getting worse, your substantial effects might still be substantial or there might be added substantial effects that can occur in your future which will be recorded by your medical professional.

If you take medication or have a medical intervention for your impairment

Your legal team who can help you get disability benefits will be including your treatment in the file for your case to find that you need some maintenance treatment for your impairment. This can include counselling if you have a mental health disorder or physical therapy when you have a physical impairment.

When you’re not sure if your disability is substantial or long term

When you are not sure about the effects of your disability, you can ask a medical professional for this. You can also ask them the following questions:

• how long your disability is likely to last and whether it’s likely to get worse as most affected people have experienced
• what would occur if you terminated your medication or other medical intervention as reported
• if there are any activities you should prevent to minimize the occurrence of pain due to your disability
  

Your doctor can help you provide evidence that you really have a disability. You can also keep a journal about the experiences you’ve had because of your disability and how you tried coping with your symptoms which can help your family and friends help you in your time of need.

Am I Disabled? Test

This test will be answering the question that you are considered to be disabled in some or most important areas in life whether at school, home, and/or work. You might feel yourself asking this question, especially when you have been recently diagnosed with a serious physical disorder or a mental disorder that might be affecting how you function in life right now.

Instructions: The following questions will determine if you are considered disabled or not. Please read the following questions carefully and make sure to choose the choice that applies to you. It is recommended that you answer honestly so that the result won’t be compromised to the statements that you might not be complying with.

Do you find yourself having a hard time doing some light work tasks that most of your colleagues don’t seem to have a hard time doing these tasks?

• Yes – 1
• No – 0

Do you almost always get lost when you go to the grocery store?

• Yes – 1
• No – 0

Do you have an injured body part that has been making you unable to function well in school, home or at work?

• Yes – 1
• No – 0

Do you find some learning material to be difficult where most people find it easier?

• Yes – 1
• No – 0

Have you been diagnosed as mentally ill?

• Yes – 1
• No – 0

Have you been diagnosed with a chronic physical condition?

• Yes – 1
• No – 0

Do you equip yourself with a wheelchair when you have to walk somewhere?

• Yes – 1
• No – 0

Do you consider yourself as physically competent as most people?

• Yes – 0 
• No – 1

Do you consider yourself as mentally competent as most people?

• Yes – 0
• No – 1

Did you score an average or higher than average IQ?

• Yes – 0
• No – 1

Total scoring criteria:

6 – 10 points – disabled

4 – 5 points – somewhat disabled

0 – 3 points – no disability

Citations

Citizens advice. What counts as disability.