Terrible ESA tribunal experience

I just wanted to share my ESA tribunal experience. I have chronic fatigued and was appealing to be place in the support group from the WRAG.

I have a lot of brain fog and find it difficult to express myself. I knew I would find it difficult to represent myself as I cannot think in the moment. But that is the reason that I’m appealing to be put in the support group - because I’m not well. Yet here at the tribunal I have to be well enough to represent myself – but I’m not well enough, that is the point!
How is this supposed to work?

The judge asked the questions and the GP said very little. I felt very rushed, she cut me off a couple of times and each time I paused and tried to think, the asked the next question. I know I was the last person before the Easter bank holiday, but they were running very late because the first person in the afternoon needed an interpreter and the clerk said it was going very slowly. Yet I shouldn’t be compromised just because someone else needs an interpreter and then the panel want to go home because they are running late – that was my feeling as it was so rushed.

The judge’s questions were:
If I am mostly housebound due to CFS why do I have a car.
I should have defended this, but could not think at the time what to answer. I could have said I’ve had the car for 14yrs and I’ve had it before I fell ill and it is my choice to keep the car. But that didn’t come to mind – too brain fogged.

She asked where did I go out. It seemed to me that she did not believe me when I said I may only go out twice in a month. She shrugged her shoulders when I said I always experience post exertional fatigue when I go out for an hour, therefore I do not go out often. But I could not describe to her what it felt like to experience post exertional fatigue and she didn’t ask.

She also asked me repeatedly if the GP has referred me to a hospital– all I could answered was, no. I would have needed to defend this, but too brain fogged to respond in the moment. There is a simple reason – I have already had hospital treatment and I’ve become worse from the treatment. I could have said a lot more about his. But in the moment I could respond.

That is were she would have ended, after 10mins. From then on all she asked is there anything else, each time I paused she asked again. With hindsight I think she made her decision in the first 10mins as she did not ask me any more questions after that. But I continued as I felt I needed to describe my condition.

Later she said, three times, if I am not sleeping well I should take sleeping tablets. I told her it is a condition of the CFS and I would rather structure my day so that I sleep the best I can, than take sleeping tablets. However I feel affronted that the judge tells me 3 times to take sleeping tablets at a tribunal. Does she have the right to do that?

They had not read any of the statements from me – ESA50 or Mandatory Reconsideration before the hearing. Although my representative had made a submission with a GP letter later, the panel had not received it – although I checked with the clerk who said she did have it! They, then partly read this then during the hearing. The representative could not attend the hearing but I did have a lovely volunteer from CAB with me, but she does not know my condition well enough and did not say anything to help me.

I do not feel well enough to defend myself as I would have needed to. I cannot express myself with the brain fog and fatigue, the situation was too overwhelming for me. So where does that leave me!!

I am posting this before I have the official response, but I already know that they have not place me in the support group.