PIP face to face assessment and mental illness

I have a fluctuating mental illness and have just received a date of 15/7 for my face to face assessment. I am quite anxious about the assessment as my illness fluctuates considerably and is unpredictable. At worst I am unable to have a coherent conversation and may respond with answers that bear no relation to the question or simply be unable to process the question. At best I can explain my illness clearly and fully. I explained this on my esa 50 form. I am taking my partner (who is also my carer), but he lacks confidence when he communicates and may only give partial information. I have no-one else available to support me. I have asked my partner just to take notes and try to check I am understanding the questions.

I know there is a wealth of experience on here and am wondering if anyone can give me any advice?

Hi Prudent and Welcome to the forum, you might want to have a look at the following FAQ which explains where everything is

Welcome to Benefits and Work

I'm sorry that you are finding this so stressful

Our PIP guide explains what to expect at the assessment. It might be worth preparing some notes in response to the questions you expect them to ask (including one explaining your difficulty communicating). You can give the first note to the assessor before s/he starts the interview and use the others either to remind yourself what to say or, again, to hand to the assessor if you are unable to speak coherently.

PIP help for claimants

While we all hear horror stories about claimants who have been treated badly at these appointments, the majority are carried out in a professional manner. It's just human nature to shout louder when things are wrong than when we are satisfied, which is why sites like this hear more of the horror stories!

You might wish to bookmark/favourite this on your web browser now so that you can find it easily in future. This will allow you to return with further questions or comments about your PIP without having to start a new topic each time. It helps us enormously when everything relating to the same claim is kept in one place - and I hope you will find it useful too

Thank you. I made a sheet of notes in preparation for completing the form. I will print of this sheet and clearly highlight the communication issues. My big concern is that I will be considered unco-operative with the assessment.

I can understand your concern Prudent! That's why I suggested that you hand the assessor a note before they start. This should clearly explain your communication issues and that you are trying to co-operate as much as possible. Keep a copy for your own records.