PIP Help please

Hi Everyone, I’ve been a member for sometime now and have been quietly lurking in the background reading up on people’s shared experiences with PIP. I have been willing myself to apply for PIP for far too long but I am absolutely gripped with fear over the whole process, from filling out the forms to going for a face to face assessment. I can’t express how badly it makes me panic thinking about the process but I know I could really benefit from receiving support from PIP.
For the past 10 years I have been diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, almost 5 years ago I had to undergo major surgery to remove all my large bowel & anus because of it which has left me with a permanent ileostomy. There has been a sort of dominoes effect since then on my health with reoccurring parastomal hernias which has required multiple hospital stays and surgeries. I’ve been diagnosed for the past 4.5 years with fibromyalgia and endometriosis and the past 8 months or so with Chronic fatigue syndrome. I suffer greatly with panic attacks, acute anxiety & depression & insomnia.
I had to give up permanent work at the start of this year due to poor health and poor mobility, I was a teaching assistant and was simply overwhelmed with the size of the school and found myself exhausted with getting from lesson to lesson, often I would stumble or fall because of poor mobility. I am a Foster carer, we have a 14 year old male with us at present and he is a great kid, although I am the main carer (simply because I am in the house all day) it is my Wife who does all the daily things with him like cooking his meals, making his lunch box etc and the rest he does himself, he travels independently and is capable of seeing to his personal hygiene etc. I make appointments, attend appointments with my Wife as I am the only driver in the household, and do the admin side of things. I also run a kitchen business with my sister making and selling wax melts, we make the goods together which I find manageable as I can do it sitting down & at my own slow pace & can take breaks whenever needed. We attend a weekly market every Sunday to sell our goods and usually we take off every fifth Sunday to have a break. Although I am able to attend the market on a Sunday, I am sitting the majority of the day because it is obviously very tiring for me and it takes me at least 2 days to recover from it, the following Monday and Tuesday is spent in bed as I am wiped out by it. It sounds extreme and you may wonder why I do it if it makes me feel so poorly afterwards but I have researched other avenues of work possibilities and ways to make an income and I am very limited. As my health has been so poor I would be a poor employee due to my sickness record and because I have so much anxiety regarding my ileostomy I find it almost impossible to be outside of my own home if I am not accompanied by someone I know really well. Since my ileostomy I have relied so much on having my own car and it really has become my absolute lifeline. I can travel independently to places I know well but would never dream of doing it to somewhere I don’t know as it causes such anxiety. I experience daily leaks due to my ileostomy, often multiple times a day which requires changing clothing, bathing and reapplying stoma bags, this is where my main anxiety and panic attacks comes from as I get little to no warning about it and it is obviously very embarrassing and distressing for me, especially if I am in a public place. No I can’t travel in any other method but my car as it gives me such security. My Wife works full time and is like my Unpaid carer, she does the majority of the household work, does all the cooking, helps me change and manage my ileostomy and is my main source of comfort when dealing with my mental and physical health issues. I do not cook for myself, I mainly miss meals or eat convenience food as it requires little effort, I have become seriously overweight due to poor diet, antidepressants and limited food tolerances due to my ileostomy which has impacted upon my mental health issues further. My main worries about applying for PIP is being made to look like a liar when I am unable to do so much for myself but yet I help to run a small business. I’ve tried to write this post for months now, each time I’ve talked myself out of it as it seems like such a pointless thing to put myself through the hideous process of applying for PIP to be told I do not have a valid reason to claim it. I would greatly appreciate any help, guidance and support anyone could offer me with PIP, am I right to think I would be crucified for applying when on paper the fact that I “help” to run a small business contradicts my personal predicament in being unable to manage my daily life?

Many thanks for taking the time to read my post. I hope your in good health and spirits.

Warmest regards,
Michelle

Michelle, as you are not currently receiving PIP you having nothing to lose by starting the process and requesting a claim form. Gather together your hospital, doctor letters and evidence and read the guides on here thoroughly. I found breaking the form filling up into small parts much easier than looking at the thing as a whole. Please don't be put off by the bad experiences of others. Good luck