First assesment tomorrow

I am a 59 year old woman having my first ATOS assessment tomorrow and I am terrified, I have never had to do anything like this before and ran my own successful business for 30 years and never been unemployed since I was 18.

My ex sister in law who is i qualified psychotherapist is coming with me and i was also referred to my Surrey health community mental health service last week by my GP as he is worried about my state of mind as I have been through a real awfule life changing traumatic event recently which involved the police. Long story. This interview has really made me much worse than I was.

My question is are these interviews always awful or are there some good people doing the interviews that are decent human beings. I have never seen any positive reports about ATOS

Thanks,
Sukiwarrior

Hi sw,

Don't forget that it is human nature to complain loudly when we don't like something - and to go away quietly when we do. The internet is full of people complaining about the way they were treated by ATOS but they are still, probably, in the minority.

My own ATOS assessment went well. I was not kept waiting long and was treated with courtesy throughout. I did disagree with one part of the form that was produced, otherwise I think that what I said was reported accurately. I admit that it might have helped that my assessment was recorded at my request.

You should find that this FAQ gives you an idea what to expect on the day

ESA Medical – What to expect

Good luck! Please come back to this thread/topic and let us know how you get on.

Yes I will.

I am also getting my recorded.

Thanks.

Hi, SW,

Both my partner and myself are both chronically ill/disabled and I have to say that over the years all of our dealings, except one, with Atos, including medicals, have been professional, and the Atos staff courteous. In all instances but one (rectified by appeal and tribunal) we have gotten the result we wanted.

I have had to find ways not to stress myself out about the process, as a) stress makes my conditions worse (my partner also has heart disease, so he can't get stressed either), and b) it takes too long to recover from this stress. It's just not worth shortening my life over it.

You have someone to accompany you and you can only put your case across to the best of your ability and do your best not to make yourself ill beforehand, when the assessment might not be as bad as you imagine. Mine were fine, and at one the doctor was actually interested in how my condition affected me.

I wish you all the best of luck on the day.

H.

It says in the ESA medical what to expect starts at page 70. But the one I am looking at starts at page 30 in the mental health section.