Hottie, I have been following this post daily. I really appreciate the time you take to post and share your expertise with us here. However, I do not agree with the statement which you have made more than once alleging that most of the people who apply are not disabled but "just young and lazy." I have been on SSD now for 8 years and I am neither young nor lazy. I was approved the first go round and have not been called in for a reevaluation since. I have been sent letters to complete and returned them. I too know a little about the system as I worked with Medicaid eligibility for a state system for many years and did many many evaluaton packets which were sent for review by the Medical Review Board which is the same one that SSA uses. I did encounter quite a few who I felt were just young and perhaps not motivated but I tried not to let it cloud my judgement and I simply gathered the facts and medical evidence and submitted it and tried to give an unbiased opinion. On the issue of mental evaluations, you are correct is saying that it is easier to fake but still there are a lot of people who have very legitimate mental health issues. I know because I am one of them. I suffer daily from depression, generalized anxiety and sometimes severe panic attacks for which I see a psychiatrist and take medications just as I do for the physical ailments which I have. Please try to see all sides of the whole picture when evaluating a potential recipient and be as objective as possible. Again, many thanks for your willingness to share with us your expertise and always saying that anyone can pm you for a particular problem or question. I do not mean any negative connotations in anything I have said and I certainly hope you will not take it that way. Thank you for letting me get on my soapbox for a while and I will gracefully bow out now. Still speaking to me I hope.