Got phone call today from social security office, and his soc sec disab. has been approved - no soc sec doc to visit, no court to go to, will kick in in about a month! Notwithstanding, it's not EXTRA money, except for those who have no work disability. If you do have it, then the money from work, will reduce by the amount SS gives you. But if you don't apply for it, they will estimate how much SS would pay and doc you for it - so it has to be done! This is the first thing I had to do about his stroke that didn't become a huge ball of red tape! Now I did have a lot of work to do, filing the report and application online, but then it was done. This is the page to access the report & the application:

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/applyfordisability/

I nearly got stuck with them making me the payee, which would turn it into a separate account that had to be spent for HIS stuff and I had to report on it every year. Not that I plan on going on a shopping spree, like HIS stuff is the same house WE live in and the same house WE have utitilities & taxes to pay on. This 'his' money to pay his stuff is an odd thing to say to a wife who lives in the same home & eats the same food. It's not like I'm a hired hand. I do realize there are probably idiots out there who would go on a shopping spree and then they would lose the house, but I'm basically biting all my fingernails and toenails watching our budget like a hawk, as this is way less money than we got when he worked. The 'his' money sounds very clear cut, but not so much when you already have a bank account that all your bills are set up, then instead of using that, I'd have to set up another account to pay our bills from, but it wouldn't be enough to pay them all, so I'd have to use some from the other account, and then it just keeps getting messier, which is crazy anyway, since his bills are MY bills, they are OUR bills and OUR home. Somehow she decided to let me use our joint account that I've paid our bills from for years, and it is the FIRST break I've gotten from any one I've had to talk to concerning his stroke thru this whole mess. This is do-able and I'm encouraged that at least one thing will not be a headache for me.