Tomorrow is my PIP assessment and for those who are not familiar, PIP stands for “Personal Independence Payment” and is replacing Disability Living Allowance (DLA).

I’m nervous for two reasons: a) I’ve heard and read about many people who have had a bad experience of the PIP assessment process and b) my experience thus far hasn’t been great. When I phoned to start my application, the delightful lady I spoke to was more like a robot than a human being. She refused to listen to me or answer my questions until she had completed her “script” and the whole conversation felt very impersonal and forced. It didn’t fill me with confidence for the rest of the process, put it that way.

Regardless of the assessment outcome, I just hope I’m listened to tomorrow and not just treated as a “number”. I hope the assessor understands the complexity of disability and isn’t just fixated on the medical side.  I hope they take the time to listen to my speech and not rely on my husband as an interpreter. I hope they appreciate that my disability is different from day to day and that 15 minutes cannot paint an accurate picture of living with Cerebral Palsy every day.

Most of all I hope I’m treated as a human being!! More to follow!