SSI hearing question?

I have bipolar and an upcoming ssi hearing. I had benefits before but a past judge took them away because he thought i was lying about my mental illness. My lawyer won the right for a different judge at a new hearing. My therapist diagnosed me. My doctor thinks i only have narcisstic personality disorder, dysthymia, severe depression, and impulse control disorder. She's no help. My lawyer agrees I deserve the benefits and fels that the judge had no right to take away the benefits i applied on my own to receive after being denied at a previous hearing. Would you please give me an thoughts you have on this and what you feel i need to do to be able to obtain my benefits once and for all? thanks.

Definitely change from a therapist to a psychiatrist and get on medication. If your doctor is a psychiatrist, change doctors ASAP. Keep appealing through your lawyer. It took me 3 years and they had to give me $40,000 backpay for SSDI and $10,000 for SSI. I was denied 3 times and just kept appealing. You should get backpay if they pay from the original date of your disability.

Seems like you have a good lawyer. I wish you good luck!

Just keep trying, see therapist for treatment, it can take a long , long time to get SSI benifits.

My understanding is that you need plenty of medical documentation regarding your illness. They look at how the illness effects your daily functioning, and the severity. It is not all about what your diagnoses are, it is the severity.
I believe you will have a better outcome if your seeing a psychiatrist and on medication to treat your illness.
If your do not have help with your current doctor, maybe it would benefit you to switch to a more competent one.
It is better to get second opinions too, and have all the medical evidence as possible to support your claim.
Try not to give up either, and keep up with the process. It can take a while to qualify, and it is always stressful.

Through the Department of Vocational Rehabilitation, (re-training for a suitable job) I was given various testing and psychological assessment. These findings were helpful in providing "proof" of my condition and inability to hold a full-time job.

You will probably want a second opinion to be provided, and maybe a witness there to speak to their findings.

Do have the lawyer's help is my other word of advice.

find a therapist who will back you up, that's all you need, and medical documentation from visits and medications.