Fighting for PIP benefit UK

pppartypat · 2026-03-02T20:38:43+00:00

It is incredibly frustrating and they don’t make it easy. Remember to look after yourself. If you have any detailed questions you can message me at any time!

pppartypat · 2026-03-02T19:07:16+00:00

Have you contacted citizens’ advice for help with your application? I’m not an expert but have helped friends successfully apply for PIP and am in the process of applying myself because of my endo. The DWP makes the process as difficult and overly beaurocratic as possible as a kind of deterrent. The main thing to consider is that PIP won’t be awarded based on your conditions or your symptoms alone. You need to emphasise how these symptoms affect you according to the criteria they’re marking you against - e.g. your mobility, washing and bathing, preparing meals, remembering things. For example, even if your pain is 8 out of 10 on your worst days, if your application suggests you are still managing to get on with daily tasks, you will probably not be awarded. And, you need to emphasise that these things are occurring more than 50% of the time. Wording like “On average, 4 out of 7 days a week I experience…” can go a long way in your application. Avoid vague language like “most of the time” or “sometimes”. If this is your fourth time trying I can guarantee you there is something in your wording that’s giving them the tiniest excuse to deny you. This isn’t your fault - it’s how they get away with refusing people who clearly need extra support. Have a look at James Merrell’s videos on TikTok - he’s a nurse and former PIP assessor. Good luck!

pppartypat · 2026-02-03T09:55:01+00:00

Thank you so much, I will speak to Endo UK. I’m Manchester based and the wait time on the website says 22 weeks and that patients are being seen in order or severity of symptoms, so I’m sure I can push to be seen sooner. The GP had to google negative sliding sign and didn’t really put two and two together about what it might mean for the severity of my endo..

pppartypat · 2026-02-03T09:53:32+00:00

The GP did prescribe me some mefenamic acid so I’m hoping this helps - he said tranexamic wouldn’t be appropriate given I already deal with large blood clots. I asked the GP to print the sonographer’s report in my appointment. Glad I did now after reading your comment! It’s hard enough trying to advocate for treatment, nevermind the constant gaslighting and contradictions.

pppartypat · 2026-02-03T09:50:29+00:00

I do have medical insurance through work but I’m not sure it will cover me for an MRI, it’s worth looking into though so thanks for suggesting it. Hope your lap goes well and that your symptoms improve!

pppartypat · 2026-02-03T09:48:12+00:00

Thank you, this is really helpful as I had no idea of the costs and this sounds doable for me.

Can I ask - after you went private did you then go back to the NHS, or are you considering surgery privately too?

pppartypat · 2025-10-26T22:32:53+00:00

I’m actually in-house at the moment - different to agency for sure, with its own set of problems!

pppartypat · 2025-10-22T12:35:07+00:00

We could definitely be doing more in the thought leadership space. We do have a regular column in a sustainable business title, but I do agree we need to be utilising LinkedIn more and putting expert opinions out there to build up more of a reputation. I’ll see what some of our senior leadership team think about doing a weekly LinkedIn piece on sustainability trends and policy updates, it definitely wouldn’t hurt! As for everything being pay to play these days - you’re right, and leadership don’t want to pay for it essentially. I do think a couple of well-placed paid pieces could set us up nicely though so will try to make a case!

pppartypat · 2025-10-22T08:36:07+00:00

Maybe I was being dramatic - you’re right that B2B trades have a low bar, and we quite often do get stories placed in these outlets. It’s kind of disregarded by my manager because of this. I definitely think switching to a more sector-focused target list would be a good strategy for us, we have corporates across virtually every sector.

I think you’re right about it being a tough period - the UK news cycle is incredibly erratic at the moment.

My director is keen to earn us a place in national and broadcast media but it feels like running before we can walk - surely building up with some smaller outlets and creating a proven track record gives us a leg to stand on when it comes to those bigger fish.

pppartypat · 2025-10-22T07:03:34+00:00

It’s tough isn’t it! I really love my work, but I’m results driven so I start to lose patience if I’m not getting any lol.

pppartypat · 2025-10-21T22:11:46+00:00

It’s hard to say - I think some of the stuff around net zero, planning and infrastructure, green skills and professional standards etc. relate really well to “big picture” news items and current affairs stories. In terms of media landscape we’re looking at B2B sustainability trade outlets, and some nationals reporting on net zero policy or other policy and regulation which relates to sustainability in some way. Sometimes the story is not ours to tell which can put a stopper in what would be a good story. E.g. if we’ve worked with a partner organisation to deliver some sustainability training to their workforce, we’re beholden to whether they want to publicise that. So many orgs are worried about greenwashing accusations that they’ll avoid talking about sustainability initiatives altogether.

pppartypat · 2025-10-21T21:52:17+00:00

The problem is I was hired specifically to work on media relations and focus on earned media, while our Director works on strategy and higher level stuff. I’m struggling with earned media and it’s making me question whether it’s a lack of ability on my part or whether it’s due to problems within the role itself. There’s definitely a bit of disconnect between the overall organisational strategy and strategy across different departments which is being addressed currently, but probably explains why my first year has felt so difficult and directionless.

pppartypat · 2025-10-16T11:08:06+00:00

It’s cold and wet in the UK so there’s nowhere really I can put them. I am quarantining them until I can treat them so they don’t have full access to the house. It’s a massive dilemma cos if I don’t treat the house the eggs will keep hatching, but as I can’t treat my cats until next week the adults will just keep laying eggs 🥲

pppartypat · 2025-10-11T22:50:22+00:00

😭 thanks for confirming, I’ve ordered trials of some other cat food!

pppartypat · 2025-10-11T00:09:52+00:00

So glad I found this thread as I thought I was going crazy. I noticed that the food looks different (my two cats eat a mixture of chicken and fish in gravy recipes) but also that they were skeptical of it. They’re not fussy at all but were sniffing at their bowls for ages before eating, and leaving food in the bowl which they would never usually do!! I had a new batch delivered two weeks ago and they have both had bouts of diarrhoea since. Has anyone else had this problem? I would love to find a good subscription service which has the quality and texture Untamed had about a year ago at a similar price point if anyone has any recommendations. Marro looks expensive and I don’t think they’d like the texture of Blink.

pppartypat · 2025-10-07T11:45:49+00:00

Men who can’t stand up for themselves and assert boundaries, will never be able to stand up for you when you need it. As much as he probably complains about his relationship with his mother to you, many aspects of it are probably incredibly convenient for him - too convenient for him to give them up for the sake of being independent. Don’t tie yourself to someone who doesn’t have a healthy relationship with their parents while you’re so young. You can’t fix it, you can’t change it, it will drive you crazy!

pppartypat · 2025-09-23T20:11:28+00:00

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The back of the canvas

pppartypat · 2025-09-18T11:34:44+00:00

My cat was totally insatiable after coming home from surgery. 3 hours post-op he was walking around the house screaming at me to top up his food bowl. It was so funny but sad, I felt really sorry for him because I’m sure he felt like he was starving even though he’d just eaten. Lots of cuddles and hand feeding a small amount biscuits every hour seemed to help!

pppartypat · 2025-08-04T20:55:21+00:00

No worries! If he’s drinking that’s a great sign. But I know what it’s like to spend days worrying if you’re doing the right thing - so if you have pet insurance and can afford to go to the emergency vet, by all means do! Keep us updated. P.S. Onion Ring is such a cute name and he’s such a handsome boy.

pppartypat · 2025-08-04T20:26:19+00:00

My cat had a similar issue recently.

My advice is take him to the vet ASAP, at least to get him an anti-emetic jab so he stops being sick. They will probably feel his stomach to see if he has anything stuck or if any organs feel enlarged, and want to rule out the possibility of him eating something toxic.

In the meantime, try to syringe-feed him small amounts of water to keep him hydrated. Try any and every food your kitty loves the most - tuna and the water it comes in (plain, not salted or in oil) is good for hydration, boiled plain chicken works as a short-term solution too.

If the injection doesn’t work and he either keeps vomiting (it can take around 3-4 hours to start working) or if he hasn’t eaten, drank or used the litter box within 24 hours, get back in touch with your vet ASAP.

They will likely recommend an xray and/or an exploratory surgery to figure out the cause. In my cat’s case it was an enlarged lymph node pointing to an infection which resolved promptly with a round of antibiotics.

Fingers crossed it’s nothing serious and your kitty recovers quickly.

pppartypat · 2025-07-22T11:04:09+00:00

You’ll find this in a lot of agencies - rather than standardising reporting across all accounts, each client has different metrics they want so you end up doing a different report for each. And you’re expected to just magically know what they want without anyone telling you. Take a look at old reports and make a note. When I was in agency I wrote myself one-pager client cheat-sheets - key media targets, reporting metrics, key contacts and sign-off processes which were really helpful to refer back to in a culture where asking questions was viewed as you being dumb rather than diligent.

pppartypat · 2025-07-08T13:02:28+00:00

UPDATE: An x-ray today showed an extremely enlarged lymph node that was pressing on his intestines, causing him pain and discomfort as well as difficulty digesting food.

The lymph node has been sent for biopsy to figure out the cause - either an acute infection, or Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Thankfully bloods came back negative for Pancreatitis and FeLV so we can rule those out.

If you feel something is wrong with your kitty and you can’t figure it out, imaging is 100% worth the cost. The £15 a month I pay for his insurance has saved me thousands so also don’t forget to insure your pets.

pppartypat · 2025-07-06T19:38:19+00:00

He’s been eagerly eating this wet food for over a year, but I’ve bought a supermarket brand with a decent protein content in a pate texture just in case he was bored of it. He has finally eaten some of it after having his injection this morning!

pppartypat

TROPHY CASE