Hi there, I'm on SSDI for my BPD and I get asked about it all the time so I figured I'd answer some common questions and give y'all some info. I'm not a legal expert and don't have all the answers, but I am speaking from my own experience. 

I've seen people say you can't get SSDI for BPD. False. It is a qualifying condition so don't let anyone tell you it's not. I'm proof. 

It took about a year from when I first applied to my first check. I got rejected the first time I applied and appealed it. Got it the second time. I did get a years worth of back pay, they pay you from when you first applied. 

You have to be in treatment. I've met people who don't even have a therapist who have applied. They're never going to give it to you. If your condition doesn't require any treatment, why would they give you disability? Doesn't work. Same thing with meds, you need to have a med provider. If you go home and flush the pills down the toilet that's up to you, but you need to have prescriptions. 

Social security is a bit of a mystery. Who makes the decision? What exactly makes them decide who gets it and who doesn't? They are not exactly transparent. Why do some people get it and some don't when they have the same condition? I don't know for sure. 

But I know I was in a ton of treatment. From what I've heard, you have to prove you require so much treatment for your condition that you cannot possibly work. At the time when I applied I was really really sick. I was in the hospital for suicidal ideation (admissions, not just ER visits) every couple of months back then (recently celebrating one year without a hospitalization, woohoo!). I was in a day program. I was in a DBT group.  Individual therapy up to twice a week. Partial hospitalization. Whatever treatment you have available to you, take them, if just to help your disability chances. They may end up helping your condition at the same time. 

At the very least you absolutely need to have your therapist and med provider on your side. Talk to them about it, make sure they agree that you can't work. If they don't agree, convince them. If they can't be convinced, find a new provider. These are the folks SS will be contacting to see if you qualify. Get them on the same page as you. 

When you get a questionnaire about your functional abilities, lay it all out. Think about how BPD affects you. Yes, you can take a shower without help. But do you need reminders sometimes? Put that down. There's extra space at the end of the application where you can write further information. Use that to explain your symptoms and be descriptive. I told them I was plagued by suicidal thoughts and could not function, which was true. 

Also it is not meant to support you forever. They do review your case every couple of years and they can kick you off for medical reasons, such as no longer being in treatment. I recently had my first review and was completely freaked out because I haven't been in the hospital but nothing came of it. I am still in lots of treatment though.  

You can work part-time on SSDI. I've been told you can make up to $1300 a month, but I haven't ventured out yet. Soon. 

All in all it is an arduous process for sure. If I hadn't gotten it the second time my next step would have been to hire a lawyer, but since I didn't have to do that I can't speak to it. The waiting, not knowing if you're going to be approved is torture, and doesn't exactly help your mental illness. But let me tell you, disability has literally saved me. I've been out of work since 2019, got my first check in March of 2020. I have been able to breath. Focus on myself. Get stable. I'm so thankful for it. 

Well, I feel like that's everything I know, feel free to ask me anything, not sure I'll have an answer but I'll try.