Federal Disability Retirement: The Symbiotic Relationship

In biology, symbiosis refers to the interaction between two different organisms, often benefiting both.  It is the coexistence through the capacity to acquire greater advantage without diminishment and harm to the other, which then allows for the balance of nature to occur.

In other contexts, in differing circumstances or changed environments, perhaps the relationship and the interaction would alter, and the evolutionary forces of nature would impel each to become predator and prey; but for whatever reason, it is precisely the stability of balance in nature which allows for, and favors, such a symbiotic relationship.

By analogy, the relationship between the U.S. Office of Personnel Management and the Federal and Postal worker, whether the latter is under FERS, CSRS or CSRS Offset, enjoys the symbiosis of necessity.  It is precisely for the Federal and Postal worker that the very existence of OPM is maintained; and for the Federal and Postal Worker who requires a personnel action to be processed, the existence of OPM is to the advantage of the Federal employee and the U.S. Postal worker.

For the Federal and Postal worker who suffers from a medical condition, such that the medical condition necessitates filing for Federal OPM Medical Retirement benefits, the enhancement and spotlight of the symbiotic relationship between OPM and the suffering Federal or Postal worker comes to the fore; it is, indeed, precisely a relationship of advantage to both entities and organisms.

Of course, just as in the universe of biological entities (of which the human species is a part of, lest we forget because of our so-called advanced state of evolutionary existence), circumstances may alter, environments may change, and contexts of interaction may convert; and a similar relationship as that between predator and prey may develop.

A denial of an initial application for Federal Disability Retirement benefits tends to do just that; for, suddenly OPM is not just a bureaucratic morass upon which one is waiting for an action to ensue; now, it is an adversary which must be countermanded.

Still, despite the change, and regardless of the alteration of the essence of the symbiotic relationship, where the Federal or Postal worker must then file a Request for Reconsideration within 30 days of the date of the denial of an OPM Disability Retirement application, the interaction must still exist, and necessity of circumstances requires the continuing relationship between the two given entities: the Federal and Postal worker who suffers from a medical condition on the one hand, and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management on the other.

It is by necessity of interaction that the two entities meet; it is by change of context which impels substantive alteration; but in the end, the reliance and dependence of symbiosis remains throughout.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

FERS & CSRS Disability Retirement for Federal and USPS Workers: Differences

The weather comes upon us; as a cloudy day dominates, so a sense of darkness and foreboding can impact one’s emotional life; some days are better than others.

In the virtual world of our antiseptic lives, surrounded by such advancement of technology which separates and bifurcates; we think that we are different from other species, and indeed, a comparative analysis can be a potent and foundational argument in establishing the superiority of the human animal, as in, “Can X do Y?” “Can a chimpanzee sketch a rough draft of an architectural phenomenon like the Roman Colosseum?” (Then again, who among us could do that?).  Some would say that the titular character in Camus’ classic novel, The Stranger, Meursault, has it “right” when he attempts to ascribe blame to the heat of the day, the brightness of the sunlight, for his acts if human degeneracy.  Such an explanation is as valid as any that one can give for justifying the murder of another.

Prolonged stress can affect performance levels on jobs that require high levels of focus and concentration

We tend to desire an intellectualization of our actions which somehow differentiates us from “others”, when in fact the environment impacts us no matter the extent of engagement in placing artificial walls around ourselves.

Medical conditions have a tendency to bring out the humanness in us.  This is because, when a medical condition impacts our lives, it is a final recognition that an invasive malignancy has been able to penetrate the artificial walls we have so carefully constructed, and it reminds us of our fragile, organic essence.  For Federal and Postal Workers who have been impacted by medical conditions, such that the medical condition impacts one’s ability to continue in one’s chosen vocation, an admission of vulnerability and mortality comes to the fore. To counter this, a change of venue is often needed, and is the required prescription in order to push against the fear and loathing which accompanies such an admission.

Filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, whether the Federal or Postal employee is under FERS or CSRS, is often the wisest step which the Federal or Postal employee can do.  There are many stories of Federal and Postal Workers who have obtained Federal Disability Retirement benefits, who reflect back and declare that it was the smartest move of their collective lives; but then, when we are stuck in the rut of our antiseptic lives, it is often the most comfortable place to remain, and so we fight against our own self-interest.

And, indeed, in the end, that is all that the prosecutor was seeking for from Meursault — just a word, a deed, a symbol — that he was at least somewhat remorseful.  But Camus would have none of that for his character; only the stark and naked honesty, that he was no different from the surroundings of nature which enveloped him on that fateful day.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

Federal and USPS Disability Retirement: Change within Flux

The anomaly is that change occurs only within the context of constancy; for, if everything was perpetually in a state of flux, the very concept of ‘change’ would lose its meaning.  It is similar to the argument often made in philosophy where one posits that everything we perceive ‘is merely a dream’; yet, one cannot even arrive at a concept of dreaming until and unless we first acknowledge the reality and existence of a mind which dreams.  We therefore often confuse that which comes after by forgetting the preconditions which are required for positing the subsequent argument.

Ultimately, what is necessary is the foundation of any argument, in order for the flurry of changing activities to flourish.  But a balance must always be sought, and it is when change itself becomes a constancy, and overtakes the undergirding of stability, that one’s life becomes one of chaos and turmoil.

Medical conditions tend to do that to people.  The lack of relief from constant pain; the upheaval of psychiatric conditions, of panic-induced attacks and racing minds; of insomnia and non-restorative sleep; of medications which are necessary but have serious side effects; and the interruptions from stability by the necessity of doctor’s appointments, loss of time at the job, etc.

All appears to be in flux and turmoil.

For the Federal and Postal employee who suffers from such a treadmill of turmoil, consideration should be given in filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.  It is offered to all FERS & CSRS employees.  Where work was once a column of stability, during a chronic and progressively deteriorating medical condition, it can become the source of increased stress and anxiety because of the lack of understanding or empathy from coworkers, supervisors and the agency in general.

Preparation of a proper and effective Federal Disability Retirement application is essential; flux, turmoil and change should be the intermission, and not the main event.  As such, reversal of course in order to establish the principle of life should be the goal:  of stability first, and changes thereafter.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

Federal Employee Medical Retirement: The Value-Driven Life

Are expectations unrealistically embraced, adopted and concretized at the outset, without thoughts of malleability and alterations subject to changing circumstances? What happens when societal demands, whether explicit or implicit, clash with personal ambitions, to create a dissonance which tears apart the soul of Man?

The psychological chasm between what we believe our parents expect, what we desire, how we view the values as espoused in daily discourse with the world around us, becomes entrenched at an early age, and attaches to our psyche before we even have a chance to test the waters of reality. That is why most people find it difficult to adapt and to respond adequately to ever-changing circumstances.

Yet, the way in which we remain inflexible is a denial of reality; for, life rarely proceeds upon a linear direction without unexpected turns and twists. The love that we thought would be forever, ends in divorce and destruction; the career which we believed was the key to success, turns out to be a mere means to pay the bills; and the puppy that was to grow old with you, ceases to be before its time.

For Federal and Postal employees who suffer from a medical condition, such that the medical condition impacts and prevents one from performing the essential elements of one’s job, the idea that life’s alterations must result in reactive responses different from the original course of one’s career, is not a new notion.

Filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits, whether under FERS or CSRS, through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, is obviously a career-changing, major decision to make. But the very fact that the benefit’s availability for all Federal and Postal employees who have a minimum of 18 months of Federal Service under FERS, or 5 years under CSRS, at least allows for the option to be offered at all.

Options are avenues for responding to life’s reality of twists and turns, in real time, based upon real circumstances. The paradigm set as a child may be nothing more than a dream once enjoyed; but in growing up, those childhood dreams needed to be adjusted in order to accommodate the reality of our daily lives.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

Disability Retirement for Federal Government Employees: Wrong Turns

We often take wrong turns in life, or unexpected ones, and end up in places, circumstances and situations which were unintended, or at the very least, not included in our childhood dreams.  But the fact that one’s original plans failed to materialize in full, or resulted in an altered state different from nascent dreams, does not make the consequential endpoint any less valid or fulfilling.

Life often takes alternate twists and turns different from one’s original and neat packaging — based upon what life “should be” as opposed to what life “is” in the harsh reality of everyday existence.

For the Federal and Postal Worker who is beset with a medical condition such that the medical conditions prevents one from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s job, the trauma of the condition itself is enough of a twist in life to contend with, leaving aside the decision to change one’s career and intended path of one’s dreams.

Regret and remorse often abounds, but one should look at it in a different light.  Rarely is a life which fails to change from the paradigm formulated in childhood, relevant or fulfilling throughout adulthood.

Federal Disability Retirement benefits is an available tool for the Federal and Postal Worker who must consider a turn in life.  Filed through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, it is available precisely for those Federal and Postal Workers under FERS or CSRS who must face the prospect of make a turn — and where a medical condition is involved, it is neither a “wrong” one, nor one which must necessarily disrupt a childhood paradigm.  It simply is one of those “ises” in life.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

Disability Retirement for Federal Workers: Indicators

The technology of automobiles has changed radically in the past 2 decades.  No longer do we rely upon intuition, the automotive “ear” for that strange sound which, when talking to the service department, we attempt with futility to reenact with absurd pitches and tones in an attempt to accurately depict that which fails to occur when brought to the attention of the mechanic.  Instead, there are electronic warning lights and the computer sensors which specifically and with great detail indicate a past occurrence, a present problem, or a needed future course of action.

If the human body is the ultimate composite of neuro-sensors and complexities of the physical, the psychological, and the coalescence of mind, body and soul (including the philosophical “ghost in the machine“), then pain must be the warning indicator for past transgressions, current anomalies, and future need for servicing.  Those who ignore automotive warning signs do so at their peril; similarly, to ignore such signs emitted by the human body and transcribed in no uncertain terms via the daily chronicity of pain, do so with a singular certainty of progressive deterioration and decline.

Ultimately, the decision for the Federal or Postal Worker to file for Federal Disability Retirement benefits, whether under FERS or CSRS, through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, must be accomplished once warning signs are heeded, and a blunt discussion with doctors, family and friends are engaged; but it is the pure and unadulterated ignoring of all signs which results in crisis and disaster.

The warning signs are there to heed; the future course of action is still left up to the recipient of such indicators.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

Federal and Postal Disability Retirement: A New Beginning, after an Old Ending

Whether it is old age which makes for intransigence, or whether it is a lifetime of habitual living which makes for difficulty in changing the course of one’s future, will never be completely answered.

Youth better tends to possess the capacity to adapt and change as the malleability of circumstances confront an individual.  Old age — or those who euphemistically are identified as being “mature” — has the unfortunate effect of being entrenched in the ways of routine and unchanging, repetitive actions.

Perhaps the early requirement of being able to “multi-task” — of performing a variety of bombardments of sensory overloads on smartphones, iPads, computers, etc. — will have a positive impact upon society in the end, by allowing for quick and effective adaptation in an ever-changing environment.  Perhaps the penultimate, Darwinian evolution is taking place before our very eyes:  cognitive adaptation, where those who fail to change quickly and with each altering circumstance be able to parallel the change, will fail to survive in this high-paced, technological society.  The multiple “perhaps”, of course, still leave a healthy doubt; culture, stability, sameness — there are positive things to be said about the “old” ways.

In preparing, formulating, and filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, whether it is under FERS or CSRS, the most difficult step for the Federal or Postal employee is to recognize and adapt to the change which will occur, does occur — and must occur.

The old habit of thinking that one’s career with the Federal government, or the U.S. Postal Service, necessarily means a lifetime of commitment, must alter; the paradigm which one walked around with, that a single career in life marked one’s character of commitment and stability, needs to be transformed.  For, ultimately, CSRS/FERS Disability Retirement allows for a new beginning:  of having that rehabilitative period to take care of one’s medical conditions, while concurrently allowing for contemplation of a second, albeit different, type of vocation for the future.

Whatever one’s age, CSRS/FERS Disability Retirement has the potential for a brighter tomorrow.  It is a benefit which can allow for a new beginning, and once taken, the Federal or Postal employee will perhaps see that the old ways weren’t so attractive after all.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

CSRS & FERS Disability Retirement: Indicators

If your weekends are spent for the purpose of recuperating just so that you can have the energy, strength, mental acuity, and sustained focus and attention to go back to work on Monday, then it is an indicator that you may need to file for Federal Disability Retirement benefits under FERS or CSRS; if, after each day of work, you are so profoundly fatigued that you end up spending each evening just resting, unable to have any significant recreational enjoyment or time for relaxation, time with family, etc., then it is an indicator that you may need to file for Federal Disability Retirement benefits under FERS or CSRS; if you must take sick leave, LWOP or annual leave every few days, or after a week of work, because you need the time off to recuperate, then that is a further indicator.  Ultimately, each individual must make his or her decision as to the timing and whether one has reached a critical point where filing for Federal Disability Retirement benefits under FERS or CSRS is necessary.  Different reasons for different people; different factors at different times of one’s life. 

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire