Hiya Caz
I hope today sees you feeling better - I read your dairy and I too think its a 'man thing' but actually this still does not mean it is acceptable especially when you are suffering PNI and need help and support from your partner - and this was not helpful at all - but I have been there too with my husband when Caja was small.....
if I have time later I will put something on the dairy thread.
Anyway as to benefits:
it is possible that due to your complicated situation and the debts - you may not be able to get a means tested benefit.
However women with PNI have received incapacity benefit in their own right regardless of income or circumstances as this is not means tested and some have additionally been successful in claiming DLA ( Disability Living Allowance)
They have claimed this on a temporary basis while they have PNI, as to claim DLA you do not actually have to be 'officially' disabled or registered as such - you just have to have a diagnosed physical or mental medical condition which renders you unable to do some of the things that the average well person would be expected to be able to manage.
The rules and procedures for claiming both or either are complicated and intrusive ( for both you often have to have a medical examination that can be both traumatic and often feels undermining and even insulting and in the case of incapacity benefit especially, the current government have introduced measures that makes it even harder to get.
However it can still be worth the effort of trying to claim as incapacity can be worth as much as £70 a week and DLA the same although I doubt you would get the higher rates the absolute minimum a week you could get on IB would be about £20 and on DLA £15 but both are usually more - so if you claim both it can be well worth the effort.
Anyway to get incapacity benefit your employment stamps have to be up to date - not for the year of your claim, but confusingly the year before ( I said it was complicated)
However I have claimed both and it has been well worth while and helped others to do so in my past job which included benefit advice.
Anyway this thread contains more information on this that could be useful:
veritee.proboards7.com/index.cgi?board=benefits&action=display&n=1&thread=4604and this one:
veritee.proboards7.com/index.cgi?board=help&action=display&n=1&thread=2601The organization mentioned -
www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/now requires individuals to become members for £15 to access their information packs, but this is well worth it as they give you all the information you need to make a successful claim for PNI on mental health grounds - it is complicated but if you read and follow the guidelines you will probably be successful as you have PNI.
The guidelines do not promote anyone to lie or defraud - nor do I.
But PNi is an illness eligible to claim IB and DLA on mental health grounds bu the rules and very exact and complicated for both and if you answer certain questions the wrong way without maybe understanding what they are trying to establish, you may fail to get the benefit even though you qualify ( it is especially important to understand what the questions are trying to establish if you are called to a medical for either.
Anyway if you qualify to claim for either i.e for IB you have to have paid up Nat Ins stamps for the qualifying year and be diagnosed with PNI ( and any other illness that is disabling) by a medical professional.
For DLA you do not need either but you medical condition or state has to be such that it disables you from certain key human activities.
I hope this helps
Veritee