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Illinois Woman Receives SSDI Benefits

Article by Jim Allsup

She cared more about her students than she cared about her health. That’s why two years passed before she was treated for breast cancer.A longtime teacher, Donna Alvarez had an alert in 1997, while at school, that she might have breast cancer. She felt pain in her left breast after one of her special-needs students hugged her. She saw a doctor, but the diagnosis was an infected milk gland, so she continued to teach.She credits the student’s hug with making her realize that she might need help. She believes that the boy was returning the favor of love and attention she gave all her students. “God sent that special spirit on this earth to help me,” Mrs. Alvarez said. “I wanted to help and take care, teach and love. This child is the one who really saved my life.”She didn’t want to take the time for treatments, because leaving her students with another teacher and disrupting their lives and routines was not acceptable. “I was too worried about the kids and how they would manage without me,” she said.Mrs. Alvarez had a mammogram and ultrasound in 1999 during a one-week break at school and was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer.“That’s when the panic and fear set in,” she remembered. “I ignored what my body was trying to tell me for two years. My mind wouldn’t accept the fact that I needed to take care of myself. I always was putting the children’s needs first, not knowing the severity of what lay ahead. That’s when the nightmare began.”Her breast and 38 lymph nodes were removed. She received six months of chemotherapy four days a week, and she injected herself daily with chemo medicine. “I don’t think they thought I was going to survive.”Mrs. Alvarez, now 52, has been cancer-free for 11 years. But after the chemo treatments and five years of taking cancer medicine, a string of unassociated health problems followed. Her appendix burst, and she was diagnosed with Graves’ disease. Graves’ is an autoimmune disorder that leads to over activity of the thyroid gland, which releases hormones to control body metabolism, critical for regulating mood, weight, and mental and physical energy. Constantly sick, Mrs. Alvarez suffered from heart palpitations, tremors in her hands and feet and diarrhea. Today her vision is blurred; she has double vision and pain in her eyes. She is legally blind. She has headaches and pain in joints and muscles. She can’t apply makeup or comb her hair. She has limited eye movement and, occasionally, she bumps into walls. She needs assistance while cooking. “I can’t do the things I like to do for myself,” she said.Last year, Mrs. Alvarez received radiation treatment for both her Graves’ disease and her eyes—and she plans to have eye surgery. She was hospitalized for cellulitis and a staph infection in April. She believes the Graves’ disease and thyroid trouble will always be with her.But the former teacher said she has stopped complaining about the pain and her health issues. “You live with it and you learn to tolerate it,” Mrs. Alvarez said. “My life has been one trial and tribulation after another. What’s made me strong are my faith and my religion. For everything bad that has happened to me, I have taken it in a positive way and learned from it.”She and her husband, Tony, a meat cutter, will celebrate their 35th anniversary in November. They have three grown children and 12 grandchildren. They lost their house four years ago and now rent a mobile home.Mrs. Alvarez hasn’t worked for five years. She doesn’t know the amount of her medical bills, because they are still arriving. During bankruptcy proceedings, she pawned her jewelry to help pay medical bills and buy groceries. “I didn’t feel like a member of society—the cruel remarks [about her bulging eyes] and the financial burden. We didn’t have Christmas. We didn’t have birthdays.”Her medical maladies caused emotional problems, “to the point where I took pills and I wanted to end it. My hormones were out of control. I felt like I was half crazy.”Mrs. Alvarez had not applied for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits, but then she learned about Allsup from a son-in-law. In December 2008, she appointed Allsup to guide her through the complicated application process. She was denied benefits twice.Her case progressed to the next step, usually a hearing before an administrative law judge. But her Allsup representative was able to produce enough medical evidence to convince a judge that an in-person hearing wasn’t necessary. She was awarded SSDI benefits in March 2010.“I really appreciate Allsup’s efforts and what they did for me. They worked diligently to help me with my case. They were very good to me—and patient.”“Allsup is very reputable and honest,” Mrs. Alvarez said. “They work with you to fight for your rights and needs. They were very compassionate with my disabilities. They worked around my pain and discomfort.”Despite the pain and physical challenges, Mrs. Alvarez is confident that she’ll persevere. “I’m grateful to be alive,” she said. “I’ve been able to emotionally and physically conquer these trials and tribulations. There are support groups to share your hardships—just talk about it.”And that little boy who shared that long-ago hug is responsible. “When you look at special-needs child, look at them through God’s eyes and give them love and a smile,” Mrs. Alvarez said.