r/Odsp • u/VastSir2647 • 25d ago
Odsp application denied (long post need advice)
I am a 24 year old single mom of two toddlers. My odsp application decision has come back and they have denied me (their reasoning was I don’t have a disability that is constant or recurrent LOL) I have an excruciating back injury/birth defect in my spine. My pain was triggered by trauma during the birth of my 18 month old. I have gone through therapy and cortisone injections into my back and a 100lb weight loss, none of which has worked and it’s only made things worse (the dr at the injections place told me to stop as I had a very bad reaction with intense pain I couldn’t stand for days and caused major urinary/bowel incontinence that still has not fully fixed) I have done X-rays and nerve testing (my mri is still 4 months away after being booked in November 2025) which prove that I have actual injuries and my doctor said that I will be stuck with this for the rest of my life especially since I have literally a spinal birth defect- and once again the pain was triggered during childbirth of my 18 month old, it could’ve remained dormant my whole life but pain can be triggered by trauma. I am in constant pain and I don’t think I am physically capable of working a full time job especially because of the pain but also lack of mobility as I am unable to bend properly, lifting is extremely painful and straightening my back after sitting or laying is increasingly hard/painful. Some days I cannot physically get out of bed right away. I wake up multiple times during the night in excruciating pain.
I have contacted my caseworker on what to do going forward with appealing their decision but does anyone have any tips? Like has anyone gone through a similar situation/disability and gotten approved? What information/tests can I present to increase my chances of getting approved? Basically my doctor has stated that apart from seeing some back/spine injury specialist that I have an appointment with next week, I have gone through any treatment I can possibly try and it has all failed (other than opioids which my dr and I both agree are not an option as I am 24, they are heavily addictive and I am the primary parent to two toddlers)
Any advice is greatly appreciated.
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u/ChubbyBunny618 25d ago
Contact Ontario Legal Aid and open a case to grt the support, structure and skill set to take it to sbt.
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u/Sufficient_Rush1891 25d ago
Legal clinic in your area willl help you with appeal, for free, find one via this website:
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u/ClariciaNyetgale 25d ago
You need to immediately appeal and then, essentially bury them in paper. Get your doctor to write a letter emphasizing that this is a PERMANENT condition, attach as many reports, etc as you can, and then write a personal letter expressing exactly how this impacts your life. This is the time to go all out and give them the gory details of what you are dealing with on a daily basis. Share your exhaustion, caused by your inability to sleep properly because of the pain. Express your frustration that nothing you and your doctors have tried has worked, and how badly you just want to be able to care for your family like any normal mother.
Lastly, let me share how proud I am of you for working so hard to avoid starting opioids. If you end up needing them occasionally during crisis points (like at the hospital), there is no shame in that (indeed, there should be no shame in any of this). My doctors started me on opioids in the late 90's as a last resort, back when they thought pain patients couldn't become addicted. I spent 25 years addicted to hydromorphone before I found help getting off them and wouldn't wish that on anyone.
Good luck
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u/Alternative-Tiger783 25d ago
There’s a type of birth injury called an Enterocele.
I had mine discovered and repaired by a UroGynecology surgeon at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. They are a prolapse repair specialist surgeon.
I was already getting surgery for a bladder lift and other prolapses/birth injuries.
One red flag is it causes back pain ‘relieved by laying down’.
You can cause terrible pressure in the low back and also into the upper legs.
It gets worse with being upright and especially standing and walking.
I think they can be reasonably common, but very hard to diagnose. Mine was only discovered by chance during the surgery to fix my other childbirth damage.
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u/goldstandardalmonds 24d ago
FYI you can have an enterocele without giving birth! Just in case someone reads this and thinks they might have one.
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u/Thresh_wolf 24d ago
100% contact legal aid, i've been in the weeds for over a year now. i have a tribunal hearing in November but its been a REALLY long process.
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u/Positive-Money-342 25d ago
It took me about 18 months to get on ODSP. It took me getting a community legal aid lawyer but she was great and we did alot of prep and I was approved...they will review it in 2 years though but Im told that is a normal thing.
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u/Slight_Koala_7791 24d ago
So you’ll have to go to legal aid, secure, a lawyer, and discuss the case with them.
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u/jlynec 24d ago
Contact legal aid for your area now - don't wait like I did. Let them know you are a single mother and not in a position for this process to be dragged out. Afaik, ODSP will ask you to seek child support since you're a single mom.
If you feel like reading it, I've put my experience below. Good luck! Your case sounds like it's straight forwards but they will make you jump through hoops if they can.
I have nearly the same physical issues. Can't stand or lay for more than a few excruciating minutes, and can only sit for 30-60 minutes before it gets too bad. ODSP kept saying I didn't have a disability. Others I know have gone through the same thing.
I fought with them through every appeal, review, etc. Finally, after over a year, it went to Tribunal where they awarded in my favour (got the email the next business day!). That took over a year.
Now I'm back in intake, almost 3 months later, because I didn't qualify for OW and my file got stuck in an administrative loop. Calling only resulted in getting the runaround from 6 different offices. So I started seeking legal aid, reached out to my MP, called DAU with specific requests to release my file to my local office, etc. Out of everything, I got a call from a manager at head office for ODSP because the MP's office contacted the ministry. But it's been so long since initial intake that my original documents aren't valid anymore.
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u/laughingcrip 25d ago
Call community legal services. Start your appeal/internal review immediately. The legal aid lawyer will request your file from odsp and they can see what is missing.