Thank you for taking a look at my question. I am a 43 year old female who has been coinfected with HIV and HCV for more than 18 years. Until now, I have never applied for benefits of any kind.

Due to a cycle of fatigue and depression, I recently went from fulltime to halftime to agreeing to work 2 hours a week--attending a meeting actually (only so that 2 people's internship wouldn't be canceled as I am the only qualified supervisor in the workplace I'm in.)

I want to apply for SSDI and I am wondering if I can still be considered disabled if I am working 2 hours a week. I called SSA and they were no help but said just to apply.

At the time of applying for benefits, do you know if a person can be working at all and still be considered disabled?

Many thanks for any help.

According to SSDI guidelines, in order to qualify for SSDI, you must be so severly impaired, physically or mentally, that you cannot perform any substantial gainful work. However, an AIDS diagnosis has gotten individuals SSDI in the past. So I would recommend applying. It is not uncommon for the Social Security Administration to deny benefits on the first application. However, if you were to qualify, there are rehab benefits and trial work benefits which allow individuals receivng SDDI to work while drawing a benefit.