Cindy...I am not completely sure what diagnoses your son has but you can get an idea from different websites such as bipolarworld.com or do a search on disabilitysecrets.
When I was gathering evidence for my hearing I ran across something interesting and sent it to my therapist for her thoughts.
I found the following information which is quite interesting and useful.
If you have bipolar disorder, major depression, phobias, agoraphobia, Tourette Syndrome, obsessions, compulsions, or panic attacks, you must prove that you have problems in at least two of the four areas of functioning.
If you have somatoform disorder or a personality disorder, Social Security requires you to have serious problems in three of the four areas.
THE FOUR AREAS OF FUNCTIONING
(a)
Daily living skills
Activities of daily living include cooking, cleaning, and laundry. It includes getting dressed, brushing your teeth, going to the grocery store, and paying your rent on time.
If you need reminders to do those kinds of tasks, or just dont do them, you have "marked restriction of activities of daily living." That is important in proving that your mental illness prevents you from working.
(b)
Social functioning
Social functioning means knowing how to say the right thing, and when. Evictions, firings, fear of strangers, and social isolation are important signs that you cant work.
Are you unable to start up a conversation? Do you make rude remarks-- or "clam up" and dont speak to others? Can you get along okay with family, neighbors, and the landlord? Can you get things done with a group of people? How do you act with people in authority? Those social skills are necessary to work, no matter what the job.
(c) Concentration, persistence, or pace
If you cant complete tasks in a timely manner, that shows you have a deficiency in your "pace." Lots of people start a project and dont finish it, especially with a hobby. But if you start important projects and never finish them, because your mind wanders, then you have a significant deficiency in concentration and you cant work.
(d) Episodes of deterioration or decompensation
Decompensation means that you withdraw from the situation when you feel stress, or perhaps you "blow up" all of a sudden when things arent going right.
Do you go into a tailspin sometimes, and lose your cool? Does this happen even when you are trying to be on your best behavior? Any exacerbation of your signs and symptoms is an "episode" that keeps you from working. Having episodes like that, repeatedly, is a sure sign that you cant function at work.