Not entitled to illness benefit after working full time the last 18 years?????

I am lost,angry,frustrated and prob like most people in this country confused as to my rights or entitlements.I am 35 and have worked since i legally could.i have a 3 year old and a 10 month old baby.i was due to return to work after maternity leave 4 1/2 months ago but have been suffering from postnatal depression so have been unable to.I have been attending my gp on a monthly basis and receiving social welfare certs but was informed i am not entitled to any benefits because i am short one prsi paid contribution for the year 2008 (i took 16 weeks at my own expense maternity leave on my first born child)so i can't return to work due to my illness,am not entitled to illness benefit and have to live off one wage.also my job is putting pressure on me about my return time,honestly how i feel i will not be returning anytime soon so should i just give my notice?if so would i be entitled to jobseekers benefit or would my prsi come into that too?I am so confused about what to do as if having this illness is not bad enough trying to cope with all of this too is just too much.Any help of any kind would be much appreciated.I have appealed the decision to the social welfare dept but just got the same reply about lack of one prsi paid contribution which i find so unfair considering i have paid 817 since the start of my employment.thanks in advance for any feedback

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you can apply for credits for your period of unpaid leave from 2008, using this form and then you should qualify for disability benefit.

Hopefully, you'll get better soon and not need to claim it for too long.

Try posting in right forum (welfare and benefits) and you might get some replies

Thank you so much nige for your reply much appreciated.Thinking of actually trying to get a job working from home i'm not ready to go back to work and deal with everything socially but would love to work again and would be good to take my mind off things,even if this enables me to back date what i should have been getting till i find something from home it would be such a help as we have struggled so much financially(as i know most people have lately) we were so use to 2 wages and no children then relying on one wage and 2 children is a completely different story.thanks again for replying

sorry leo was unaware i was bumping threads i only registered yesterday and hadn't a clue what i was doing.I wasn't sure why the envelope icon on my post was closed so hence the question marks i was curious to see if another post was put on would it open!!i didn't need to bump it,it was near the top but everyday is a school day i will take my slap and promise i won't do it again !

Hi there, that happened me years ago, I had to go to a dentist when I was in collage (in my 4th year), despite the fact that I had worked part time for 3.5 years, I did not go unemployed at any period so I did not claim the dole, and i had worked for 9 years prior to going back to collage I was 5 stamps short to get dental cover!!!!!!!

On the note of the depression, I am aware I am not qualified to speak, and I dont want you to feel I am judging you, but would it be beneficial for you to go to work because atleast you are busy thinking of other things.
Mr bear and I are going through a horrendous time with his work place, and you know I find work great - because I am too busy to think of myself....
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BusyBee1 said:

...but everyday is a school day i will take my slap and promise i won't do it again !

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No problem BusyBee1, please don't consider it a slap, just a gentle reminder.

Busybee, I hope you will be ok.... I also suffered from PND.. I went back to work though and I got worse and worse.. I would say that Counselling was a godsend. PLase try this. There is local counselling centres in a lot of places that do a session for 10-20euro... I found a GP just handed out XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX but no support...Its also early days with a new born and its not an easy job. I hope you get your sickness benefit soon and rememebr to ask for lots of help from friends and family to mind your baby and giv eyou free time, to rest and sleep...

hi there BusyBee, BondGirls suggestion regarding the counselling is probably the wisest ( I am not qualified to speak on such matters!! ) , I suppose the main thing to note is that you are not on your own..
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Just wondering if the extra time you took off after maternity leave is covered by legislation. My understanding is you can take 2 months unpaid leave if that is the case surely it should not affect your entitlements - maybe check it out. If not make sure you apply for medical card as this is a way of paying less tax through saving on health and income leviews.