Spouses Applying for Unemployment
I have an "odd" question and it is not about me working but my spouse working. He has worked for the same company for 11 years in the Austin, TX. area. I have had MS for over 25 years and have become more and more heat intolerant over the years. I am now so extremely heat intolerant, that I am pretty much a "hermit" from the end of April to the end of October, as that is how long our hot/humid summers last. I have 2 cooling vests and neither one works well for me. The one I paid over $100 for, allows me to stay outside and water my plants (in the shade) for about 10 minutes and then I am forced inside. I become extremely depressed during the summer months, as I cannot do anything outside due to the weather. I am under the care of a psychiatrist and my neurologist also knows about my problems with the heat. He has stated that he loses about 50 patients a year, as they move to a cooler climate because they get to a point where they no longer can take the summers. My question is this: Can my husband apply for Unemployment if we move to a location that is cooler? We had lived in the Sacramento area and the heat there did not bother me, as the humidity was low and the nights were cool. Also, UCD Med. Center in Sacramento, has a state of the art neuro. unit which has a great MS department. San Fransisco has one of the best MS centers in the country. The closest MS center to me here in Austin is in Dallas, which is at least a 4 hour drive. I could NOT drive myself to Dallas, see a doctor and then drive back home. Those days are long gone! Does anyone have any knowledge or experience with something like this? I would greatly appreciate any help.
Hi Carol,
I'm sorry to hear that the summers have become so very unbearable. I lived in Waco, TX, for two years and remember how hot the Texas heat could get. But that was many years before I had MS. I can only imagine how it would feel now.
In answer to your main question, there are two requirements to qualify for unemployment.
1. The person must be out of a job at no fault of their own. That means if your husband quit his job, then he would not qualify.
2. The person has to meet the state-specific requirements which often (or always) include having worked in the state for a minimum amount of time during a recent 12-month period. Here is the information specific to California - http://www.edd.ca.gov/Unemployment/Eligibility.htmA quick look for MS centers in Texas does reveal that there are a few scattered in Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio. One of our writers lives outside of Austin. I don't know who her doctors are though.
Thinking about depression in the summer months. Many people experience depression during winter months because of the reduced exposure to the sun. For you, summers that are so hot cause you to have reduced access to sun as well. Some people use light boxes in the winter to make up for sunlight. Maybe talk to your psychiatrist about the possibility of using a light box during the summer. He/she may even have one that you could borrow to test. (My therapist did when we tried it out one time.) Just a thought that came to mind.
I hope that you begin to feel better soon...AND...that it cools off early this year.
Best wishes,
Lisa, moderator
