The Help You Get at Home Is Exactly What Your Function Report Wants to Know
It's late. The Function Report is spread across the kitchen table.
Then you hit a question about help. Who pitches in? What do they do?
You pause. Because the honest answer is long. Your daughter comes by in the morning. A neighbor drops off groceries. Your husband sets out your pills. And a quiet voice asks: if I write all of that down, will it look like I'm making a fuss?
Or the opposite voice: if so much of this gets done with help, will it look like I'm managing fine?
Here's the answer to both. The form asks about help on purpose. It's one of the things Social Security wants to know. Writing it down plainly isn't making a fuss, and it isn't a risk. It's the most accurate thing you can put on that page.
The rest of this post shows you how.
What is the Function Report, and why does it ask about help at home?
After you apply, the examiner assigned to your claim may send you a form called the Function Report - Adult (SSA-3373). It asks about an ordinary day: personal care, meals, chores, getting around, money, sleep, time with other people.
Your medical records show your diagnosis and treatment. This form shows what the condition does to your day.
And all the way through, it asks about help. It asks whether you need special reminders to take care of personal needs and grooming, and what type of help or reminders. It asks whether you need help or reminders to take medicine. It asks whether you need help or encouragement with house and yard work, and what help is needed. If you care for other people or pets, it asks whether anyone helps you with that, and what they do. The form's instructions also say that if an activity is performed with the help of others, you should indicate that.
That isn't a trick question. Help is part of the answer.
Will describing help make my claim look weaker?
Describing your help accurately is what the form asks you to do. Leaving it out is what gives the wrong picture.
Think about what the examiner can see. If you write "I make my own meals" and don't mention that your husband does the chopping and stays in the kitchen in case you get dizzy, the page says you're independent. That isn't what happens in your kitchen.
The form asks these questions of every adult applicant, whether the condition is physical or mental. For mental health conditions, Social Security's own rules say that if you get help doing your activities, the agency needs to know the kind, extent, and frequency of that help. Its regulations also say it looks at the amount of supervision or assistance you require. And its rules say that doing well in a familiar, supportive setting like home doesn't automatically show you could do the same in a workplace.
That's about how the rules work, not a promise. No form guarantees an outcome, and nobody can tell you how a decision will go. But a picture that includes your help is a complete, honest picture. That's the only kind worth sending.
What counts as help at home?
More than most people think. Help can be:
- Hands-on, like help getting in and out of the shower, dressing, or cutting food
- Reminders and prompts, like being told to take medicine, eat, bathe, or go to an appointment
- Someone nearby for safety, even if they never touch anything
- Doing the task for you, like cooking, cleaning, laundry, or shopping
- Help with money, like paying bills or keeping track of accounts
- Rides, if driving is hard or unsafe for you
- Paid or unpaid, whether it comes from a home health aide, family, a friend, or a neighbor
Big or small. Daily or weekly. If it's part of how your week works, it belongs on the form.
How do I describe help so the examiner can use it?
Four details turn "my daughter helps" into something an examiner can picture:
- Who helps
- What they do
- How often
- What happens when they're not there (whatever is true for you)
Here's the difference:
General
"My daughter helps me a lot."
Specific
"My daughter comes by every morning around 7. She helps me into the shower because I've fallen twice. She sets out my pills in a weekly box, because I lose track of whether I've taken them. On days she can't come, I skip the shower."
That example is only an example. Use what's true for you.
Write about a typical day, not your best day and not your worst. The goal isn't to make things sound worse or better. It's to make them sound exactly like they are.
What if the boxes don't leave enough room?
Use the Remarks section at the end of the form (Section E) for anything you couldn't fit. The instructions ask you to show the number of the question you're answering, so the examiner can match it up.
What if I do part of a task myself?
Then say that, too. Plenty of tasks are split.
"I can make a sandwich myself. I have to sit down halfway through, and it takes about 25 minutes. For anything that needs the stove, my husband cooks."
That one example shows what you can do, what it costs you, and where the help starts. Nothing hidden. Nothing inflated.
What if I feel like I'm exaggerating, or I'm embarrassed to write it all down?
Plenty of people do. Many have spent months or years making things look fine, for their family, their friends, even themselves. Writing it plainly can feel like complaining.
It isn't. It's reporting. You're answering the question the form asked.
If you catch yourself softening something, such as "she just helps a little," ask yourself: is that true on a normal week? If "a little" isn't accurate, write what is.
And if you catch yourself reaching the other way, adding something that doesn't actually happen, stop there too. The form carries a federal warning about false statements, and the accurate version is always the one you can stand behind.
What if the help changes or isn't steady?
Describe the usual pattern, then name the exceptions.
"My sister comes Monday through Friday. On weekends I manage on my own, and the house stays messy until Monday."
If your help changes after you send the form, it's worth telling your examiner.
Can my caregiver help me fill out this part?
Absolutely. They're often the best person to remember how often they help, because help that has become routine is easy to stop noticing. Ask them to sit with you and say, "How often do you do this in a typical week?"
The words on the form should still be yours. To see where a caregiver's role starts and stops, read our post on what a caregiver can and can't say on your behalf. They may also be asked to complete their own form, the Third-Party Function Report, to add their view.
A quick check before you send it
- Every "yes" to a help or reminders question has a who, a what, and a how often.
- Reminders and prompts are included, not just hands-on help.
- It describes a typical day.
- Nothing was left out because it felt small or embarrassing.
- Nothing was added that doesn't actually happen.
- It fits what your doctors know about you.
- You checked the return date on the letter that came with the form. If you need more time, call the number on the letter and ask.
The bottom line
Help at home isn't a footnote on your Function Report. It's part of what the form was built to capture.
Write it down the way it happens: who, what, how often, and what happens without it. No more, and no less.