How to Keep a Disability Symptom and Activity Journal

What Your Notes Can Help Explain

For adult SSDI and disability-based SSI claims, Social Security considers symptoms together with medical and other evidence. SSA's symptom rules address daily activities, the pattern of symptoms, treatment, medication effects and measures used for relief. A journal can help you remember these details when answering questions.

Your notes do not establish a medical condition by themselves. SSA requires objective medical evidence from an acceptable medical source to establish an impairment. Records from clinicians and information about daily functioning serve different purposes in the overall evaluation.

Keep the journal manageable. A few specific sentences about an ordinary task can be more useful to your own recollection than a long entry that says only that the day was difficult. This suggested format is an organizational aid from Disability United, an independent educational website; it is not an SSA form or a required journaling schedule.

Describe One Activity From Start to Finish

Choose something you actually did or tried to do, such as making lunch, getting dressed, reading a letter or attending an appointment. Record when you started, what interrupted you, what you completed and what happened afterward. Use approximate times if that is what you remember, and label them as estimates.

The phrase 'I made lunch' leaves several questions unanswered. Did you stand at the counter, sit to prepare ingredients or use food someone else had prepared? Did you finish in one attempt? Did another person carry, cut, lift or clean up? Describe your own experience without copying another person's limitations.

• Activity: What did you attempt, and what part did you complete?
• Symptoms: What did you notice during the activity?
• Support: What help, reminders or equipment did you use?
• Breaks: When did you stop, and roughly how long did you rest?
• Afterward: What could you do next, and when?

Two Examples of Clear Entries

These fictional examples show how to organize a note. The times and limitations are illustrations, not targets or suggested answers for your application.

Example: 'Tuesday, around noon: I made a sandwich while sitting at the kitchen table. My daughter brought the ingredients and put them away. I stopped once because my hands hurt. Preparation took about 20 minutes, including the break. I ate at the table and left the dishes for her.'

Example: 'Thursday afternoon: I read a two-page appointment letter. I lost my place several times and read the first page again. My brother helped me find the appointment time and put it in my calendar. We spent about 15 minutes together. I could explain where I needed to go after we finished.'

Each entry records an activity, assistance and an outcome. It also describes what the person could do. Write in your own words; polished legal or medical language is unnecessary.

Record Changes Across Days

Include easier days as well as difficult ones. A single entry may leave out the variation you experience. If you had an unusually active day, explain what made it possible and whether you needed extra help or recovery afterward. If a task went smoothly, record that too.

A brief weekly review can help you locate patterns in your own notes. Count only entries you actually made: for example, 'I recorded three interrupted outings this week.' Do not turn missing days into assumed symptom days or invent exact numbers from a vague memory. When describing an older event, identify it as a recollection and distinguish it from a note written that day.

Keep Treatment and Help in Context

Record treatment changes, relief and side effects you actually experience. For example, note when a clinician changed a medicine and what you noticed afterward. A journal does not establish that a medicine caused a symptom; discuss new or concerning effects with your clinician rather than changing treatment to influence a claim.

SSA's symptom guidance considers treatment and explanations for gaps in care. If cost, transportation, access or another circumstance affected treatment, describe what happened accurately. Keep appointment dates and provider contact information with your other records.

If another person helps write your notes, distinguish your description from what that person observed. A helper can record that they carried groceries or reminded you about an appointment without assigning a diagnosis.

Copy This Daily Note Template

Copy these prompts into a notebook or a private document. Use the prompts that fit the activity. You can also print this guide using your browser's Print command. Keep the completed notes in a place you control.

• Date and approximate time:
• Activity I attempted:
• What I completed:
• Symptoms or difficulty I noticed:
• Help, reminders or equipment I used:
• Breaks and approximate duration:
• What happened afterward or during recovery:
• Treatment, relief or side effects relevant to this entry:
• Anything different from my usual routine:
• Written that day or recalled later; who wrote the note:

Use Your Notes With a Function Report

If SSA asks you to complete Form SSA-3373, Function Report — Adult, read the instructions sent with your request. The form asks about everyday activities, abilities and help from other people. Use your journal to recall examples and answer the question being asked.

The form directs you to explain relevant help, use its Remarks section when more room is needed, and identify the question an additional answer addresses. It also explains how to respond when you do not know an answer or a question does not apply. Follow the current form and the deadline in your notice. Contact the requesting office if you need help.

Keep a copy of what you send and a record of when and how you sent it. Ask the office handling your claim or your appointed representative how to provide additional notes. Writing in a journal or using this website does not submit evidence to SSA or extend a deadline.

A Quick Review Before You Share

Read your entries once for clarity. Correct a mistaken date transparently, label estimates and explain changes you know about. Your goal is an accurate account that someone unfamiliar with your routine can understand. The journal cannot predict whether a claim will be approved.

Do not upload a completed journal, medical records or Social Security number through Disability United's contact forms. Use the instructions from SSA or your authorized representative for claim evidence. Explore the related medical-evidence and application-form guides below for the next part of your preparation.

• Have I described what happened in my own words?
• Have I included help, breaks and what I could complete?
• Have I identified estimates, later recollections and fictional examples correctly?
• Have I checked the requesting office's instructions and deadline?