I went through a very similar situation about 6 months ago - denied UI after leaving due to health issues, but successfully got approved for SDI. The most important thing to understand is that these are completely separate programs with different criteria. For SDI, what matters is that you have a qualifying medical condition that prevents you from working and that you paid into the system during your base period (which you definitely did working for 2 years). A few practical tips from my experience: Apply online through SDI Online - it's much faster than paper. Make sure your doctor clearly documents how your specific symptoms prevent you from performing work duties. The medical certification is really the heart of your claim. Also, apply as soon as possible since there can be processing delays. I had to wait about 4 weeks for approval, but once approved, they backdated payments to my disability start date (minus the 7-day waiting period). Don't let the UI denial discourage you - the medical documentation requirements are totally different and it sounds like you have good doctor support. Your situation with documented anxiety and back problems that made work impossible is exactly what SDI is designed for. Good luck with your application!

I'm currently going through a similar situation and this thread has been incredibly helpful! I wanted to add one more resource that might be useful - if you need help understanding your SDI eligibility or calculating your potential benefits, the EDD website has a SDI calculator tool that can give you an estimate based on your earnings history. Also, I noticed several people mentioned the importance of the disability start date - make sure this date reflects when you actually became unable to work due to your medical condition, not necessarily when you left your job. Sometimes there's a gap between when symptoms start affecting your ability to work and when you officially stop working. Your doctor should be able to help establish the correct disability onset date based on your medical records and symptom progression. Best of luck with your application - it sounds like you have all the right documentation and medical support!

I'm dealing with the exact same issue right now! Been waiting almost 6 weeks for my first SDI payment and getting nowhere with the regular customer service line. @Harper Thompson thank you for sharing that SDI-specific number - I'm definitely going to try 1-800-480-3287 tomorrow morning. One thing I learned from my experience so far is to document everything - every call, every rep you speak with, reference numbers, etc. It's helped me keep track of the conflicting information I've been getting. Also, if anyone is considering that claimyr service @Emma Olsen mentioned, I'd love to hear more success stories before spending the $20. Hang in there @Savannah - we'll figure this out! 🤞

Just wanted to jump in and say I'm going through this exact same nightmare right now! Been waiting 7 weeks for my SDI payments and it's beyond frustrating. I actually tried that claimyr service @Emma Olsen mentioned last week and it DID work - got connected to a rep in about 45 minutes instead of the usual hours of busy signals. Worth the $20 for my sanity honestly. @Harper Thompson thanks for dropping that SDI-specific number! Had no clue there was a separate line. Definitely trying 1-800-480-3287 first thing Monday morning. One tip I learned from a friend who works in disability advocacy - if you're getting nowhere with phone calls, try reaching out to your assembly member's office. They have caseworkers who specifically handle EDD issues and can sometimes get things moving when regular channels fail. Found my rep's contact info on the CA legislature website. Stay strong everyone - this system is broken but we'll get through it! 💪

Welcome to everyone who's new to the community and dealing with this frustrating SDI certification issue! As another newcomer here, I wanted to share that I'm going through the exact same problem - approved for disability benefits in late January after a rotator cuff surgery, got my first payment, but it's been almost a month with no continuation forms. Reading through this entire thread has been such a relief! I was honestly starting to panic, wondering if I'd somehow invalidated my claim or missed a crucial deadline. The detailed experiences everyone has shared, especially about the "system flag" problem affecting early 2025 claims, has given me so much clarity and confidence. Before finding this discussion, I was just randomly calling EDD throughout the day with no strategy and getting nowhere. Now I have a concrete action plan: call at exactly 8:00 AM, ask specifically about "system flags" or "automation holds," and persist until I get a representative who can actually fix the issue. It's incredibly frustrating that we have to become experts in troubleshooting EDD's broken systems just to access benefits we've rightfully earned, but knowing this is a widespread technical problem (not user error) and that so many people have successfully resolved it gives me hope. Thank you all for creating such a supportive space where newcomers can get real, practical advice instead of just generic "keep calling" responses. This community is exactly what people dealing with these complex bureaucratic issues need!

As someone completely new to both this community and the SDI process, I can't express how valuable this entire discussion has been! I'm currently in week 4 of waiting for certification forms after my initial payment for a disc replacement recovery, and I was honestly starting to think I'd somehow broken my own claim. Reading about this "system flag" issue affecting so many early 2025 claims has been both eye-opening and reassuring - it explains why my SDI Online account keeps saying "complete the Continued Claim Certification form" while never actually providing one to complete! The specific strategies shared here (8:00 AM calling, asking about automation holds, documenting everything) give me a real action plan instead of just desperately redialing the same number all day. It's incredibly frustrating that accessing our own disability benefits requires becoming amateur EDD system administrators, but having this supportive community where people share actual solutions makes all the difference. Thank you all for creating a space where newcomers can get practical guidance from people who've successfully navigated these bureaucratic nightmares. Posts like Ryder's update showing the successful resolution give me hope that persistence will eventually pay off!

I'm going through the exact same thing right now! Filed my medical form 3 weeks ago and still showing as pending. From reading through all these comments, it seems like 4-6 weeks is pretty normal unfortunately. I'm definitely going to try the fax option that @Ava Johnson mentioned - didn't even think of that! Also going to follow @Jamal Carter's advice about calling my assembly member if it goes much longer. This whole process is so stressful when you're already dealing with health issues. Hang in there @Mateo Martinez, sounds like we just have to ride it out 😔

I'm in week 3 of waiting for my medical form to be processed too! Reading through all these responses has been really helpful - especially the tip about faxing instead of mailing. I had no idea that was even an option. It's frustrating that we have to become experts in navigating this system just to get the benefits we're entitled to. I think I'm going to try calling tomorrow using the early morning strategy someone mentioned, and if that doesn't work, maybe look into contacting my assembly member. Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences - at least we know we're not alone in this mess! 💪

I had a similar situation happen to me about 6 months ago! My doctor mixed up my injury date with my expected return date on the form. Here's what I learned: First, don't wait - get a corrected form from your doctor ASAP with a letter explaining their error. Second, when you call EDD, ask to speak with someone in the "forms correction" department specifically - they handle these types of clerical errors all the time. Third, submit everything via fax AND mail (certified if possible) so you have proof they received it. It took about 3 weeks for mine to get sorted, but they retroactively fixed my benefits without any penalties. The system definitely has its flaws, but they do understand that human errors happen. Stay persistent but polite - you'll get through this! 🤞

I just went through this nightmare last month! My doctor wrote down the wrong return date and it messed up my whole benefit cycle. Here's what saved me time: I called my doctor's office first and explained the urgency - they were able to email me a corrected form within a few hours instead of waiting days for mail. Then I uploaded it through the EDD portal online AND faxed it (double submission helped speed things up). The whole thing got resolved in about 10 days. Also, pro tip: if you get put on hold for hours, that calling service Ruby mentioned actually works - I was skeptical too but it got me through to a real person in 20 minutes instead of wasting my whole day redialing. Don't stress too much, they see these doctor errors constantly and have a pretty streamlined process to fix them once you get the right paperwork in!