25 March 2025, 17:43

By Hannah Hunt

As I wait for confirmation of more government cuts, I’m feeling frightened and angry.

I’ve received Personal Independence Payment on and off for my whole adult life. Very few of the people I’m closest to know this, as the stigma around benefits is so high, I feel ashamed even saying it out loud.

But the reality is that being hospitalised with anorexia as a teenager – spending 18 months on an inadequate ward at such a formative age – means I rely on this support.

There’s no reason I should feel shame. After all, I use my £400 of PIP payments to pay for my medication and treatment. Every week I spend around £40 just on my prescriptions and, while I’d prefer a talking therapy approach to healing, the NHS has left me on endless waiting lists. Private therapy has kept me afloat but it also comes at a high cost, one that my PIP just about covers.

Tomorrow, the Labour government is expected to confirm cuts to the........

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