The Honor able W i l l i am J
. Hibbl er, Dis t ri c tJ udge f or the  N or the rnDis t ri c tofI l l i noi s , s i t t i ng by des i gna t i on.



## In the 

# U n ited S ta tes Co urt o f Ap p ea ls

F o rth eS e v e n th C ir cu it
N o. 09

- 3282 J ACK LI N L. J ONES, P laint if f-A ppell ant, v. M ICHAEL J. A S T RUE, Com m i ssi onero f So ci alS ecuri ty, D efend a nt-A pp ellee.

A pp eal from the United S t ates Di strictC our t fo r the E astern Di stricto f Wisc onsin
. No . 2:09 CV0061 RTR

—Rudo lphT. Rand a, Ju dge .
A RGUED A PRI L 16, 2010

— D ECI DE D O CT OB ER 22, 2010

B efore E A S T E RB R OO K, Chief Judg e, F LA UM, C ir cuit Judg e, an d H IB BLE R, D istrict Judge.  H IB BLE R, D i s t r i ctJudg e . Jac klin Jo n es a p p lied fo r d isa b ili ty benefi ts, but an a dm i ni str ati ve l aw j ud ge denie d he rc l ai m , r ea so ni ng tha t he rt es ti m o ny abo uthe rpa i n-2 N o. 09

- 3282 i nduc ed func ti o na ll i m itat i o ns was no t cr edibl e. The A L J su p p orted the cred ibi li ty d eterm ination w ith referen ce s to the m edi ca le vi den ce , the o pi ni o ns o ft r ea ting physi ci ans, and J ones ’ s dai l y a cti vi ti es. The di str i ct j ud ge a ffi r me d th e A L J ’ s d e c i s i o n, a n d J o n e s a p p e a l s . We a ffi r m.

I. J o n e s c l a i me d t o b e c o me di s ab l e d b e g i n n i n gi n N o v e mber20 03 as a r esul t o fi nj uri es she s usta ined i n a 2 001 m oto r vehi cl e a cci dent. J ones had so ught t reatm ent for he ri nj uri es fr o m he rphy si ci an, Dr
. S us anJ o se ph, b ut w hen herco nd i ti on worse ned, Dr. J ose ph refer re d Jo nes to an orth op ed ic surgeon , Dr. Richa rd K arr. InM ar c h 20 03 , Jon es co m p lain ed to D r. K ar r of c h ro n ic low er back pai n w i th r adia ti on down herl eft l eg. J ones i nfo rm ed Dr. Karrthat she took H ydro codone, pre scr ibed by Dr. J ose ph, to m an ag e her pain. Duri ng hi s e xam i nati on, Dr. Karrnot ed n o pai n behavi or, a str ai ght s pine, nor m albend i ng, nor m alabi l i ty to str ai ghten her l egs , no l i m ping and a n or m al gai t. A s a r esul t o fthe exam i nati o n, h e i n f o r me d J o n e s th a th e rc o n d i t i o n wa s b e n i g n. H e a dvis ed J ones to st op ta ki ng H ydro codone and to i ns t e a d u s e a c o mbi na t i o n o fa nt i

- i nfl a mm a t o ry an d a beni gn analge si c to m anage herpai n. Dr. Karrfurther advi sed J ones to l ose weig h t. Final l y, Dr. Karro rder ed anM RIt o fur th era ss es s J o ne s’ s co ndi ti o n. A fter revi ew ing the res u lt s of the M R Ia m ont h later, Dr
. Kar rno te d a mi l d di skb ul g e atthe L4

- L5 di sko fthe lu m b ar sp in e a n d d iag n os ed d isc og en ic low er ba c k p ainN o. 09

- 3282 3

w ith as so c iat ed m yo fas c ia l leg p ain . D r. K ar r ag ain advi sed J ones to desi st tak i ng nar cot i c m edi catio n to co nt r o lhe rpa i n an d i ns te ad us e o th ermedi ca ti o n a nd to begin physi calther apy. Dr. K ar r did, however, r efer J ones to Dr. S tev en Donate l l o f orpai n m anagem ent. Dr. Karral so d isc ussed with J ones a surg i calo pti on t o tr eatherpai n, but advi sed her that i t would be unpredic tabl e a nd sho uld be used as a lastr eso rt
. J ones ag re ed not to proce ed w i th sur ger y a t that t i m e. W he n J o ne s sa w Dr. Dona tell o , he r ev i ewe d he rM RI and diagnose d l eg w eakness, m i ld edem a in herl eft foo t, a L4

- L5 di s kb ul g e wi th l o we rb a c k pain, a nd a L5 ra dicul opathy. Dr. Donatel l o gave J ones a se rie s o f ep idu ral steroid i njections, after w hich J o ne s’s cow orkers no t i c e d tha t s he wa s ab l e t o mov e a r o un d the o f f i ce be tt er an d ha d dec r ea se d o ut war d ex pr es si o ns o f pain. Dr. Donatel l o al so presc ribed Per coce t, a pai n re l i ef m edi ca ti o n c o nt aini ngo xy co do ne a nd a ce ta m i no phe n. Despi te the epiduralster oi d i nj ecti ons, Jone s co nti nued to com pla i n ofpai n, and Dr. Jo se ph again re fer re d her to Dr
. Kar r . In J une 2 00 3, J o ne s in f o r m ed Dr
. Kar rtha t sh e w as taking Percoc et an d cont inu ed to su ff e r severe pai n. Dr. K ar r note d that she w as w or ki ng w i thout re str i cti ons, walk i ng nor m al ly, and had norm alst ra i ght l eg ra i ses and m uscl e s tr ength. Dr. Karrag ai n advi sed her to t ak e a m o r e be ni g n pa i n medi ca ti on and to pur su e exer ci se orphysi calther apy. Dr. Karral so re m in ded J ones o fsur gi calo pti ons. J ones vi si ted Dr. J ose ph throughout 2 003, w h o presc rib ed D ar vo c etan d O x yc on tin to relie ve Jon es ’s p ain . In4 N o. 09

- 3282 N ove m ber20 03, J ones qui t herj ob as an accou nts p ay ab le s u p er vis or . A t t h e t im e, Jon es w or ke d on ly part ti m e a nd bel i eved thato therem plo yee s m i ght b e l ai d offi fshe did notqui t. I n 20 04, Dr. Josep h con tinu ed t o r e fer Jones to Dr. K ar r. In M ar ch 200 4, Dr. Karrnot ed that she e xhibi ted no s i gns o fact i ve radicul opathy. H e o pined thatshe had a bad bac k d is k b ut that her p resen tation w as “very be ni g n. ” H e no te d tha t sh e was o ve r wei g hta nd d econ d iti one d , bu t d id n ot exh ibi t pa in beh avior. Dr. K ar r aga i n advi sed her of surg i cal opti ons to tr eat her pai n, tho ugh he a dvis ed herag ai nst those o pti ons. M eanw hi l e, thr o ugh 2 00 5, Dr
. J o se ph pr es cr ibe d v ar i o us p ain m ed ication, includ ing O xy con tin, a L ip od erm patch, N apro syn, and Vi codi n, tho ug h J ones di d not al w ays ta ke the pr escr ibed dosage of som e m edi cati on b e c a us e i tma de her d i zzy . In Aug us t2 0 0 5 , Dr
. J o s e ph diagnose d bi l ate ra lcar pal tunnelsy nd rom e, and Jo nes be g anwea r i ngwri stb r ac es t o a l l ev i at e he rpa i n. I n Apr i l2 00 5, Dr
. Ri ch ar d Al m o nt e, a no n- ex ami ni ng St ate ag ency doctor, co m plete d a physi calr esi du alfuncti onalcapaci ty ass ess m ent. Dr. A l m onte bel i eve d that J o n e s c o u l d l i ft o r c a r r y 2 0 p o u n d s o c c a s i o n a l l y a nd 10 pound s fre quentl y. H e furtherbel i eve d that J ones coul d s i t, s t a nd , o rwa l kf o rs i x ho ur s i n a n ei ghtho urda y . A s e c o nd S t a t e a g e nc y do c t o ra f f i rm ed Dr. A l m onte ’ s o pini on in Octobe r 2005
. InJan u ar y 2 00 6, Jon es u n d er w en t a n ot h er M R I. Dr
. J o s e phr e v i e we d the 2 0 0 6 MRIa nd di a g no s e d a sm al l

- to- m oder ate pro tr usi on a t the L3- L 4 d isk w i thN o. 09

- 3282 5

m i l d bi l ate ra lf or am i nalnar ro w i ng and a m i l d disk bul g e at th e L 4-L5 di sko fJ o ne s’ s l um ba rs pi ne . In F eb r uar y 2 006, J ones beg an to se e Dr. M i chaelBel ete i nstea d ofDr. J ose ph. Lik e Dr. J ose ph, Dr. Bel ete r efer re d Jo nes to a s peci al i st, neuro l ogi st Dr. M ax Lee. D r. L ee rev iew ed th e 2 00 6 M R I a n d fou n d a m ild am ount o fdegene ra ti ve dise ase ar ound the L4- L5 dis k and to a le sse r extent at the L3- L4 dis k o fthe l um bar sp in e. D r. L ee op in ed t h a t itw as d ifficu lt t o a tt rib u te all ofJ ones ’ s sym p tom s t o the M RI and re com m ended that sh e c onti nue c o ns er va ti ve pa i n mana g ementa nd e xplo re sur ger y i fshe did noti m prove . Throughout 2006 and 200 7, Dr. Bel ete co nti nued J ones on va riou s p ain m ed i c a t i o n s a n d refe rre d h er to a p ain m anage m ent c l i ni c. J ones co m pla i ned to Dr . B el ete that the m edi cati on m ade herbo th d izz y a nd dro w sy. D r. B elete also ord ered various m ed ical tests to d e term in e t h e e x te n t o f Jon es ’s i nj u ry . In A u gu st20 06 , a ne r ve c o nduc ti o n s tu dy pr o duce d r es ul ts c o ns i st en t w i th car pal tunnelsy nd ro m e. In Se ptem ber, Dr. Bel ete no te d tha t J o ne s co nt i nue d t o us e wri sts pl i nt s an d re fer re d her to a han d sur geo n. In Octobe r 2006 , Dr
. Be l et e pr es cr ibe d a no th ere pi dur als te r o i d i nj ec ti o n. A N ove m ber20 06 b on e scan r eve al ed a 1 2% decr eas e i n bone m i nera ldensi ty l oss , co nsi ste nt with ost eopeni a. A t a 2 0 0 7h e a r i ngb e f o r e the ALJ, J o ne s t e s t i fi e d that sh e h ad be e n u n a b l e to w or k d u e t o th e b ac k p ain as so c iate d w i th her20 01 acci dent t hat had worse ned ove r ti m e. She tes ti fi ed th at , befor e s he qui t herj ob, walk i ng to a cow orker ’ s o ffi ce had be en pai nfuland often had6 N o. 09

- 3282

re quir ed herto ta ke pai n m edi cati on upon r etur n to her offi ce. J ones furtherte sti fi ed that she would s om etim es att em pt to con tr olherpai n by l yi ng o n the fl oo r ofher offi ce. W hen descr ibi ng her l ower ba ck pai n, J ones te sti fi ed t ha t i tma d e i td i ffi c u l tt o s i to rs t a n d f o rl o n gp e r i o ds and al so that i t was i rr i tat ed by m ove m en t. Sh e s tat ed th ats he c o ul d s i t for an h ou r o rs ta nd f o ra ha l fa n h o ur on a “g oo d day” and thatshe c ou l d w al k fortwo bl ock s b efo re n ee d in g a res t. Sh e a ls o t es tifie d th at th e p ain i m pai rs herco ncentr at i on a nd thatpai n m edi cati on m ake s herdi zz y, drowsy, f ati gued, and nauseat ed. J ones sta ted tha t s he o pted to f or ego sur gery t o tr eather low er backpai n beca use herdocto rs i nfo rm ed herthat it w ou ld be “iffy .” J o n e s a l s o t e s t i fi e d th a th e rc a r p a ltu n n e ls y n d r o me m ak es h er h an d s g o n u m b an d m a k e s i t d ifficu lt t o h old o nt o thing s . S he t e s t i fi e d tha tshe c o ul d l i ft1 0 p o un ds but thati t would ca use herpain a fte rwards. S he st ate d that she wears a bra ce t o re l i eve so m e sy m p tom s o fher car pal tunnelsy nd ro m e a nd thatthe bra ce has al l evi ate d som e o fthe sym ptom s. J ones te sti fi ed that she di d not explo re othe r tr eat m ent opti ons f or her car pal tunnel syndro m e be cause her i nsurance d id n ot cove r ei ther exam i nati ons ortr eat m ents. D es p ite h er p ain , Jon es w as ab le t o c om p let e a n a ss oc iate ’ s degr ee. J ones in f or m ed the A LJ that s he at tended s c h o o lfr o m 2 0 0 2

- 2 0 0 6 , t a k i ng c l a s s e s o n e o rt wo ev en i ng s perwee k

. S he c o m pl et ed a two
- y ea ra ss o ci ate’s degre e i n busi ness m anage m ent du ring that f our- yea rN o. 09

- 3282 7 peri od. S he te sti fi ed that sh e w ou l d si t a t the bac k o f cl as sr o o m s an d t ak e br ea k s to c o nt r o lhe rpa i n. Jon es als o t es tifie d th at sh e d oe s s om e h ou se h old chor es. W hen she f ol ds l au n d ry, a f am i l y m em bercar ri es the b ask et to her. S he o ccasi onal l y washes dishe s o r vacuum s, but has t ro ubl e s tandi ng to do s o. S he uses a co m pu terto m onito r her bank acco unt and her c h ild re n ’s in te rn etac tiv it y . Sh e t es tifie d th at h er p ain preve nts he r fro m doi ng ac ti vi ti es th at she used to enj oy , su c h as fish in g, sk at in g, vo lu n te er in g a t h er ch ild re n ’s s c h oo ls, an d d ire c tin g a ch u rc h ch oir. Sh e t es tifi ed that she d oes notexer ci se, despi te her doctor s’ r ecom m en d at i o n s t h a t s h e d o s o, be c au se of th e p ain as so c iate d w i th i t. Both J ones and herhusband tes ti fi ed that she s pend s m uch ofherti m e lyin g d ow n i n her b e d r o o m. I n ad d iti on, a voc ational exp ert testifi ed at Jones’s he ar i ng . The ALJ po se d hy po th eti ca lque st i o ns t o the vo c at ion al e x p er t, d ire c tin g h im to as su m e a n ind ivi du alwith J ones ’ s v oca ti onalexper i ence w ho was li m i ted to se dentarywork but wh o coul d fo cus o nl y o n si m ple , r outi ne, uns ki l l ed and re peti ti ve tas ks. The vo catio n al e x p er t res p on d ed th at Jon es ’s p as t w or k w as elim in at ed , bu t t h at su c h a h y p ot h et ica l ind ivid u al c ou ld d o u n s k i l l e d s e d e n t a r y w o r k, s u c h a s w o r ka s a n a s s e mbl e r, o r de rfi l l e ro ri nfo r mat i o n c l e r k

. T he v o c a t i o na l ex p er t t es tifie d th a t t h er e w er e o ve r 15 ,00 0 s u c h j ob s in th e s ta te of W isc on sin . Th e A L J th en ad d ed d et ail to the hy po th et ical, di re cti ng the exper t t o ass um e a n i nd i vi du alwh o m ust s it fo r an hourthen getup to8 N o. 09

- 3282 st re tc hfor a few m in u te s, b u t w h o s at for a t le as t s ix hours du ring the day. The voca ti onal expe rt r es po nd e d tha ts uc h a r e qu i r e men two ul d not pr e c l ud e the hy potheti cali nd i vi du alfro m workin g in unski l l ed sedentar y pos i ti ons. The exper t a l so tes ti fi ed that a hypotheti cal in d i vi du alwh o w or e wri st bra ces w oul d not be ab le to fulfil l th e po siti on of assem bler ( 6,340 j obs), but co uld fi l lapproxi m at el y hal fo fthe posi ti ons ofo rder fi l l erand i nfo rm ati on cl er k. The ALJ f o und tha t J o ne s was no t di sabled, e m pl o y i ng th e r equi r ed fi ve - st ep an aly si s pr es cr ibe d by 20 C.F. R. § 404.1520. Th e A L J foun d that J one s had severe im p airm ents i n the f or m o fbac k pain w i th dege nera ti ve changes i n the l um barspi ne, car pa l t u nnel sy nd ro m e, and obes i ty. Because these i m pai rm ents did not m eet orequalany i m pai rm ent l i ste d in t he Regul ati ons as auto m at i ca l l y di sabl i ng, the ALJ de te r m i ne d J o nes’s re si du alfuncti onalcapaci ty. T he A LJ c oncl ud ed that J ones ’ s r esi du alfunc tio nalcapaci ty did notal l ow her t o perf or m herpast w or k b ut that it d id al l ow her t o p er for m se d en ta ry w or k th at is sim p le a n d rou tin e. In reach ing this d ecision, th e A L J believed that J one s’s m ed i c a l l y d e t e r mi n ab l e i mpa i r me n t s c o u l d p r o d u c e the sym p tom s abou t w hich she com p lai ne d bu t tha t Jones’s te st i m o ny abo utthe i nt en si ty, pe r si st ence an d l i m i ting effect of th ose sy m ptom s was notcr edibl e. In supp or t o f the deci si on, the A LJ con sid er ed i n detai lthe obj ecti ve m ed ical evid en ce, J one s’s da il y activiti es , a n d J one s’s tes ti m ony about h er l i m i tat i ons. The di str i ct j ud ge foun d that sub stan tial evid en ce su p p orted th e A L J’ s o pi ni o n.N o. 09

- 3282 9 II. B ecau se th e A p p eals Cou nc ilde cli ne d review , the A L J’ s ru lin g is t h e fin al d ec isio n of th e C om m iss ion er . Get ch v. Ast r ue, 5 3 9 F
. 3 d 4 7 3 , 4 8 0 ( 7 th Ci r . 2 0 0 8 )
. We r e v i e w deno vo the di str i ct c ourt ’ s j ud gm ent a ffirm in g the Com m i ssioner’s fi na l d ecision, m ean ing w e review th e A L J’ s deci si on di re ctl y. M o ss v. As t r ue, 55 5 F
. 3d 556, 56 0 ( 7th C i r . 2 0 0 9 )
. We a l s o r e v i e w deno vo th e A L J’s le ga l d ec isio n s. Craf

tv. As t r ue, 539 F.3d 668 , 673 (7 t h C ir
. 2008). W e re vie w th e A L J’s fa c tu al d et er m in at ion s d efe re n tia lly an d affirm if su b st an tia l ev id en c e s u p p or te d th e d ec isio n . 42 U .S.C . § 40 5(g ); C raft, 5 39 F
. 3d at6 73
. S ubs ta ntia l ev id en c e is “ ‘su c h rele va n t e vid e n c e as a re as on ab le m in d m igh t a c c ep t as a d eq u at e to su p p or t a co n c lu sio n .’ ” Ski nne rv. As t r ue, 47 8 F
. 3d 83 6, 84 1 ( 7th Ci r . 2 00 7) ( quo ting R i c h a r dso n v . P erales , 40 2 U.S
. 38 9, 40 1, 91 S
. Ct. 14 20, 28 L.Ed. 2d 842 ( 1971) )
. The A LJ i s no t r equi re d to add re ss ev ery pi ec e o fe vi den ce o rt es ti m o ny pr ese nt ed, b ut m ust pro vi de a “ l ogic al bri dge” b etween the evi dence and the concl usi ons so that w e can ass ess the val i dit y of th e ag en cy ’ s ul ti m at e fi ndi ng s an d a ff o r d the c l ai m aint m ea n in gfu l j u d icia l rev iew
. G et ch , 53 9 F
. 3d at 480. The A LJ’ s cr edib il i ty deter m i nati ons ar e e nti tl ed to speci aldefer ence because the A LJ has the o p portunity t o ob se rv e t h e c laim a n t t es tify in g. Cast i l l ev. As t r ue, ___ F
. 3d

___, ___, 20 10 W L 31889 30, at* 5 ( 7th Ci r. A ug. 13 , 20 10 )
. Ra th ertha n n i tpi ckthe ALJ ’ s op ini o n fo ri nc o nsi st en ci es o rc o nt r adi ct i o ns , we give i t a co m m o nse n sic al re ad in g. Id. A ccor dingl y, we re ver se cre dibi l i ty d et er m in at ion s o n ly if th ey are p at en tly w ro n g. Id.10 N o. 09

- 3282 III
. Jones argu es on ap p eal that th e A L J’ s cred ibi lit y d eterm i na ti o n i s nots uppo r te d b y s ubs ta nt i ale vi den ce a nd fur th ertha t th e AL J ’ s cr edibi li ty det er m i na ti o n t aint s th e concl usi on r ega rdi ng herr esi du alfuncti onalcapaci ty. J ones poi nts t o seve ra lfla w s in the A LJ’ s o pini on tha ta ffe c t e d the c r e dib i l i t y de t e r mi na t i o n: ( 1 ) the ALJ m i sta kenl y found a ga p i n J ones ’ s pursui t o ftrea tm ent; ( 2) the A LJ i m proper l y c onst rued J ones ’ s d ailyact i vi ti es as i nc o ns i st en t wi thJ o ne s’ s al l eg at i o ns o fpa i n; ( 3) the A LJ m i sta ken l y r el i ed upon J ones ’ s deci si on t o f or go surg er y; and (4) the AL J di d not di scuss al lo fthe obj ecti ve m edi calev i dence. Befo re we begin, i t is im p ortant to note j ust ho w m uch of J one s’s testim ony that the A L J didc r edi t. A lthou g h the age ncy physi ci ans o pined thatJ ones co uld do l i ght work, the AL Jst ate d that s he was gi vi ng J ones the benefit of the d o ub t
. Amon go the rthing s , the ALJc r e di ted J o ne s’ s te st i m o ny that she c o ul d s i t o nl y f o ro ne ho ur an d so ins tru cted the voc ational e x p e rt to cons ider a hypotheti calcl ai m ant who fre quentl y had t o change po si ti o ns . The ALJ fur th er cr edi te d J o ne s’ s te st i m o ny that her m edi cati on som eti m es m ade h erd ro w sy ordi zzy and i nstr ucted the voca tio n al e xpert to consi der a hypothe t i c a lc l a i man twh o c o ul d fo c us o nly o n s i mpl e, r o ut i ne , u ns k i l l e d a nd r e pe t i t i v e t a s k s . F i na l l y, the ALJ cre dit ed J ones ’ s t es ti m ony that she was r equi re d to w ear a wr ist b race a nd i nstr ucted the voca ti onalexper t t o co ns i dera hy po th et i ca lc l ai m an t wi ths ucha l i m i ta ti o n. J ones fi rs t a rgues that the A L J m ista kenl y r el i ed upon a “ gap” in J ones ’ s tr ea tm ent t o deter m i ne hercr edibi l i tyN o. 09

- 3282 11

an d tha t th e di st r i ctc o ur t er r ed in c o nc l udi ngtha t th e error w as ha rm less. W he n m aking th e cred ibi li t y de term i nati on, the A L J opined thatther e were “ga ps i n tr eat
m en t,” co m m en tin g th at Jon es “s aw D r. Jos ep h in Augus t 2005 a nd the n n o t ag ain un ti lM ar ch2 00 7. ” The dist ri ct c ourtnot ed that the AL J i naccurat el y desc ribed the r eco rd, o bser vi ng tha t Dr. J ose p h tr eat ed J ones th roug h 20 05 an d even i n Jan ua ry 2 0 0 6. T he district cou rt di d s ta te tha t “th er e do es a ppea rt o b e a g ap i n the m ed ica l tre at m en t fro m Jan u ar y 2 00 6 t o M ar c h 20 07 .” A l though J o ne s di d no t r ecei ve tr eat m ent f ro m Dr. J ose ph through m osto f20 06, she re c eived tre atm en t fr o m Dr
. Be l et e o n a m onthl y b as i s th r o ugho ut 20 06 . Jon es als o re c eiv ed tre at m en t fro m D r. L ee in 2006
. N ei therthe A LJ no r the di str i ct c ourtdi scu ss ed Drs. Bel ete ’ s o r Lee’ s t re atm ent r eco rds. U nd ispu ted ly th e A L J erred i n fin d ing tha t the re w ere “ga ps” i n J ones ’ s pursu it o ftr eat m ent. That e rr or d oes not nec essarily m ean the A L J’ s cred ibi li ty d eterm ination w as p aten tly w rong. Read ing th e A L J’ s opin ion a s a wh ol e, we cannot saythatthe A LJ’ s m i sta k enfi ndi ngtha t J o ne s te m poraril y a vo i ded tr ea tment unde r m i ne s th e cr edibi l i tyde te r m i na ti o n. The A LJ’ s m i sta ken s tat em ent r ega rdi ng a gap i n tr eat
m ent i s e m bedded withi n a l engthydi scussi on o fo bj ectiv e m ed ica l e vid en ce that di re ctl y c ontr adic ts J ones ’ s al l ega ti ons of disabl i ng pai n. The A L J n oted that Drs. Karrand Jo seph cons i ste ntl y desc ribed her sy m pto m s as non- deb i l i ta ting, l ab el i ngthe m a s be ni g n, fi nd i ng a no r mal g a i t, a nd o b s e r v i ng tha t s he di d not12 N o. 09

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ex hibi t pain b eh av i o r . T r ea tingphy si ci an s’ o pi ni o ns r e g a r di ngthe n a t ur e a nd s e v e r i t y o fa c l a i man t ’ s s y mpto m s n or m ally ar e g ive n co n tr ollin g w eig h t w h en w ellsupp or ted bym edi cal l y a cceptabl e cl i ni caland dia gn os tic te c h n i q u es , M o ss , 5 5 5 F
. 3 d a t5 6 0 , a nd the ALJ obs er ved that J ones ’ s t re ating physi ci ans di agno sed o nl y mil d de g en er at i ve c ha ng e i n h er s pi ne b as ed o n the re sul ts ofth e M RI
. M or eov er, the A LJ obser ved that no ne o fJ o ne s’ s tr ea tingphy si ci an s o pined thats he wa s di s ab l e d. Jone s i m pl i es tha t th e AL J b as ed th e cr edibi l i tydeterm i nati on on t h e absence o fm edi calev i dence. A l though th e AL J r epor te d tha t Dr
. Kar rdi d no t o bs er ve a ny s i g ns ofact i ve ra dicul opathy, the A LJ di sc u ssed at l ength Drs. Karrand J ose ph’s opi ni on t h at the obj ecti ve m edi calev i dence dem onst ra ted thatJone s’ s pre senta ti on w as beni gn a n d m i l d. A l though a n A LJ m ay not ign or e a c laim an t’s su bj ec tiv e rep or ts of p a i n sim p ly because theyar e no t s up port ed by the m edi calev i dence, d iscrep an cies betw een the objective eviden ce a nd self

re p or ts m ay su gg es t s ym p to m ex ag ge ra t i o n . G et ch , 539 F. 3d at 483. H er e, the obj ecti ve m edi calev i dence cons istentl y r eve al ed onl y m i l d degener ati ve change, and the AL J pro perl y r el i ed u p on the di scr epancy be

tw een the o bj ecti ve evi dence and J ones ’ s s el f

- re port s. Even i fthe A L J h ad not m i sta kenl y a ssum ed that J ones r ec ei ve d no t reatmentdur i ngthe b ul ko f2 00 6 an d had i nstea d discuss ed D rs . Bel ete ’ s a nd Lee’ s t re atm ent no tes , tho se note s were co n sis tent w i th tho se of Drs. Karrand Jo seph. Dr. Lee, f orexam ple , o bser ved thatN o. 09

- 3282 13 th e d eg en er at ive d ise as e a ro u n d t h e L 4-L 5 d isk w as m ild an d op in ed th at n o t all of Jon es ’s s ym p to m s c ou ld be a ttr ibuted to the d eg en er ati ve change re veal ed by th e 2006 M R I
. Th e A L J’ s m istake con cern ing Jones’s pu rs uito ftr eat m ent doe s no t un d erm i ne the substa n tial evi dence thatsupports hercr edibi l i ty deter m i natio n, an d w e c an n otsa y t h at h er d et er m in at ion is “patently wrong” bas ed so l el y o n that m i sta ke. J ones next argu es that the AL J di d not a ssi gn pro per w ei ght t o J ones ’ s dai l y a cti vi ti es

— poin ting out that n eit h er Jon es ’s co m p let ion of an as so c iat e’s d eg re e in fou r ye ar s n o r h e r d om es tic ac tiv itie s w er e “ in h er en tly i nc o ns i st en t” wi thhe ra l l eg at i o ns o fdi sabl i ngpa i n. T hus, J ones ar gues, the A LJ s houl d not hav e r el i ed on s uc h f a c t s t o fi nd tha tJ o ne s wa s n o tc r e dib l e. An ALJ m ayno t i g no r e a cl ai m aint ’ s l i m iti ng qu al i fi ca ti o ns w i t h r eg ar d to h er d aily ac tiv itie s. M o ss , 5 5 5 F
. 3 d a t5 62. That i s not, how eve r, w hat the A LJ did here . Although t h e A L J co u ld h av e d isc u ss ed Jon es ’s d aily ac tiv itie s in m o r e det ai l, s he di d no t ex ag g er at e Jon es ’ s te st i m o ny re gard i ng herdai l y a cti vi ti es. The A LJ obser ved that J ones di d not do m uch housew or k an d that he r chi l dren he l ped wi ththe ho us ewo r k, a nd s o di d c o ns i derthe qua l i fi ca ti o ns J o ne s pl ac ed o n he rda i l y a ct i vi ti es . The AL J a l so no te d tha t J o ne s’ s dai l y a ct i vi tie s wer e co nsis te n t w ith h er te st im on y th at sh e h ad to ch an ge p os iti o ns o cc as i o na l l y t o a l l ev i at e he rpa in. J o ne s i nv i te s us to r ewe i g h the e vi den ce a nd a r r i ve a t a di ffer en t co nc l usion, na m ely that h er l im ited a b il ity to d o hou sew ork confi rm s heral l ega ti on o fdi sabl i ng pai n. W e ca nnot, how eve r, subst i tute ou r j ud gm ent forthe A LJ’ s when14 N o. 09

- 3282 consi deri ng the weight o f t h e evidence, and J ones m ust do mor e th anpo i ntt o a di ffer en t co nc l us i o n tha t th e A L J co u ld h av e r e ac h ed to d em on st ra te th at th e c re d ib ility d et er m in at ion w as p at en tly w r on g. Ket e l b oe ne rv. Ast r ue, 550 F.3d 620 , 624 (7th C ir. 2008). J o ne s’ s finalt wo a r g um en ts mer i t l i tt l e di sc us si o n. S he su g g es ts tha t i n mak i nga c r edibil ity de te r m i na ti o n the A LJ focuse d so lely on a 2 003 M RI and did notdi scuss a 20 06 M RI
. The A LJ nee d not, howev er, di scuss eve rypi ece ofev i dence i n the re c or d and is pro hibi ted o n l y fr o m i g n o r i n ga n e n t i r e l i n e o fe v i d e n c e th a ts up p o r ts a fin d in g of d isa b ility

. Ter ry v . As t r ue, 5 8 0 F
. 3d 4 7 1 , 4 7 7( 7 th C i r . 2 0 0 9 )
. T h e 2 0 0 6 MR I do e s r e v e a ls o me ad d itio n al d eg en er at ive ch an ge in Jo n es ’s c on d itio n . In ad dit i on t o the m i l d L4-L5 di sk bul ge that the 2 003 M RI r eve al ed, the 20 06 M RI r eve al ed degener ati ve cha n ge t o the L3- L4 dis k. Both Drs

. J ose ph and Lee, w ho r evi ew ed the 2006 M RI, descr ibed the degene ra tive ch an ge as m il d

. Qu ite si m p ly, the A L J d id n ot ignore an enti re l i ne o fev i dence thatsupporte d a fi nd in g of di sabi l i tya nd h er fai l ur e to di sc us s th e 20 06 M RI m at te r s l i tt l e i n l i g htofJ o ne s’ s tr ea tingphy si ci an s’ c o nsi st en t des cr i pti o n o fhe rc o ndi ti o n a s m i l d o rb en i g n. J o ne s al so s ug g es ts tha t t he ALJ e r r ed i n g i vingwei g ht t o J o ne s ’ s de c i s i o n t o f o r g o s ur g e r y . T hi s a r g ume ntmi s r e pre sents the A L J’s op i ni on. The A LJ di d not pl ace an y w eight on J one s’s d e c is ion to f orgo surge ry. Rat he r, th e A L J o b s e r v e d th a tJ o n e s ’ s t r e a t i n gp h y s i c i a n r e c o mm ended non-sur gi calal ternati ves and i nfe rr ed from that re com m endati on that herco nd i ti on was notas s e v e r e a s s he c l a i med

.N o. 09

- 3282 15 Give n the consi ste nt o bj ec tiv e m edi calo pini on fro m bot h J o ne s ’ s t r e a t i ng ph y s i c i a ns a nd the ag ency physi ci ans th at her condi ti on was beni gn, we cannot say that th e A LJ’ s dete rm i nati on that J ones exag ger ate d her al l ega ti ons ofdi sabl i ng pai n w as patentl y wrong. S ubs ta nt i ale vi den ce s uppo r ts the ALJ ’ s deci si o n. We a ffi r m.

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