Opinion ID: 4561261
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Testimony of Claimant and Treating Physician

Text: The ALJ held an evidentiary hearing at which Jordan and Dr. Reynolds testified. Jordan testified, “There’s nothing I can’t do, but it all either is painful, elevates the pain, or I can’t do it for the amount of time that would be considered a job.” He further testified that his landscaping business required “[p]ushing a lawnmower, walking around with a blower, watering plants, some grooming, a lot of pointing, telling people what to do,” as well as lifting “[m]aybe 35 pounds.” Jordan continued to do landscaping work after his injury, but testified that it was “not at the capacity that [he] was.” Instead of doing “every aspect of the job” as he did before, he was “more in the supervisor-type role” after his injury. He still did some physical tasks, but only “because [he had] no choice.” Dr. Reynolds corroborated Jordan’s complaints of pain, testifying that MRIs revealed “modic changes,” a condition “generally associated with a lot of back pain.” Dr. Reynolds testified in particular that “bouncing around in a truck” would be “very painful” and “assume[d] it would accelerate the already significant degeneration that’s present in the [lower back].” In sum, Dr. Reynolds opined that Jordan was totally disabled from work as a longshoreman, principally because he could not work “an eight-hour day in a regular fashion” and would have to “take breaks and do things to decrease the pressure on his back.” He acknowledged that Jordan continued to work “about five hours a day” at his landscaping business, but “didn’t discourage him from doing that” because he could “take breaks or lie down or lean against a wall.” Dr. Reynolds did not view the surveillance videos, but saw references to them in the reports of one of the nontreating physicians discussed below. 6 JORDAN V. SSA TERMINALS