Brenda Mitze v. Carolyn Colvin

POSNER, Circuit Judge.

The plaintiff applied for social security disability benefits in 2009, at the age of 43, claiming to be disabled by a cyst (a liquid-filled sphere) in her pineal gland, a small endocrine gland in the brain that produces melatonin, which regulates sleep. After a hearing before an administrative law judge in November 2011, her application was rejected, and the rejection upheld by the district court, precipitating this appeal.

Pineal cysts are usually quite harmless, but not always; the plaintiffs cyst caused her to experience vertigo, blurred vision, and headaches. She…