There is nothing worse than the thought of becoming disabled. This can be even more frustrating once you realize you will not be able to work for a particular period of time.

With short term disability insurance, your situation will not be nearly as desperate. Instead, you can rely on this coverage to pay a portion of your salary until you are ready to return to work.

While not always the case, the most common type of short term disability policy will pay 60 percent of your base salary.

If you don’t have this coverage, there are two things you should do:

• Check with your employer to make sure. Many employers provide workers with short term disability coverage.
• Purchase an individual policy.

It is easy to think you will never become disabled, but this happens to many people every year. According to Unum, a well known disability company, here are the top five reasons for making a short term disability claim:

1. Normal pregnancy.
2. Injuries.
3. Pregnancy complications.
4. Digestive disorders.
5. Back disorders.

As you can see, there are many circumstances that can lead to a short term disability claim. Even if you are 100 percent healthy today, you never know when you could be injured or become ill. This often happens without notice, forcing you into a less than ideal financial situation.

Just because you have short term disability insurance doesn’t necessarily mean you will make a claim. Even so, it is good to have this policy in place, as it will give you peace of mind. If you are disabled for any reason, you can file a claim with your insurance company. From there, it is your hopes that it will be approved and you will begin to receive benefits as outlined by your policy.