My spouse who is asleep knows a lot more about this, but off the dome:
Social Security retirement benefits are an entirely different system than social security disability insurance. SSDI shouldn't be dependent on hours worked, but on disability status.
A few things to note about SSDI: there are very stringent income limits while on it. You will be severely constrained in your living standards. What you get isn't really adjusted for local cost of living, so you may be alright, or you may struggle to pay rent and eat.
Initial rejections are the norm. It generally takes two years to go through the appeal, rejection, re-appeal cycle. A good disability lawyer will smooth this out but the time frame is not going to shrink to less than a year. I would not depend on this for a car or school.
If you are unable to work enough to support yourself, I think it's worth pursuing, but SSDI is designed to keep people from using it as a stepping stone to better circumstances.
Wish I had better news/advice. Good luck, comrade!
This is my harm reduction combo. I used to have heavy tobacco use in the mix.