How does one cope with your job after finding out about your WS?Do you or can you get a medical leave under health benefits..?And what would it come under..thru your doctor or can a counselor do this?It is bad enough to go thru this and then try to focus on a job too...Does a employee have any rights for this behavior for job performance also during a crisis like this?

I would give it a try if I were you the condition has the same symptoms as post traumatic stress disorder ie flashbacks,intrusive thoughts,obsessional thoughts ,mood swings .sleep disturbances etc.

Hi,<P>Well what a co-incidence...my dr tells me something about this today, and you ask the question tonight....<P>I live in Australia, but maybe there is something similar where you are from. <P>This is my parents' doctor, and it was my first time visit. I had gone for a prescription refill. After hearing that I was depressed and why, he asked me if I worked, and I said no...he said, well if you were I would have had you on sickness benefits (a term here for when you are absent from work for an extended period...you get payment for it...according to sick days accumulated, then for a while after.)<P>So nice to know.<P>BUT, he upped my dosage of meds, and I had thought I was doing well...he said no you are not [img]images/icons/frown.gif" border="0[/img]. He classified me as having major clinical depression. WOW! <P>In all honesty, this guy worked extensively with depression cases at major hospitals and also had the great misfortune to suffer from depression all his life. So, he understood how debilitating it can be. And I like the fact that he has ordered a lot of blood tests to rule out any physical cause.<P>Find a good sympathetic doctor, and tell him the truth about how you feel. Tell him you need time off work. What bothers me is that you know you aren't coping...I thought I was, and look what I was told.<P>Love and light,<P>Jacky

It is called FLMA (Family Leave Medical Act). Talk to your counselor about it. I think you have to be on antidepressents for them to give you medical leave. but it is a federal government policy that all employers allow FLMA. It is 12 weeks off and guarantees you come back to your job. Talk to your counselor then talk to HR. At the time my HR only allowed 3 weeks off with pay and the other weeks I could take off without pay. So for me I asked my counselor to give me 3 weeks off. Whoever perscribes your antidepressants will fill out the forms from HR. I needed it and it helped me tremendously. I recommend it to everyone going through this. I don't know how I would've functioned at work. But don't lay in bed the whole time - although that is what you want to do. Go out with friends, do things. you are doing it to heal. you need people to talk to to heal. You will make matters worse if you isolate into your own little world and don't leave bed.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by needsomelovin:<BR><STRONG>How does one cope with your job after finding out about your WS??</STRONG><HR></BLOCKQUOTE><P>needs,<P>For me, my job was a GODSEND that gave me a modicum of a diversion from my insane, tragic personal life. I really think that it saved me when my husband left and my boy was killed a few months later. Even though I was not able to fully concentrate on my job it did help me enormously going through the routine of getting up and going to a job. It kept my mind SOMEWHAT occupied with other things outside of my grief. It was a BREAK in the pain. <P>I did sit down and tell my boss what was going on so that he knew my performance would be down for a while. He was extrememly helpful and understanding. I also had fabulous employees who pitched in and covered for me sometimes. They were actually sort of protective. <P>I just think my recovery would have been an absolute nightmare if I didn't have the safe, sane environment of my office to escape to every day. And there were times I had to go to the bathroom to have a good cry and there were times when I couldn't wait to get in my car at night so I could cry, but I still feel it was the healthiest thing in the world for me. Otherwise, I would have stayed home and wallowed in my pain, day after day, and really gone downhill.

I did this immediately after d-day. At the time I worked as a nurse in a labor and delivery unit and did not feel I could concentrate sufficiently to guarantee that I would be able to take care of my patients to the best of my ability. My MD gave me a medical leave of absence for depression and I stayed off work for over 4 months.<P>Do not hesitate to take this time for yourself if you feel you need it. I know there was no way I could have worked safely and dealt with my marital situation. Good luck to you!