I'm feeling pretty bad now, but I don't want to take my 12wks FMLA, and then feel worse at the end of those 12 weeks.
It's like a roller coaster, though. Some days are good, some are just awful. Nothing new here, it's the same story as all the rest.
What do I do if I feel just as bad -or worse- at the end of 12 weeks??
Does that depend upon company policy or something?
Is there a time during treatment when people typically feel better / worse?
What I mean is: Is it worse at the beginning of treatment?
I'm sure I'll be told that it's different for everyone.
I only work 21 hrs a week now. Right now, it's too much.
Can people on FML take a set # of hours per week that adds up to 12 weeks worth of work time? - (thereby reducing the # hrs worked per wk, but without penalty.)
Funny, before I realized lyme was the culprit, I knew that someday I would not be able to do my job.
I thought arthritis would end my career.
The cognitive issues are proving to be the bigger obstacle, though.
Go figure.
[ 02-17-2009, 10:11 PM: Message edited by: carly ]
Posted by Geneal (Member # 10375) on :
That is a really hard question.
I just went back to work after 28 months of treatment.
I stopped working with Katrina (lost house).
Was diagnosed in Oct of 2006.
However, I am a Speech Pathologist.
I was having major difficulty with speaking and word finding.
Unethical for me to work with that major of a disability.
I am doing much better with that although I still at times have issues.
I just cover for it and nobody else notices (other people at work).
I felt so bad when I started treatment.
Then I felt better.
Then babesia treatment. Really bad.
Then bartonella treatment. Yikes!
Then Lyme, and babesia again.
And again.
I would definitely speak to someone in human resources.
They would be able to best counsel you on your options.
Do you have any short or long term disability?
Can you collect unemployment?
Hopefully someone can come along with more definitive answers.
Unfortunately, we don't all respond the same to treatment.
Or treatment for co-infections.
Some do really well....some of us just keep plugging along.
Sending you positive thoughts and prayers.
Hugs,
Geneal
Posted by carly (Member # 14810) on :
Thanks, Geneal.
I'm glad to hear you're doing well at work.
I do plan to speak to HR. I just took out a short term disability policy, effective Jan. 09.
I did that because it was available and I thought I may need it.
I am now on doxy, zith and mepron.
I have started tx for ehrlichia & babesia.
bart tx is sure to follow.
lyme? I don't know, maybe it's being treated concurrently?
I'm guessing it's not going to be smooth sailing ahead.
HR will surely be able to answer my questions.
I'm curious what you people have to say, as I don't like spreading my personal business around at work. Posted by DeafFromLyme (Member # 18795) on :
For me, my work has been GREAT! 2 years ago my son was born at 24 weeks, so I was out on STD first then my FMLA kicked in.
Once that was done my work decided to create a job for me to be able to do at home. (Didn't know how sick I ws yet)
I have been working at home ever since except for 2 days week. Now that I am getting sicker my work lets me work at home whenever needed. They have been SO WONDERFUL to me!
I don;t know if this is an option for you but maybe something to talk to them about???
And I know in Mass you can use your FMLA however you need whether it be a few hours a week, or days week.
When my son was in the hospital I worked 4 hours/day 3 days a week and the rest was FMLA so my 12 weeks went very far.
I did not have to use it all at once! Plus it renews every year. Hope this helps. Good Luck! Posted by carly (Member # 14810) on :
Erica,
Yes, this is helpful. I thought FML worked that way - you can reduce the hours worked, thereby extending the 12 weeks.
We had a staff meeting recently where it was discussed. I wasn't quite sure. It's a federal law, so the same applies for NY as for MA.
Unfortunately, I cannot work at home. I am a Dental Hygienist.
I have to be 100% when I'm at work. That's becoming harder for me to do.
I am very detail oriented, anal, etc.. - a great personality for a Dental Hygienist, but not such a great fit with the whole lyme thing.
I am exhausting myself the rest of the time to be able to function properly at work.
I'm suffering for it.
I really have no choice, I guess.
I'm very lucky to be working for a large health center that provides benefits .
Most of my career I haven't gotten benefits, Dental Hygiene isn't a field where most people do (in this area anyway).
For part-timers, it's virtually unheard of.
Posted by sutherngrl (Member # 16270) on :
Working helps you keep in touch with the real world. I would hang on as long as possible because you don't know if there will come a time that you just can't work no matter what.
I had to quit a wonderful job after 5 months of becoming ill. Now I have not worked in 2 and 1/2 years.
Just my opinion, but those that are able to push through and work seem to recover more quickly. It helps to continue to be as "normal" as you can be.
I would save those 12 weeks until there is no doubt that you are not able to work.
Posted by missy (Member # 694) on :
Carly and others:Boy, I can really relate to what you said here.
"I have to be 100% when I'm at work."
I teach High School History and Spanish in a Level 2 school in a high poverty area with lots of discipline problems and little parental assistance.
You have to be "on" all of the time or the students eat you alive. It is like they sense weakness and go in for the kill. I know it sounds terrible to talk like that, but if I was teaching in another school district or maybe 30 years ago (ha ha!), maybe it wouldn't be so.
I went back to work in 2005, after being off for about 4 years because of LD. I did fine for about 1 1/2 years and then began to have problems.
Carly you also said:
"I am exhausting myself the rest of the time to be able to function properly at work."
Wow! I really identify with that statement! So can my family who gets what is left of me after work...and that's not much.
It is also what makes it difficult for people at work/school to understand how sick I have been. Same way with folks that don't see me or us everyday or only on special occasions that we "rest up" or pain medicate heavily in anticipation of.
This is how I functioned...by covering up or faking for much of the last year or so.Finally, after Christmas I couldn't pull off the shirade any longer.
I am on FML now. And I have returned to my LLMD. Truth is, I should have returned long ago! I was in denial about how bad I was.
Sutherngrl is right that work is good for us in many ways. I would love to be working...despite my comments above! The extreme pain made me short tempered and my cognitive problems made all aspects of my job impossible.
It is a tough decision about working or deciding to quit or take leave. But for those in some professions, it becomes as Geneal said: "Unethical for me to work with that major of a disability."
Good luck to you!
Posted by carly (Member # 14810) on :
Sutherngrl, I've been doing exactly what you describe, for the same reasons.
I want to stay with one foot in the normal world , so to speak.
It's just so hard to do. I think I've reached the point where I really need that 12 weeks.
I am thankful that I am not the primary breadwinner for my family.
Missy, you've put into words exactly what I've been doing. I look, act, and seem relatively normal until I go home to collapse in a heap.
I know it's a fact that if I can't be at my best (or almost there), then it's unethical for me to work.
Thank you both for your comments.
I think I need to speak to HR.
Posted by radfaraf (Member # 11909) on :
I think when I begin treatment with a LLMD soon I will be in state where I can't do much work. I know from past experience with attempting self treating with both herbs and antibiotics that I herx too hard to be able to do anything. My cognitive abilities get so bad that I end up losing thoughts as soon as I complete them. How can you actually do any work if you find yourself figuring out what you need to do, and then as soon as that happens forgetting what it is that you needed to do?The pain gets extremely bad too, but at least that can be temporarily medicated way.
To do my job all I need is a computer, the Internet, and sometimes the phone. I get permission once in a while to work from home. I'm rightly trusted to get the job done with extremely little monitoring at work and I do get the job done so it is rightly placed.
However, I'm extremely terrified about bringing up the subject of medical leave. We all know how difficult it is to get our family and friends to believe the extent of our illness and take us seriously. I can't even imagine how I would bring it up at my job. How do I get them to see that working reduced hours at home is not unreasonable given my situation? Are they really going to believe that I need time off for an easy to diagnosis and treat illness (ha!)? I'll also be in the situation where I'm working on an important project and anything less than my normal hours will put the rest of the project really behind. No one else in my company can realistically cover my responsibilities. That makes me worried they would get back at me by firing me because I will be putting them in a pretty bad position. I could tell them in advance, but I think I'll just make myself look extra crazy when I don't even have a Dr's diagnosis for Lyme yet. My LLMD appointment is in about a month.
Posted by carly (Member # 14810) on :
I'm sorry I don't have advice for you on how your news will be received.
I can just tell you that I have spoken with a couple of supervisors and coworkers who have been nothing but supportive.
They know that my reduction of hours will impact production, and therefore $$ earned, but I am getting encouragement to do what I have to do to get better.
As for the "easy to diagnose & treat illness":
You're not that far from me (Hudson Valley) and I was just told today, "I'm sorry to hear of your battle with tick borne illness, Carly".
And I work at a medical center, where I have avoided the subject, but am sure that lyme is viewed by the experts there as easily treatable and not at all chronic.
I phrased it as "...chronic infections I got some years ago from a tick bite...including lyme disease...it took a long time to diagnose...I'm seeing a specialist..." or some such wording.
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