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Working and lymes

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Lyme Disease
What do you do?
quit work - 33.3% - 4 votes
Still working with accommodations - 50.0% - 6 votes
Have received disability - 16.7% - 2 votes
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Posted 8/26/2012 10:24 PM (GMT -8)
I would like to hear how people continue working while being treated for lymes. Or did some of you quit your job? Anybody get disability? I am at a crossroads and my leave of absence is coming to an end. I haven't been approved yet for disability, and don't know if I will. And I don't know if I really want to quit my job.

Confused smhair
Posted 8/26/2012 10:29 PM (GMT -8)
I did a poll but it doesn't look like its connected with my post....
Posted 8/27/2012 4:17 AM (GMT -8)
I was on disability from the car accident that relapsed my lymes. My job wont let me come back. They say with the shape my hands are in I wont be able to type or work at top speed. It turned out to be good for me as the job stress was making even seeking recovery impossible.

I have a hearing for disability next year (takes so long) if u plan that route start now.


Everyone here on the boards are different and are at different phases of recovery and sickness. Alot are not working or have scaled back their hours.

best of luck
Posted 8/27/2012 5:41 AM (GMT -8)
I am on a leave of absence, but doing minimal work from home. However, I love my job, so I would never quit, and my boss is very caring, understanding and flexible. I know not everyone has a boss that is so understanding. He even understands Lyme disease because his son had it.

I agree with randompains though, I didn't know how much harder job stress was making it to recover until I didn't have that to worry about anymore. Stress exacerbates my symptoms, so I'm going to be taking it very slowly when it comes to easing back into work.
Posted 8/27/2012 5:55 AM (GMT -8)
I had stopped work to work on our little farm and then got very ill. I've recovered, been reinfected and am almost fully recovered again. Only problem is, while sometimes I can work at full speed, other days, I am back on the couch. Sometimes it's predictable, after upping or changing my meds, and others times it just strikes out of the blue.

So I don't feel I can commit to a job with this unpredictability. But I cannot file for disability either, as I understand it, because I haven't been employed outside of our farm. Perhaps I'm wrong about this.
Posted 8/27/2012 10:07 AM (GMT -8)

I am on disability.  I have never had a steady job so I receive SSI rather than SSD. It did take a long time to get it, and I had to hire an attorney. 

 

I think people who are on disability can start working  and still receive benefits for a certain period of time.   The Social Security Administration calls it "Ticket to Work".  I haven't gotten to that point yet, so I'm not sure what all is involved.

Posted 8/27/2012 12:34 PM (GMT -8)
Being bed ridden I had no choice...I was on 3 months short term diability and on long term now thru the co I worked for and just moved in with my parents in the last few weeks and will be filing for SS asap b/c THe Hartford (disability co) cut my check from $1800 to $188 a month and didn't tell me until they did it but moving about did me in. That is their way of forcing me to file for federal aid...urghhhh!

I can only do what I can do....I have fainted 4 times in the last week and puking all the time....my joints are excrutiating as I have Psoriatic Arthritis in all joints and osteo in my knees which are my worst pain. It hurts just typing this. Walking to the bathroom is exercise for me. :)
Posted 8/27/2012 4:59 PM (GMT -8)
I was off work for 6 months amd thankfully my Employer was caring enough to hold my job.. they gave me 3 months of FMLA and 3 months of personal leave .. now they are letting me work 3 days a week ( Mon , Wed , Fri ) to allow a rest day in between and then I plan to return full time by Jan 2013... I was very lucky to have an Employer who was willing to do this as most will and only have to hold your job for 3 months..
Posted 8/27/2012 5:45 PM (GMT -8)
I'm currently in the middle of the disability process - it does take a pretty long time. I was just talking to my doctor and she said it's possible to contact your county's social services department and they may give you a stipend even if you haven't qualified for disability yet - haven't gotten a chance to look into that much though. If you're going to file for disability, it probably will help to hire a lawyer - I did after my first denial. If you want to keep your current job, my best advice is to be honest with your employer about what's going on - the extra pressure of trying to hide your symptoms can really make matters worse. There's always the option of looking for another job that's less hours or less stressful, physically or mentally. These are pretty tough choices - I wish I could be of more help.

As far as disability, they're looking for clear cut proof that you're disabled and lyme disease isn't exactly the easiest condition to get benefits for. If you've got any other conditions that you could emphasize, that might help the process along.
Posted 8/28/2012 3:47 AM (GMT -8)
I worked through my lyme and it was not easy.  While I don't think it helped me to get well, I do think keeping ourselves busy is very important.  I have 2 wonderful bosses and coworkers and would still come home everyday in tears and sleep for at least an hour.  There were days I would cry on the way there and cry on the way home.  I would sit with a fan on my face for the burning feeling.  By the time I would get my sons up and out to school, I don't know how I made it to work sometimes.

I absolutely love my job and part of the hard part was knowing I was not doing a good job.  With feeling great these days, I am back to loving it and feel like a new person with a clear, sharp mind. 

Posted 8/28/2012 3:47 PM (GMT -8)
Springsjean,

You sound like me. Lucky for me I have a great relationship with my boss, without that I would have been fired or at least given a warning. Working was very difficult before being dx and after starting treatment it was even worse. There were days I had to lie on the floor of my office, or lie down in my car. I had to keep notes on everything and have reminders on my phone for meetings. If not I would forget everything! Before that I had a sharp mind and quick wit. Like you I cried to and from work, slept after work, went to bed at 7 pm and pretended to be better than I was. But at work even when I could hardly think at least I wasn't home alone. I lost my social life so I needed some kind of outlet with people. Having a goal to see my projects completed helped me believe I could and would feel better some day. I am so thankful to have kept my job and my insurance. I begged my husband several times to let me quit work and even called a SSD attorney but gradually I got a little better and today can function fairly well. This illness is truly a day at a time and that is my new mantra. We can only do what we can do!
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