(October 6, 2011 at 10:15 am)Royston Wrote: Nowadays, we are all so much more enlightened and have a far more compassionate attitude towards mental health issues, don't we? So when I discovered that I was depressed (not in response to a death, or a car crash, or discovering that I am really the lovechild of Jeffrey Archer, no trauma involved), I expected that my health-related employer would rally round, help me get myself back together, give me the time, space and support I needed to deal with the acute problem before it became a chronic one. Boy, was I ever wrong. So now I am unemployed, as well as having a slightly fried brain (medium-rare, hold the seasoning).
I consider myself lucky. It became obvious to me almost 3 years ago that I couldn't keep my illness a secret at work - and as I result, I informed management of my condition. I figured that my days of employment were numbered.
To my surprise, my employer has been very supportive and has stuck with me through two unexpected leaves of absence. They're also understanding the few times a year I have a change in meds and am not quite my normal self for a few weeks.
I strongly suspect that I'm in the minority when it comes to having understanding employers - and that needs to change.
