Posted by PartlyCloudy on August 16, 2010, at 12:29:44
In reply to One of the best story's I read on Psych meds, posted by Leo33 on August 14, 2010, at 19:51:35
Such a well written article. I posted it on my FB page with the slim hopes it will get further read by others.
I've about had it being mentally ill and invisible. My depression, anxiety, and PTSD have changed my life completely; have forced me to redefine how I think of myself.
By far the biggest stigma for me has been with employers. Talk about how to end a career quickly and with an enormous pall about it. I most recently had been enjoying finally being able to work in a retail setting again - not my first choice, but it was close to home, had some nice perks and the money was good.
An unfortunate encounter triggered a PTSD episode and I was forced to take some time off while I had some intense therapeutic help and had medication adjustments to cope with the "fall-out". Guess who made the BIG mistake of confiding what had occurred to the business owner (that would be me).
I was ostracized because of my fragile mental state, even though I had removed myself from the work environment while I actively pursued the appropriate treatment. I've made as complete a recovery as can be expected with PTSD - which means I'm now fairly desensitized to the episode that triggered this particular event. Ultimately I made the decision to leave the retail job altogether rather than being asked to leave - a moot point. There's no advocacy for employees who are being treated inappropriately in the state I live; we work at our employers' will and there are no implied contracts. (Tough sh*t, in other words.)
So I'm back to my own devices for creating income, cobbled together from a website, a small seasonal business, and whatever I can think of that doesn't involve me having to report to someone else to work.I guess this article resonated pretty strongly with me.
pc
poster:PartlyCloudy
thread:958610
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100811/msgs/958817.html