Stress Management Support Group

Are you still working in spite of your chronic condition?  Or, have you had to stop working or cut your hours and have a lot of wisdom to impart to others?  Please join us in a new support group specifically designed to help with your challenges on the job.  The group is called Work and Chronic Illnesses Support Group.

Learn what you must do to protect yourself and request accommodations under the Family Medical Leave Act and the Americans with Disabilities law.  Talk a out your challenges and let folks with similar challenges support you or help you find ways to deal with your issues.  Provide your hard-earned lessons learned so others can avoid pitfalls.

Work issues can be very different than those being discussed on the forums to which I subscribe. So, I hope that if you have work challenges, you can find suggestions and solutions and understanding that comes only from those that walk in your shoes.

I serve as the group leader and am working on a book dealing with the same topic.  You may find my bio under the group leaders tab in the Work and Chronic Illnesses tab.  In brief, I was an active, successful leader in the Federal government and am in the process of raising two daughters with my husband of almost 25 years.  We live in the National Capital Region.  Actually, I live in Northern Virginia and work in Washington, DC.  After dealing with a family emergency In late September and caring for my husband who had an accident wand broke 3 limbs and had surgery on 2, I came down with the flu.  I went to the doctors, even though I normally wouldn't have gone for something like this.  I could not afford to take care of all my new responsibilities with my husband incapacitated.  Well, the doctor diagnosed not the flu, but fibromyalgia.  Tests confirmed it, so I went to a pain specialists.  His tests found serious cervical spinal stenosis on top of the fibro.  So, I joined MDJunction soon after the second diagnosis In March.  Meanwhile, my office gave me a hard time for asking for time with my. Husband, so I went through the process of declaring my disabilities and asking for accommodations.  Their response has been to bully me at work, creating a hostile work environment in the hopes I leave rather than giving me accommodations.  So, I understand the stresses of work while dealing with chronic conditions.

We are small now, but I hope that you will join us to give us the benefit of your experiences.

Have a terrific week, all.  Take care of yourselves!