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pinksoil said:
In my opinion, honesty is the best approach. In a few days I will be starting Seroquel and I am not sure what the hell it will do to me. As we know, sometimes the side effects of our medications can be worse than our illnesses!

I told her that I have bipolar disorder and that I am not completely stable at this time, being that I stopped taking Lithium cold turkey and I am not presently on a mood stabilizer. I told her that Seroquel will be my 18th med!

I told her that I feel completely confident that I am treating my clients in the best way possible. I also told her that I work very closely with my T and pdoc and that if they ever felt that I should need a break from being a T, they would tell me immediately.

The first words out of her mouth were, "What can I do to support you?"

She told me that I am an asset to the agency and that all she wants is for me to be sucessful there. She told me that I am doing a great job and to always let her know if there is anything I need from her... that if I need to talk, she will be there and if I am ever having trouble with the way she supervises (she is gentle, but very fast-paced and task-oriented), to tell her. I said that her method of supervising worked perfectly for me and that I have adapted to functioning in all sorts of situations, despite my illness. She said that if the medications make it difficult for me to function in the morning (because Seroquel can be quite sedating), that we could even make changes to my hours. She thanked me for my honesty and said to remember that our field is about recovery and strength-- and that goes for the the therapists as well as the clients.

It is amazing to know that there are people in my field who share the value of honesty and openness. It is even more amazing to be looked at as a competent clinician, completely separate from my illness.

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That's awesome that your boss is so supportive, and that you feel as though you can share things with her that are completely within your right to keep quiet and no one's business.

I wouldn't recommend that people test the waters by thinking they HAVE to disclose a health condition to their boss though. It's a big chance. I applaud your supervisor for being so .. cool. But, then again you work as a therapist, for a therapist. Ideally, this field SHOULD be the most understanding of such things.

Most people are not in a similar situation however, and I have to point out that it is not being dishonest of a person to not want to disclose their medical past or present. No one should feel they are being dishonest by not disclosing a mental health disorder, or any other medical history to their employers, or anyone else.

I think you'll probably have an excellent experience where you work though. I wish I worked for a similar employer, you lucky gal.