[Tosspot]

I just got home from my job where I work as a nurse. There was an issue with one of the patients that I was telling the oncoming shift about, nothing major. The other nurse said to me "well you know he's bipolar so he's f-ing crazy, those bipolars are all nuts."

I don't know. I know there's a stigma out there against us but hearing from a nurse kind of stung. I mean, medical professional should be educated and be more compassionate then the general population I would think.

Part of me wanted to tell her to shut up. the patient wasn't even acting unstable, I wanted to say that I was bipolar and its possible to function. I didn't say anything though. Its a new job and I don't want to cause waves already.

Should I have said something?

[Yoda]

I understand you being reluctant to say anything since you are new there. Still sucks though that 'professionals' have such bad attitudes.

I am a RN and have been on disability since 2000. I'm wanting to go back to work per diem but will have to disclose my PTSD because my pdoc says I shouldn't be the primary nurse for domestic violence victims or gunshot victims. I am bipolar but I only planned to tell the board of nursing that part, not wanting to tell employer. Kinda unsure how to balance my privacy w/ employer's right to know, ya know what I mean?

[wackywidow]

This was not said at work but at a church meeting tonight. "There's nothing wrong with those who are depressed. Just give them a bottle of wine and they will be fine." I came home in tears.

[Yoda]

wackywidow, that reminds me of when I had postpartum depression.

About a week after my son was born I called my ob/gyn on the phone and told him I was feeling very depressed. He said, that's normal, just drink a beer. Seriously! That is what he told me. A couple days later I attempted suicide. Idiot doctor.

[Miss Laura]

I worked as a Support Worker caring for Men who all have Autism. 2 of the guys also have Bipolar. I was sacked from my job on "ill health" grounds. I was told my manager would need "Mental Health training" Ironic huh!! We are not Mental Health trained ie Bipolar trained..... yet we had 2 service users who have the disorder and a lot of the staff were off due to Depression. So we had Bipolar and Depression floating around work but no-one understands it!

[Seaswept]

I work in the medical field as well-disable individuals of all levels. I have never officially disclosed my illness to anyone. Some know theres definately something up with me because I've had some minor for the most part, emotional out bursts at work.

HR I'm sure knows because of my leaves and where the notes (Dr. name, hospital ) came from.

But I remember, years ago, my friend who was a nurse RN was talking about how someone at work was promoted to exec or management she said- this is a person who tried to KILL HERSELF years ago probably- 10. as if she had no right to achieve such a position. My reply was "don't you think people can change?" No answer.

[kj44]

Originally Posted by Tosspot

I just got home from my job where I work as a nurse. There was an issue with one of the patients that I was telling the oncoming shift about, nothing major. The other nurse said to me "well you know he's bipolar so he's f-ing crazy, those bipolars are all nuts."

I don't know. I know there's a stigma out there against us but hearing from a nurse kind of stung. I mean, medical professional should be educated and be more compassionate then the general population I would think.

Part of me wanted to tell her to shut up. the patient wasn't even acting unstable, I wanted to say that I was bipolar and its possible to function. I didn't say anything though. Its a new job and I don't want to cause waves already.

Should I have said something?

NO!! They will probably figure out a way to get rid of you!! My opinion only, I deal with it all the time too, I'm a home care aide. I don't dare tell a soul, it is very hard though

[Merlin]

I have told only HR or supervisors and that is usually with a goal in mind. I wish I could be more open as it might help my advocacy efforts, but I am not established enough it risk it. I work in addictions and mental health and what I do is remind my colleagues that we see patients at their worst. I remind them that there are patients who are lawyers and doctors and engineers and some of them were even patients at the hospital a decade ago and it's our job to rehabilitate the patients we see now, and not to judge them or their goals.

[wackywidow]

I was fired from a job because of my many physical illnesses which were sypmtomatic of a much deeper issue ... rapid cycling bipolar ... instead of understanding, I was "dumped" on with work I was not trained for, put into humiiating circumstances with clients, observed as to how often I used the bathroom (I had colitis at the time), etc. A few of my male co-workers felt for me but would not say anything for fear of jeprodizing their jobs. In a 12 member engineering firm that was next to impossible. I had my A.S.S. degree in Architectural and Commercial Design. My superviser was a degree holding architect who had no self-esteem. If the boss walked on him, it was handed down to me; when the supervisor was gone, some if his duties fell on me; when the secretary was gone on Friday; I corrected her mistakes. That place was hell on earth, but I loved the drafting, design and computer work I did. However, it took only 8 short years to destroy me, and almost my marriage. I had a severe nervous breakdown from which i never fully recovered

In hiding my MI, my physical health failed me. The one feeds into the other. You cannot seperate the two; you cannot remain hidden forever.

Someone will find out your deepest secrets. Someone once said, to the effect, "Where is the forest, when you have cut down all the trees?"

[wackywidow]

Originally Posted by Tosspot

I just got home from my job where I work as a nurse. There was an issue with one of the patients that I was telling the oncoming shift about, nothing major. The other nurse said to me "well you know he's bipolar so he's f-ing crazy, those bipolars are all nuts."

I don't know. I know there's a stigma out there against us but hearing from a nurse kind of stung. I mean, medical professional should be educated and be more compassionate then the general population I would think.

Part of me wanted to tell her to shut up. the patient wasn't even acting unstable, I wanted to say that I was bipolar and its possible to function. I didn't say anything though. Its a new job and I don't want to cause waves already.

Should I have said something?

I would say nothing to this individual. she would not get it anyway. However, you cannot hide forever. At some point, you will need to let your supervisors/managment know. It will be a tough call when that time comes. I will say a prayer ... the Serenity Prayer ... for you.

[pgrundy]

At my job, a bipolar employee was recently fired for stealing. She was on six different meds, at least three of them questionable. In talking about it afterward with another employee I trust (who has been there over 15 years), she agreed that the meds were wrong and the firing probably wouldn't have happened (or the stealing) if she could have gotten balanced out.

But what I wanted to say here was, in talking with this woman, I learned SHE is on psych meds, one of our supervisors (at least one) is on psych meds, and I am also on psych meds and shared that.

Granted, my job doesn't pay well, but at least they really do focus on performance. You can't steal. But people understood it was an unfortunate situation.

We need better and more available mental health care in the U.S., and we especially need better public education.

So sorry for your negative experience(s). I've had those too! I just thought I'd share a semi-positive one.

[ohlala]

I'm a retired psych RN and didn't know I was BP at the time I was working at a psych hospital. Subsequently, I was dx'd BP1. I held other nursing positions after my dx, but I would never reveal my dx to an employer (or an employee). There is a stigma attached, no doubt about it. Unless you feel some overwhelming need to come out of the closet about it, or need some special accommodation (even then, only your employer should know, NOT your co-workers), I would advise against it. JMHO.

[~Christina]

I see no reason to tell your employers .. I worked in a nursing home and was out for a week because i was so run down with the flu and ulcers ( way before i was DX with bipolar).. My immediate boss kept asking why i was out for a week ( it was the damn H.. she damn well knew i had the flu as it hit me while working temp went up to 105 Nin an hour :O .. She kept saying she didnt think i should off work that long , Hell it was the H1N1 flu) she insisted on call my doctors office ,,I said go ahead but they wont discuss me with you ,, Of course due to HIPPA laws they refused to say a thing ,,it LEGALLY wasnt her buisness .I had a note from a medical provider .

I know in this economy it sucks that we all at times need to suck it up and deal with bosses that dont understand and are afraid of MI ..

My Therapist told me im unable to work at this time ..but if i get stable enough to work again... he advised against me mentioning a word about my personal health.

Personally I think once you tell them about being bipolar it changes the way they think of you ..

This is just my opinion .. i think everyone really needs to look at the whole situation before they tell employers about bipolar.. Hell I still have some friends i havent told them about my illness ..

Maybe im just paranoid .. dunno ....

Good luck ~

[Detach]

I'm an RN also...I do home health nursing. Other nurses I work with seem to think everyone with BP is crazy and potentially dangerous to them. Even if I were to stand up and say something it would not change their minds. If I were to say "I" had BP they may change their minds, however I'm not going to out myself to co-workers. My boss and HR know I'm BP because of my recent disability and that's enough.

[AniManiac]

When I get to the point of having a "real" job, I plan to disclose to my dean (boss) because I expect to ask for an accommodation - no teaching evening classes! Keeping a stable sleep schedule is very important for me to maintain overall stability, and if I have to teach an evening class, that will ruin it. It takes me 2 hours to wind down enough to sleep after any kind of social contact (hubby aside) so most evening class times are just not feasible for me. It's asking for trouble, and I already have a hard enough time keeping my moods stable enough to manage teaching responsibilities throughout the entire semester (much less all the other demands...) I don't expect it to cause problems, but as I've noted before, academia can be a bit more tolerant of MI than some other work environments.

[Detach]

Animaniac,

I think that's wise. I had previously asked for my employer for accommodation- no evening nursing visits, unless I'm on call (I'm a home health nurse), but had stated it was do to my MS. Now that she knows I'm BP I don't have to lie anymore. Also, now that I'm back from leave I've also asked to have Wed. off to have a break in the middle of the week. At first I said for a couple weeks, but I'm liking it so much I may make it a permanent thing.

[Merlin]

I know where I work now HR is very good. I made the choice to disclose when I was interviewed as I know that my mental health apprehensions appear on my police info check (a whole other story.) Fortunately, I was able to spin my illness as an advantage, working in the mental health field. I did however make certain to mention that I was stable and understood appropriate privacy with clients. Before I was hired, I was even asked about whether I would need accommodations. Fortunately, for that job, all I needed was time for pdoc appointments. I know that I did not get another job because I was unable to work nights. I don't blame them for that though. They were looking for a specific role, although unstated in their job posting, and I wasn't able to fill it.

[SunAngel]

People are people, no matter what they do for a living. They can be total jerks.

I remember when I was put in the hospital, the nurses were all complaining to us that they just had 3 schizophrenics there who were driving them nuts. I mean, they were saying this to us patients who were in there. I felt like punching them in the face.

Where else would schizophrenics be if they were having a rough time?

Those nurses were cruel and unprofessional.

I just hope the stigma of MI lessens with time.

[squirmy001]

if you think that you can hide anything about yourself at work right now I'm out because of an episode do you really think your boss is going to keep something as juicy as me being out over this episode forget it its already hit the press room and has for a while all thats left is up to their imaginations and yours probably

[Tosspot]

Thank you everyone for your feedback. it means so much to me.

[wing]

Just because a person works in health care doesn't mean they have compassion. The person who made that comment is heartless, labeling her patients and lumping them into a group. I would steer clear of her, and hope your co-workers do the same.

[coquinarock]

This is the proverbial "dammed if you do and dammed if you don't" situation that many of us experience with our work lives. I agree with Wacky that saying anything to the other nurse wouldn't accomplish anything. It is a very challenging decision to make regarding informing your employer about your own bipolar. Do you have a therapist you can discuss this issue with? I wish you the best.

[Tosspot]

I did talk to my therapist about it and she said pretty much what everyone here has said, don't say anything you don't have to. Obv. this lady isn't going to change her mind and its not worth it to me to try. I feel better not having said anything, especially on impulse, in fact I'm kind of proud of my BP self for not flipping out.

[sillyfab]

I work in a nursing home as an Aide for now, and I'm attending school to become a LPN. When I went through my two to three weeks of call-ins, I plainly told my boss that I think I'm bipolar - and I just passed my three-month mark at this job. I went to the doc and got treatment.

I have three other coworkers who are also bipolar and on medication. My boss was very compassionate and hasn't said a word about my call-ins. She is RN and the Director of Nursing at the facility.

I have another coworker who is exhibiting bipolar behavior (manias and depression alternating), and I told her that she needs to seek treatment, but be careful with antidepressants b/c of what they can do to people with bipolar. She also thinks she's alcoholic, and I urged her that if she really thinks that on a consistent basis, then she needs to seek help for that, too - that alcoholism can be an act of self-medicating, which really isn't good for us b/c it can cause even more severe manias and crashes.

It all depends on the people and the environment as to whether you should tell your boss and/or coworkers or not. Some environments are more family-like and therefore compassionate and supportive. Others, not so much. Take it on a situational basis.