Taking medical leave from work...

Has anyone on here ever taken time off from work due to your mental state or how you were feeling? I don't mean taking off one day, I mean several days. How did you know that you needed a break? What happened to make you take a break? How long were you off from work?

I landed in the psych unit during one of my jobs. I just told my boss i was in the hospital and that I did not want to discuss the details. (Looking back, it surprises me that she let it go at that. She was usually so nosy...) I was gone for about a week, week and a half.

Another time, just after my Mom died, I took a week off on Family Leave. After that, I was still a mess, and my doc had me off for about 3 months, then part time for another 3. They filed it under short term disability, *I think* during the months I was gone.

How did I know I needed to be off? I was crying at my desk every time someone asked me how I was, I was showing a lot of exhaustion and other physical signs of mental stress, and I was taking sick days a lot just to keep myself going.

Hope this helps!

Like Buggs I landed in the psych unit. I lost complete control and my husband took me to the hospital. I was off for 14 days I believe. I went back to work for about a month and thats when my boss and I had a talk. She asked first and then she laid me off because she knew I couldnt handle my job the way I should be able to. I went on unemployment for a year then filed for disabiltiy and here I am now.

I have been on a leave of absence twice. Once for a semester and a half and then again for a year until I finally was put on permanent disability from my job. I can't go back even though I would like to some day. I am now on disability.

I was put on medical leave twice. 1st time was 1 week, 2nd time over a year later 2 weeks.
I was mentally,physically and emotionally overwhelmed AND drained. I just knew it was the right thing to do.
Returned to work feeling more centered. The break (both times) was good for me.

How did u go about bringing it up with your boss?

The 1st time I didn't. I had a Dr's certificate that stated 'medical condition'.
The 2nd time I was a bit more forthcoming, but I claimed it was for a med change. That way nobody doubted my ability to do my job upon my return.

I was admitted to the hospital, and , my Dr. just faxed a general medical excuse paper to my job stating, I couldn't return for 2 weeks. My boss knew I was going through a great loss though, and was very depressed. Best wishes!

I've taken a week off here and there over the years. I just tell them I have the flu. However, a year or so ago I had to take an entire semester off due to being hospitalized. I wasn't working at the time, thankfully. Unfortunately I had to go to school for an extra year. Thankfully, somehow I made it through and graduate in May. I'm thinking about applying for disability again, but I'll have to speak with my doctor.

I was on two leaves, for a year each (maxing it private disability insurance which was in place of state one where I worked). Second time was laid off. Now cannot find a job because in my line of work it is a small world and everyone knows or everyone knows someone who knows. When you are on a leave but still part of the headcount (while on disability), the company cannot hire someone else in your stead, because they do not have extra headcount. So it is a nightmare for your team - the projects you need to be doing are not done or are distributed among others, who are already overworked. No one likes that and people remember. I found one job and worked and thought that I am on my way resurrecting my reputation, but was laid off together with 1/3 of the company (my performance was good). That one year was not enough - I cannot get a job now. Maybe the situation is similar to Anneininside's. Yes?

If I find something now, I will feel that it is a new lease on professional life. But I doubt. In a while I would file to get permanent if I do not see other options. And frankly, I am in two minds about finding a job too - it is not that I would be all excited, I would doubt my abilities and would be very worried about my limitations. For instance, mornings are hard for me, at night I get sleepy, and I need many hours of sleep on my medications. How am I going to work alongside people who do not have these limitations and who are especially driven? What will I do when everyone stays late before a launch? I am afraid that I would destabilize. In that sense, I SHOULD be on permanent disability.

I've wanted to, but my old p-doc and parents were really against it. They all thought the structure was good for me, and that I needed something to go to every day. My new p-doc thinks I should take next year off from school. My old p-doc says that's okay as long as I'm doing a master's for that year off (so I have some structure)..

I dunno, I'm confused about what to do.

All I remember right now is taking one leave of absence that lasted from Nov 2007 to March 2008. In the begining of of Nov of 2007 I was hospitalized for like 2 weeks for work related stress. I worked at Wal-Mart and working too many departments and getting yelled at my assistant manager and department manager. The store manager liked me but I just couldn't handle it. In December of 2007 I applied for disapility and got it on the first try which is really unusual. In March of 2008 is when I quit at Wal-Mart. I may have had another leave of absence but I don't remember.