Disability

I'm sorry you're facing this. It's one of my fears and I know it's scary.

Can you sit down with your boss and discuss it, or is that not an option? Maybe you can take a short-term disability leave so you can focus on getting your RA under control and still have the option of going back to work.

Stay tough.

Don - I hope you are doing better.

Ides is right - I was thinking of disability through your company. One of my coworkers had a stroke a few weeks ago and is out on short-term disability, so that was the first thing that came to mind. Totally different situation than SSA disability.

I have thought a lot about this over the last few months, I was super stressed over the prospect of this because my knees are so swollen every day that just getting ready for work which I can't do by myself anymore and driving in to the office leaves me so physically exhausted i can barely function.
I have been on several different biologics over the last year and recently started taking orencia which has helped but still is not working well enough that I can do normal every day things like wash my hair or face. I spoke with my employer and they agreed to allow me to work from home so long as I can remain productive until I am able to find a medication which will get me back on track. At this point I am afraid that isn't going to happen. I am very grateful to be able to work from home however and have been able to maintain my duties well enough that it has not been a problem thank God.
There very well may come a time when I may no longer be considered employable however and I hope that isn't for a very long time. So long as I am afforded being able to be at home I can function. However, I am only able to do this because of pain medications :(
I recognize now that his is something now that is out of my control. I have done everything I can to go into the office and do my job and I simply can't in this state. If my employer decides that I am no longer necessary I will deal with that when the time comes but I can't imagine being able to secure another job in this condition and I would likely have to face applying for disability at that point.

Thank you so much for your post Nansee. I can relate, my fears revolve around being a burden to those around me and also to society. I know that this is not true however and We must keep a positive outlook on things. I hope that your disability claim sails through and that you at least have that to help out.
Don't discount your experience with this, it is invaluable and you can share it with others and help them like you have with me. While material things and money slip away and are not permanent the experience that you share is not. :)
I am glad that you have your sister and her husband to help you out through this. I have a very loving wife and her family has been a great help as well. I would be lost without them.
I hope that you feel well and have peace in your heart. -Don

Ides said...
A close relative is a disability adjudicator and knows what it takes to be deemed disabled, unable to do sedentary work. If you have your limitations noted in your medical records each visit it will help tremendously, ok.

Hi Ides - thanks for this information. I hope I won't need to use it, but it's important to know and something I hadn't thought about.

Carole

I am going through the same thing - but I got fired first, after 24 years of promotions and stellar reviews. Apparently, they decided privately that my healthcare costs were too high (the company is privately insured for healthcare, so they pay for EVERYTHING). They only used a health insurance company to administrate the plan. They were right about my expenses - they were crazy high. But that’s not my fault. And I’m not the one who decided that they should “self insure.”

The first thing I would do if I were you is to make sure you completely understand what kind of long term disability insurance your company has. Some insurance plans cut you off if you get fired. And trust me, your employer will find a reason to fire you if they choose to.

Luckily, my former employer has a plan that will continue short term to long term disability for a fired employee if the employee is on STD when they're fired. I was was on STD when I was fired. I'm in the middle of all this now, starting to transition from STD to LTD. It's all a moving target and I don't know how it will all turn out for me, but if I do get LTD from the disability insurance company, I have two years to get Social Security Disability. If I can do that, I will be paid 60% of my income at the time of my "separation" from the company without paying taxes from an eventual combo of Social Security and the insurance company (I'm not quite sure how that works tax wise, but it's the plan my former company participates in). This will allow me to live reasonably and keep good healthcare. Having a disability shouldn't rob anyone of their dignity.

I don't feel like receiving SSD disability makes you, me or any other disabled person a burden to society - not even slightly. I was perfectly willing to work myself into an early grave for my employers, but they had other things in mind. I look at it this way - my family and likely yours has been paying into the SSD system for GENERATIONS without ever using it. This is what it's for - when good, hardworking people get sick in a way that no longer allows them to work. Don't feel bad about it. There is no way that I'm going to suffer from multiple chronic diseases and feel guilty about it, too. The daily suffering from the diseases and the pain they cause is enough feeling bad for me.

At this point, you know you are on the fence about whether or not you can continue to work. Get all the information you can now about your options and be sure to look after yourself because your boss may be great...but his (or her) bosses may not be. I learned this lesson the hard way. And Ides is right - the documentation of your physicians is critical here too. This is not the time to be a stoic. Your life and your future healthcare is at stake.

Look out for yourself, please. Best of luck and I hope everything goes well for you.

Post Edited (soppendeuff) : 4/15/2021 4:21:04 PM (GMT-6)