I work 50 plus hours a week. I have a 9 year old to support and she is fond of eating :-). I have been at my job 10 years and only have told 2 people about the fibro. It is hard but sometimes work does help distract from the pain. And sometimes work causes more pain.
Hi Joanne
I worked as a nurse till last July. I actually came off work because of Lupus complications. It was hard and i spent alot of days in bed after working 3 Shifts
I was working a full-time office job before I was laid off. I'm still rather busy now between looking for work and trying to remain relevant in my career field (volunteering, going to key events, etc). It IS tough,and some days I just have to take a break for myself. But honestly, I don't have many other options so...I just keep going.
Anyway, at my last job I was really fortunate to have the option to work remotely and I took advantage of it working from home 2 days a week. However, I also had a company laptop and company cell phone so that also meant they would call me all kinds of crazy times about things - even the most trivial garbage so even though it was 40 hours/week on paper sometimes I would be on the clock 40-60 hrs a week. Anyway, it helped to answer their stress-filled calls or type out the most polite politically-correct emails while sprawled out on my bed with my legs propped up though.
I do but my work is inconsistent since I got sick…
They know I’m not the same Pearson anymore.
I had to take a medical leave because I was in and out of the hospital when I first got sick…gabapentine got me back to work but I wish I wasn’t working… I think I’d feel so much better
Oooo I’m also a salary imployee and am basically working all the time but basically 50 hours a week or more
hi i work full time 37 hours but iv been off 4 the last 4 weeks as the pain is so bad im a senior support worker so on my feet all day 9 hour shifts
Hi. I was very recently diagnosed with FM. I have been ill for about 2 years now. I have been progresively getting worse over the past several months. The hardest thing for me is trying to work. I am supposed to work 35 hours a week doing pretty easy work. It is mostly the mornings that I find to be excruciating painful. I do good to manage to work 25-30 hours a week. I cry so hard in the mornings because I cant do it. I finally start feeling well by around noon. In the evenings I worry and stress and get depressed because I am scared of how I am going to feel in the morning and worry about having to call in. I find on my days off its a little less traumatic for me emotionally and physically, and I am able to get excercise. I financially have to work because I have bills. What are the chances of getting disability? I understand when people say that working can be better on you, I understand completely. But for me it seems like I am more stressed by the thought of working.
I worked FT up until January of 2012 when I went out on a medical leave. I worked in a hospital and with the stress of the job, migraines, CFS and my lower legs and ankles swelling I decided I could not do it anymore. I was out on leave for 6 months and then I lost my job. I applied for SSD and was denied twice. Last October I retained an attorney and now waiting for a hearing date. Since this last job my Fibro has gotten way worse, I am in pain 24/7 some days a little better than others but pain never falls below a 3. There is no way I could hold down a job unless they would allow me to call out every other day? lol At the time I was working I was also taking Oxycodone for my back pain (3 herniated discs)...so I would walk around the hospital stoned (and FibroFog on top of it). I did not think this was professional of me to do while I was talking to addicts about the dangers of alcohol and drugs! lol I have not worked in over a year and I am glad that I have family and my fiance to help me financially for now. It is a tough process and a long one! We are all different people and some can handle pain more than others. All I know is that at night when my pain goes up to a 7-8-9 and I can't sleep, I just think how lucky I am that I don't have to get up in the AM to go to work.
I wish they would find a cure for this dreaded condition already!!