Do I Resign?

[Miss-K]

Hi and thank you to whoever might be reading this.

I have come to recognise (with the help of my GP and family) that my previous condition of anxiety and depression is no longer under control.

I was just prescribed medication for severe sustained panic attacks and after one week I feel the edge is off and the noise has quietened. My docs have plans in place but this is something that will be with me for life (I previously saw it as a temporary blip) so it will be an ongoing journey.

I need time off, therapy and re-evaluation. I am in a marketing role and have been high performing and career driven for a long time but I can’t keep up and my productivity and skills are significantly impacted. The remainder of the year is going to be very intense work with deadlines and expectations I don’t think I can meet.

Do I resign? financial and potential career impacts aside, does anyone have a similar story they can share as to how they got the treatment they needed?

Thank you.

[Soberlicious96]

Dear Miss-K,

Welcome to Beyond Blue, and well done for reaching out and sharing your story.

I will start by saying that I would not like to recommend either way for you to stay or go in your current job. That is a decision only you can make. But what I will do is relay an experience of my own;

About 22 years ago I got sober (hence the username; Soberlicious!) and began to get well, not only from alcoholism, but also from the traumas of my childhood - there were many and they were very significant. By the time I was 14, which was before I began drinking and drugging, I had severe and debilitating PTSD, depression, anxiety and suicidal thinking. I was 26 when I made it into the doors of recovery. And then after two years of sobriety my life fell apart once again, due to a major relationship breakdown.

At the time I was working full time and was looking to get promoted, just prior to my then fiance being charged and going off to jail ....... that was when it all fell apart. I had thought that I was never going to get better, or going to be free from depression again and I had no idea how to cope with life.

Luckily though I worked with some truly wonderful people, including a superior who agreed that, rather than let me leave my job, he allowed me to take a step back (a DEmotion, rather that a PROmotion) for a while and to just be in a less demanding role until such time as I felt I could cope again. And let me tell you it worked a treat!

It allowed me the time and space I needed to get the counseling I needed, and to focus and practice living in the day, rather than worrying about the future, or reliving the pain of that past year. I was then able to slowly get back into my original role.

So my suggestion is to perhaps look at seeing if you can maybe reduce your hours or take a more relaxed role for a while until such time that you feel you can either return to your current position, or maybe seek a whole new direction somewhere else, doing something else?

Most important is that you do pay attention to your wellbeing, because without that, things will certainly be much harder. It may be an ongoing journey for a while, but it certainly doesn't have to be a life sentence. I can say that now because the life I have now is WAY better than I ever thought it would have been before treatment.

I hope that helps at least a little; to know you're not alone anyway. In the meantime, I'll be keeping you in my thoughts. Take care. Together, we got this! xo

[Guest_922]

Hi Miss K

like soberlicious I’m not going to tell you either way but rather share my story balancing high performance job, anxiety and ptsd. I wanted to resign but felt I couldnt. I pushed through and for a while dropped to 4 days having Wednesday off in the middle of the week to rest. I saw my gp every few weeks and was prescribed medication that helped significantly but it didn’t solve my stress and I still had really low points - I still do now. What really helped was fortnightly psychology sessions where I unpacked what was going on and learnt strategies for dealing with attacks and symptoms. I’m back working full time. I’m not ok yet and I believe that I will have this for life. Therefore my work is aware that I suffer anxiety and ptsd and support me on the rare occasion I need it. Most of my symptoms are in the evening.

all the best x

[LesDave]

It's going to depend on your workplace. If like soberlicious, you can take a step back then by all means do so. Once you make it out the other side you'll see the emphasis on career is an easy way to lose track of this world, and it's not sustainable or long term rewarding. Just don't going making rash decision that will make thing worse. Like quitting, when you need to have cash to pay bills. Talk them at work about cutting back, or taking a lesser job. If they say no, start looking around for easier jobs.

[geoff]

Hello Miss-K, and a warm welcome to the forums.

I respect what all those above me have said and agree with their comments.

Another alternative is that even if you reduce your workload and are able to have counselling, therapy and re-evaluation, that's great, the worry is that if it's going to be 'intense work with deadlines and expectations I don’t think I can meet' will be a problem that is going to affect how you are feeling.

If you are put under pressure while you are not feeling well then achieving the work by a certain time while trying to keep well, that maybe difficult for you to do.

I've tried to do my job when I was not feeling well, my job was delayed, so that put pressure on my mental health.

Your health is so important, but you can't have your boss wanting a project to be finished by tomorrow if you aren't feeling well.

Take care.

Geoff.

[MissEMooks]

Hi Miss- K

Like you , I was in the same predicament, how do I take time away to look after myself and get the help I needed to recover from my anxiety disorder?

After speaking with my doctor, he suggested some very helpful options…Could I take sick leave to attend the Anxiety Programme each Friday , all day for 12 weeks , did I have enough annual leave ? Could I take leave without pay. Can you discuss your situation with you Manager and what are they prepared to offer , cover all options ..

As it turned out I had enough sick leave for the Anxiety programme and I’m into my 5th week of the programme , it’s the best thing I have ever done for myself .. I have learnt new skills to manage my OCD and the programme & doctors visits are covered by my private health insurance.

I have been with my company for a very long time and also very career driven , hence why I had so much sick leave , I never took time off when I was unwell, as my job always came first ..

I have come to realise that we have certain values that we programme into our heads and my value was I must be good at my work and that meant I had no boundaries when it came to my job .. That value has changed now and work for me is not everything , my mental health & wellbeing is now the priority and the reason is, without the programme , I would have not recovered and now feeling so much better than when I first went into the programme. I can enjoy life again and all it has to offer.

Look at all your options and from there I hope you choose to take care of you and get the treatment you need now ..

Regards

MissEMooks

[Miss-K]

Thank you everyone. It has been helpful to hear your stories and ease my concerns that there was only one way to solve this (running away from it).

I do have a very supportive manager and am going to make some well thought out notes and meet with her about my future, I hope like many of you I can find a solution. Ive a major project which will complete next week and will update you all after I have that talk.

thank you for helping me feel supported and normal 🙂