Can/Should You Take Time Off Work For Treatment?

[Nitro Dan]

I aggree with you on stress, it's a total life destroyer if you don't learn how to deal with it....

[Guest]

Snorefest, somehow your location got deleted from your posts. That's weird, it was there just a few minutes ago... Sure hope everything is alright.

Say "hi" to your lawyers.

[Snorefest]

Would you like to ask the lawyers a question? They're on site even as we speak. No client work is getting done today while we take care of internal policy. No kidding, if it weren't for you I never would've thought of how vulnerable we could be when/if we grow -- or of how something as simple as a city could narrow things down for unstable folks on the internet. Makes me sad. The whole thing makes me sad. But while you're off base on specifics, you're right that even our tiny little firm has to be careful. So we'll close any loopholes because we can't trust anyone.

Just ask whatever questions you have in the next half hour to an hour or so.

[chrisp]

Snorefest. I don't know who you are. I don't know where you are. I don't know your type of business or your employees.. I DO wish you luck.. Don't let these folks get to you . They don't know you either.

Just like in divorce. The lawyers win

Cheers,

Chris

[ITeach]

Just a quick note from me to let you all know (the ones of you that have supported me whether they know it or not) that I have never posted to any other forums on sleep apnea. I was just reading at others and now see why perhaps some could feel offended by my words and feel the need to attack me.

So, if I have offended any regulars or honest lurkers on this board I am sorry. I realized re-reading my posts that I did not take the time to respond "Intelligently" and instead responded "emotionally."

Thank you again to all of the supportive and helpful people on this board. I wouldn't have over 1100 hours on my machine in 5 months if it weren't for you! Thanks!

Sue

[Nitro Dan]

It's ok ITeach, it's that tongue n' cheek thing...A good debate, emotional or otherwise is a good thing, keeps ya from getting stale.

[Guest]

well, you know, I was actually tending to sympathize and side with snorefest, until the his last post pulled back the curtain to reveal what a jerk he is.

He was obviously looking for an excuse to screw ALL of his employees out of benefits and just find justification to asuage his conscience. So one person that found some bizarre loophole in their system, and could have blamed it on a hangnail as much as Apnea, is being used as that excuse.

I believe snorefest is working in a high stress environment. I think I have figured out the source of much of that stress too.

I think snorefest needs to get some health issues resolved for himself and use some vacation time to destress...or maybe get a doctors note....

Incidentally, I work in a VERY high stress environment, where we just lost a person for about 4 months due to a complete nervous breakdown. She is patched up with meds and back on the front lines for who knows how long. I myself have been getting vacation time for destressing turned down, which we lose at the end of the year, which seems like abuse by the corporation.

I NOW side with the opinion....
1) this person probably is finding an unrelated reason to take time off to avoid a nervous breakdown.
2) Snorefest is making very poor use of this forum for non-apnea reasons.
3) Can I find out the name of snorefests company so I make sure I NEVER EVER work there?

I know this is hard to believe, but Snorefest isn't a man. It's a lady (and I use that term loosely).

An employee (lets call her Mary the Meek) is on medical leave. A different employee (lets call her Bertha the Bully) harasses Mary via several different online talk forums. Is that legal? Apparently not. No federal inquiry is required to gather evidence. It's all right here (and elsewhere) including their location (though she later zapped it out--oops too late), in black and white.

Mary the Meek has a solid case. A determination of harassment will result in Bertha the Bully losing her job. Mary can go back to work in what will be a much more pleasant environment. Meanwhile others at the agency are also looking forward to seeing Bertha get booted for obvious reasons and are keeping their fingers crossed (and their mouths shut).

You're right. This was never a sleep apnea topic. This was Bertha's insidious method of harassing Mary and a guise for cutting health benefits. (Bertha has since even admitted to voting to do exactly that!) Mary the Meek requested and was granted (without reservation) a medical leave giving her 2 months to get rest, relax and get well. Yet even as Mary was in her own home attempting to recuperate, Bertha the Bully continued to intimidate and harass her via the internet, making that recuperation impossible.

You'll notice Mary the Meek received good advice and stopped responding on all the forums immediately, while Bertha the Bully just kept on digging herself in deeper and deeper. So what started out as a misuse of this forum for Bertha's malevolent purposes, will result in her own demise.

Given enough rope....

[unclebob]

I have it on good authority that both Mary and Bertha are evil DMEs.

Starting to lose faith in Chris as he did not figure this out! Shame on you!

Cannot believe I read through this whole thread tonight. My only questions are:

1. Where is Muck?

2. Where is Rock & Roll?

3. Is "destressing" really a word? Never heard that before. Have heard
distress but never "destressing". Is it a new fangled term used
exclusively by evil DME's to justify inflated equipment costs? Maybe a
kind of slang term used in an offhanded way by co-workers to explain
the absence of slackards on staff while they bank their extra time and a
half or even double time.

4. Anyone read "New Science" magazine where they report Chronic Fatigue
Syndrome (CFS) is linked to abnormalities in white blood cells that
could lead to a blood test for and a possible drug to treat it?

5. Did the Red Sox really win the world series?

Just seem to have tribble keeping up with all these these things maybe Kirk can help.

Night all.

Bob F

[KimberlyinMN]

For me personally, two months would be an awful long time. However, I am one of the lucky ones who found virtually instant success with my treatment. I also work from home with a fairly non-stressful job. Now, if all of this was happening with a job I had ten years that involved a lot of traveling and training customers at large companies how to use our accounting software, I might need to take some time off to get used to this. I was basically only home on the weekends (single, no kids). I don't think that I would need two whole months, maybe a week or something like that. But... maybe your co-worker has other stress-related issues going on that her doctor wants her to take the time off??

[KimberlyinMN]

Of course... I didn't notice the July 2005 date nor did I read to the very end of this thread to see that the very last post above mine had been a spammer.

Kimberly

[Bones]

That's OK Kimberly, it made for an interseting read on a slow afternnoon.

Brian

[lvwildcat]

I was lucky-felt great after first night with CPAP. I was worried though-I had my MD write me paperwork to file FMLA at my job. In the past year I have used 2 FMLA days so I by no means abuse it but it gives me a feeling of security to know that it's there if I need it and I would still have a job

[kteague]

Ok, I'm going to step in the line of fire here.

I took 5 weeks off from my management position several months into unsuccessful cpap treatment - then resigned. Had no choice, as I was no longer able to perform my job (after 10 years of multiple promotions). I was doing them more harm by staying than by leaving my coworkers with a temporarily increased work load. My work ethic was too strong to harm the company with poor performance or to accept a very good paycheck that was not earned. My greatest regret is that I did not take time off sooner - before I became totally depleted. But no, I had 2 departments to manage and 50-60 hour weeks I needed to put in so that I could meet everyone else's expectations of me.

Sleep disorders affect each person differently, depending the the length and severity of the deprivation. I was a walking zombie, my memory was impaired, I couldn't complete a thought, I slept anywhere and everywhere - even fell asleep standing up singing in church and almost fell. Maybe if I had taken some time off a few months prior, that could have all been avoided. It took me 10 weeks of doing nothing but going back and forth from my recliner to my bed 24 hours a day before I could see a light at the end of the tunnel. Eleven months later, on a good day I have maybe 2-4 decent hours before my brain and body starts shutting down. Since those windows of time are not predictable, it's hard to plan much.

Now, I know most people with OSA aren't dealing with all of this, but I have read some very similar stories. Also, I am dealing with multiple sleep disorders.

I have spent my lifetime in the work force trying to be everything to everybody at my expense. Do I really want an early tombstone to read, "She took care of everyone but herself"? If I had it to do over again, I'd take every possible day off that my contract or the law allowed.

Do I feel any guilt? Not any more - I came to peace with it. I just want to know where the station is to get on that gravy train. While waiting on disability approval (Oh, shame!) the same government I supported with 40 years of taxes has taken ten months to approve me a medical card and a check every month - for $115 dollars. I've sold all my furniture that was of any value (and they wanted to call that income!). I feel like I'm due a little gravy.

I get as fed up as the next person with slackers and users, but not everyone fits that bill. If someone hasn't shown themselves to fit that category, give them a little grace. And the common consideration of respecting their decisions they make for their life. And expect the same when the shoe is on the other foot.

Ok, let me step off my soapbox and duck.

Kathy

[kteague]

Kim - got me too. No wonder something about this sounded vaguely familiar, but then again, I didn't trust my memory. But it was therapeutic for me to sort thru that for myself.
Kathy

[jskinner]

Maybe she is completely mentally and physically tried from the untreated sleep apnea? I had to completely quite work because of sleep apnea before I knew what was wrong.