Hi all! I have some issues going on right now with work and home and need some help and advice.
For those who don't know, I am a live in caregiver for my 92 year old grandmother, who is rapidly falling into the depths of dementia. I also work a full time job in retail for a 'big box store.'
Over the past month or two, things at home and at work have gotten so bad, that I requested a leave of absence from work due to psychiatric issues (I battle severe depression and anxiety and right now the anxiety is almost paralyzing). I put in for the LOA thru the company that my place of work uses, and was approved. I am still pending in the system until the insurance company talks with my psychiatrist, so until the pending status is cleared, I am just off of work.
Today, I got a call from the case manager handling my claim. She basically did an 'interview' with me to find out what was going on with me (severe anxiety to the point that its very difficult to leave the house...brought on by the borderline abusive situations that are happening at work...i.e. management). I was 100% honest with her, and went into detail about having a long history of anxiety and depression, that include PTSD (years of physical, mental, and sexual abuse as a child), OCD, etc. and I told her how things had been going well up until the last couple of months, when my anxiety came back with fiery passion and almost incapicitated me. I told her that my psychiatrist (who I've been seeing for close to 3 months now after not having seen one in 2-3+ years) had put me on an anti-anxiety drug (klonopin) but I was still experiencing severe anxiety (the klonopin works to an extent, but due to the fact that I screwed up taking my other psychiatric meds, the chemical balance in my brain is fucked up...hence the secondarily reason for going on LOA, to get my meds straightened out). She asked when my next doctors appointment was, and I told her mid January. She told me that I need to see my Dr. before then (IDK why), so after that phone call, I scheduled an appointment for the first of next week.
Basically whats going on with me now is this 'interview' has shaken me up greatly and I'm in a panic. I called the helpline to see what would happen if I wasn't approved, and the woman told me that I would fall back under the store's attendence policy (I asked her about that, then she told me that she didn't have an answer, and then she wanted my employee number...I hung up at that point). My store has taken me off the schedule for this week and next, and now I'm scared shitless that I won't be approved, despite the fact that my psych. agreed that I needed to go on LOA. I'm worried that if I don't get approved, that I won't have a job to come back to, which means I loose everything I've worked so hard for (which isn't much, but its all I have). As a side note, I ended up calling my psychiatrist's office back to talk to a nurse because I was in the middle of a panic attack, but I've yet to hear back from them.
As for dealing with my anxiety... I am still taking my meds. I'm house/cat sitting for a friend of mine while he's out of town for the holidays, and so I'm forcing myself to leave the house at least once a day to feed his cats and get his mail. I'm trying to do all the right things to take care of myself, but I feel like I'm not going to get the support that I need to get my head back on straight.
Does anyone out there have any experience dealing with issues like this? Any suggestions on what I should/shouldn't do? Please, any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.
EDIT: Just thought I would add this on... I don't care about getting paid for the LOA. All I care about is restoring sanity and balance in my life
For those who don't know, I am a live in caregiver for my 92 year old grandmother, who is rapidly falling into the depths of dementia. I also work a full time job in retail for a 'big box store.'
Over the past month or two, things at home and at work have gotten so bad, that I requested a leave of absence from work due to psychiatric issues (I battle severe depression and anxiety and right now the anxiety is almost paralyzing). I put in for the LOA thru the company that my place of work uses, and was approved. I am still pending in the system until the insurance company talks with my psychiatrist, so until the pending status is cleared, I am just off of work.
Today, I got a call from the case manager handling my claim. She basically did an 'interview' with me to find out what was going on with me (severe anxiety to the point that its very difficult to leave the house...brought on by the borderline abusive situations that are happening at work...i.e. management). I was 100% honest with her, and went into detail about having a long history of anxiety and depression, that include PTSD (years of physical, mental, and sexual abuse as a child), OCD, etc. and I told her how things had been going well up until the last couple of months, when my anxiety came back with fiery passion and almost incapicitated me. I told her that my psychiatrist (who I've been seeing for close to 3 months now after not having seen one in 2-3+ years) had put me on an anti-anxiety drug (klonopin) but I was still experiencing severe anxiety (the klonopin works to an extent, but due to the fact that I screwed up taking my other psychiatric meds, the chemical balance in my brain is fucked up...hence the secondarily reason for going on LOA, to get my meds straightened out). She asked when my next doctors appointment was, and I told her mid January. She told me that I need to see my Dr. before then (IDK why), so after that phone call, I scheduled an appointment for the first of next week.
Basically whats going on with me now is this 'interview' has shaken me up greatly and I'm in a panic. I called the helpline to see what would happen if I wasn't approved, and the woman told me that I would fall back under the store's attendence policy (I asked her about that, then she told me that she didn't have an answer, and then she wanted my employee number...I hung up at that point). My store has taken me off the schedule for this week and next, and now I'm scared shitless that I won't be approved, despite the fact that my psych. agreed that I needed to go on LOA. I'm worried that if I don't get approved, that I won't have a job to come back to, which means I loose everything I've worked so hard for (which isn't much, but its all I have). As a side note, I ended up calling my psychiatrist's office back to talk to a nurse because I was in the middle of a panic attack, but I've yet to hear back from them.
As for dealing with my anxiety... I am still taking my meds. I'm house/cat sitting for a friend of mine while he's out of town for the holidays, and so I'm forcing myself to leave the house at least once a day to feed his cats and get his mail. I'm trying to do all the right things to take care of myself, but I feel like I'm not going to get the support that I need to get my head back on straight.
Does anyone out there have any experience dealing with issues like this? Any suggestions on what I should/shouldn't do? Please, any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.
EDIT: Just thought I would add this on... I don't care about getting paid for the LOA. All I care about is restoring sanity and balance in my life