Not Sure What To Do

[kitty12]

Ask for accommodations? Try to go out on disability? Just tough it out?

I love my job. l work in the mental health field, doing assessments for adults who need mental health services. I like getting to offer people hope and help. There's a lot of paperwork involved though, and that part has always been challenging. Right now, however, "challenging" has really been almost impossible. Because of my PTSD, l've been checked out a lot lately. I can't focus or concentrate. I'm overwhelmed very easily and I feel like I'm going to have a panic attack if l try to be more present. I'm spending all of my energy at work just trying to get through the day without falling apart; I don't have any energy leftover for paperwork. My girlfriend is worried about me, but she's also worried that I'm not really able to provide the services my clients need right now. l hate to admit it, but I'm scared she might be right...

I know I could ask for accommodations, but I'm not sure what exactly to ask for. I could try to get disability, but there isn't anyone else who can do my job. And l have a huge stack of assessments to write up, that no one else can finish for me. I think if l went out on disability, they would probably just hire someone to replace me, and l wouldn't have a job to go back to.

Does anyone have any suggestions or advice? What accommodations have other people used?

 

[scout86]

I'm kind of assuming you have a boss, have you talked this over with them? (I guess I should also ask, you're in some kind of therapy, right?) Unless you explain the problem to your supervisor, it's kind of hard to find a way to fix things. Do you think this is a temporary phase you're going through? (Sounds like it probably is.) There might be some way to get someone to help with the paperwork for awhile. Maybe you can supervise and advise someone while they do it? Maybe you can work from home? I'm not sure, because I don't know anything about your office. I'd suggest that you sit down with your supervisor, explain the situation, and then say something like, "How can we make this work for everyone?"

 

[kitty12]

Thanks for your response! I'm actually in the process of trying to find a therapist, but I don't currently have one. I think I probably will try to talk with my supervisor, and see what he says. My fear is that this is going to get a lot worse before it gets better... But I guess I'll just have to deal with that when it happens.
Thanks again!

 

[Justmehere]

I used accommodations at my old job. I got paid part time hours, but I essentially worked full time, I just took a lot of scheduled breaks throughout the day to ground and re-group. It's not really a long term solution but it might help you get through this time.

 

[scout86]

It might, in some ways, seem to be getting worse before it gets better.

I'm self employed, so what ends up being an "accommodation", in my case, is that my clients tend to be people who are either persistent enough, or like me enough to deal with a person who is occasionally TERRIBLE at returning phone calls. (I'm training them to use email instead and that's working pretty well.)

 

[kitty12]

@Justmehere- thanks for the suggestion. Something similar to that might work for me at my job. At least it would take some of the pressure off of feeling like they're paying me for work I'm not doing.