Stop Working??????? | Arthritis Information

I am new to this board, but I have struggled with Inflammatory Arthritis (negative RA, but HIGH ANA, but my Rheumatologist doesn't want to diagnose me with lupus, etc) for the last five years or so. I'm on Enbrel, neurontin, mobic, lortab, etc., and I have worked as a teacher - which I love. But now I have missed so much work and I know I am not doing the level of work I should for my students. I became really ill with sepsis from a kidney infection but recovered, but I feel as if I am waiting for someone to say, "OK, you can stop awhile to get well." I feel like I would be giving up, or not trying hard enough, if I decided without being totally on the verge of death...but I don't want to wait for that either. My son is 16, I have a husband...and I sleep and work. I am in limbo, I hurt, I'm exhausted, but my doctor (who is a five-hour drive away) says, finish out the year and see how the summer goes, as if I am just emotional . I get so overwhelmed and disgusted with myself and my illness...any advice? How have some of you handled this, decided this, gotten past this?

Hi there, welcome to the board. I am so sorry you are feeling so bad but you have been through so much too. It is hard to work with a chronic illness but some people do manage, I personally couldnt. It made me ill , I really tried to stay at work every day i pushed myself to go until i was on the verge of collapse. I tried part time but in the end i admitted defeat and stopped altogether. It was the best decision healthwise i could have made. I was always under the impression that without your health you have nothing and that is true when it come to making the break from working yourself to death.

Dont feel guilty or disgusted with yourself because at the end of the day you never chose to get ill, its just something that happened .ITS NOT YOUR FAULT.

I've had RA for 13 years now. At first I was a stay at home Mom and I think that was a blessing. I couldn't have made it to work every day. I've been fortunate however that with excellent treatment I have since been able to manage a full time career for the last 8 years now. Granted I'm a Office Manager/Secretary so I sit all day. I couldn't manage a job on my feet all day....but I do manage quite well in the position I'm in. It goes a long way toward helping my mental outlook at times I think.

I'm not sure of your age or your financial situation so it's hard to say what you should do. I don't know what sort of medications you take now but there are some that can make it possible for you to manage much more than you could without it.

If my income and my health insurance wasn't a factor I'd just be a stay at home Mom/Wife and save my energy for my family. There are so many days when I do well all day but by the time I get home I can't manage much more. My family is awesome and they encourage me to relax once I'm home and they understand my limits.....but if I didn't work I might be more equipped to take care of my family in a different manner than I do now.

THEN again; I think having a job I love and interaction with the outside world (besides just my family) is good for me and helps me focus on other things besides my health. Often if I didn't have to get up and go to work.....I'm not sure I'd get up. I'm not sure that's all together a bad thing. Keeps me going.

Welcome again to AI.

it's so scary to have to face the idea of having no income. I was a stay at home mom for years, and have had RA for 10 years now. Wouldn't you know it, now I'm divorced and my disease has kicked into high gear. I had to leave my job 4 weeks ago because I was completely falling apart. The kicker is, because I get support/alimony, I make too much for SSI and because I stayed home, I can't get SSDI. Doesn't seem very fair to me. I'll be okay for awhile I guess and then I'll figure something out. Is there anyone else out there in this catch-22 that knows something I don't?

I think the only person who knows how ill/exhausted/and slipping in quality at your job is you.

If you are too ill to work the next 2 months till schools is out for the summer, go back to your rhuemy, and let him know how bad things are going for you.Tell him putting a cast on a broken leg 2 months from now is not going to work. You need your rest right now.

You know they listen to people pitching fits on a regular basis. I think most of them do not hear a normal tone of voice saying 'I can't do this anymore'.

I had to take my husband in to see the doc when I couldn't get him to understand that after 5 years remicade wasn't working very well, and that I was not going to up the dose, or come in for an infusion more often. Maybe you could take your husband along with you, and have him tell the doc that you completely exhausted.

Just a thought and Welcome!

Khal, I was a teacher too, and know just what that entails. Too much use of your energy girl (physical & mental) when you have a chronic illness like this - no wonder you have nothing left for yourself.

I tried part time, but things went haywire again, had a huge flare that lasted for around a month, and was told by my Doc. to have a 3 - 6 month rest and think carefully about what I would do regarding work.

It took me about four months to come right again. Maybe a bit of long term leave and a rest will put things into perspective for you.

Maybe after that you could do some job share or short term relief teaching - you could pick and choose then as the calls come in. One of my teaching friends does that now, and it works very well for her.

I have a couple of little jobs now - doing a couple of 1 hr Music Therapy sessions a week with elderly residents in a local rest home, where I worked for a while part-time after I gave up teaching. I really enjoy that, and I incorporate an exercise component into those sessions as well, so that is added benefit for myself. And a little bit of pocket money.It's a huge decision to give up full time working, but one that I have made with absolutely no regrets, except that I'm always "broke".

I had to make the difficult decision to file for SSDI in Oct 05 and am still waiting for an award. This is a debilitating disease and we usually acquire other problems along with it. You must do what is best for your health.

Kim I am not in a catch22 but what is the reason that you cannot get SSDI, work credits? I know that SSI requires us to be totally poor.

Khal82, welcome to the board. This is a problem that plagues all of us who
have RA. I worked 48 hours last week and I'm paying the price. I have felt
fluish since my last shift. I don't want all my days off to be like this. And I
know it is from putting in the hours that I have. Life is too short to go on
this way. This disease will shorten our life spans because of all the systems
it affects. So I say, if you can quit working or cut down to part time, do it.
In 5 years you may not be able to walk. Use this time to enjoy your life a bit.
I see such bad things every day at work. Makes me think twice about what I
am doing. My husband told me to stay home if I want but somehow I feel
that I would not feel like a productive part of society if I did that. So I am
really struggling. I do not have severe RA so I am going to stay as productive
as I can. But if you are finding it difficult to keep up, you should quit your
job and make the best of each day. I can't get SSDI because of my work credits, you're right Bonny. And yes, I'm not poor enough for SSI. So, I think with some frugal planning, I can survive this bout. But, it's that "future" thing that gets scary. I like the idea of doing some part time stuff too. As soon as I feel better, I'm going to find a part time job that is more condusive to my situation. It's just one of those days when I feel like I"ll never feel better. Pardon my doom and gloom...

I am only 25 years old and i have fought so hard to keep working after awhile i decided to only work part time and that to became hard. I have decided to take some time off work for a few months. My exhaustion and pain has overwelmed me to the point of almost admitting myself to a hospital. It will get to the point where you wont be able to take it if you keep pushing yourself. Just take some time off and relax. Dont worry about what anyone else says or thinks your the one in pain listen to your body. I have learned that your health is more important than almost anything. Your body will only push so far until you hit a wall and collapse. Let others help you and RELAX RELAX RELAX dont feel ashamed enjoy the time :)

Hope you feel better soon