Comments on: Conducting life, work and illness

By: James Levine

James Levine — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 11:08:22 +0000

[...] Conducting life, work and illness workingwithchronicillness.com – PeopleRank: 0 – October 8, 2009 James Levine, conductor of the Boston Symphony and the New York Metropolitan Opera is finding that out. He's missed opening performances — and an indeterminate number hereafter — for surgery on a ….. + vote [...]

By: Robin Montesano

Robin Montesano — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 21:22:46 +0000

Maestro,

The magic words are “replaceable”

By: Rosalind

Rosalind — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 20:46:32 +0000

Sure, a more steady job would mean that you don’t have the recovery period. BUT – does it exist and for you? And, you do recover and you recognize that, even if the doctors don’t. Most doctors think they’re doing their patients a favor saying they should find different work. But what’s the reality? Stress comes in many forms and a toxic work environment, low salary and boredom can be stressful and create pain and/or fatigue, too! Too bad your dr’s don’t realize that.

By: Mary

Mary — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 20:04:01 +0000

I am very fortunate – and I recognize that! But sometimes I have difficulty getting my doctors to recognize it. The flip side of a job predicated on results are “do or die” deadlines. For example, a couple of months ago I had a week when went to work when a “normal” person would have stayed in bed – I was having a major flare, and was forced to take maximal allowable doze of my painkillers and deal with their side-effects as well. But I had a deadline, and if I missed it, we would lose a contract that provided my and one more person’s salary, and the work could not be delegated. Regardless of my manager’s supportiveness, my job would not have survived a disaster of that magnitude. So I had to somehow do it, even if it meant that a 2 days worth of work took me a week, and I had to spend the entire following weekend in bed, collapsed from pain and exhausion. And it was one situation that could not managed better because it depended on multiple people doing their tasks first, so it wasn’t something that I could manage by clever scheduling.

My take is, even with periodic stressful times like this, the fact that my employer values me overweighs the stressful aspects of the job. But I get a lot of feedback from doctors who suggest that a more “steady” job would make me better. Hearing your story of a chronically ill saleslady, and similar stories from other chronically ill people I met, just reinforces my belief that there is no “perfect” job, and staying on the top (even if it’s not the “absolute” top), if you can manage it, is not a bad idea for a chronically ill person, despite the stress involved getting there.

By: Rosalind

Rosalind — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 19:11:29 +0000

You’re fortunate that your employer recognizes your value. The pressure you feel to keep up is “normal”. Everyone worries about that, don’t they? You’re also lucky to be in a place which gives you that flexibility. I only wish that were true of all jobs!

By: Mary

Mary — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 18:21:32 +0000

My employer is patient with my problems, which makes me lucky. But I can see another twist at “being at the top”. I am certainly not at the top, but I am good at what I do, and I would be quite difficult to replace – basically, if I were to leave the job, this would cost my employer at least 6 months delay on two different projects I lead. Thus, taking several sick days here and there, in addition to taking all my vacation time to make sure that I get proper rest, is a better deal for my employer, and my manager is very supportive.

But this just makes me more keenly aware that I need to stay productive. My employer is supportive because, at my current level of productivity, I still get consistently good results on my projects, better than some healthy people around me. But if I had to take an extended delay – e.g. hip replacement which may take up to 6 months recovery – I am not sure that this would be possible.

I do feel a pressure to “keep up” – find ways to make myself productive, to compensate for sick days, to work harder when I am well in order to keep my level of productivity. I am sure it adds to my stress. And yet in many ways it’s a good environment for someone chronically ill, because I am ultimately judged by project outcomes, and not by hours spent at work, and can use my schedule flexibly to work round doctors appointments and not-so-good days that inevitably come with chronic illness.

By: Tweets that mention Working With Chronic Illness -- Topsy.com

Tweets that mention Working With Chronic Illness -- Topsy.com — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:06:42 +0000

[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Rosalind Joffe and Rosalind Joffe . Rosalind Joffe said: Reading how world class conductor and store sales person deal w/#chronic illness & work: http://bit.ly/FnPfJ Pl RT! [...]

By: Meghan M. Biro

Meghan M. Biro — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:33:08 +0000

Thought-provoking post Rosalind. You share important insights here – thanks for shedding light on the invisible illness factors that many people quietly struggle with when real-life intersects career reality. Agree, it’s definitely less challenging for people who have achieved a certain level of career security. There are no easy answers – the conversation must continue.