- Date posted
- 7y
- Date posted
- 7y
Good for you for standing up for yourself. You need to be getting scheduled breaks. It’s disgusting that teachers have to deal with that. For everyone who doesn’t know ADA is the Americans with Disabilities Act and we can ask for reasonable accommodations from our employer so that we can do our job because OCD is considered a disability.
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 7y
I’m so sorry that you’re employer doesn’t believe in giving you the breaks you deserve. A job should not stress you to the point of suicide. That’s terrible. I told my boss about my OCD because she criticized me for being too “panicked” about a certain unexpected/stressful situation at work (I am a social work supervisor so stress is part of the job but this situation was over the top and honestly uncalled for). Anyway, her response was that if I have OCD, I should have performed the task better because I would’ve paid closer attention to detail. I was so angry she would stereotype me like that! Anyway, I decided not to make any formal complaint about that comment but now that I’ve disclosed the disability, I know I’ll have some recourse if they make any further comments or try to penalize me for something directly related to the OCD. It’s terrible to have to think of things that way, but we need to stand up for and protect ourselves. We have rights.
- Date posted
- 7y
@justbee you are SO brave. My ADA is requesting for me to go part time. Regardless of my OCD, my job is expecting too much from one person. I'm in constant fight or flight mode and it's so bad on my physical health. Financially this will turn us upside down, but I'd rather be poor than no longer on earth. You are so brave for quitting. I want to, but my husband doesn't have insurance. I keep applying for other jobs, but no luck yet. I really wanted to work at The Disney Store lol
- Date posted
- 7y
I am so proud of you. I am/was a teacher for two years. It was so bad that I had to quit. I barely made it to the end of the school year Alive. My principal was a dick and was not helpful or accommodating. They even refused my request off to go to the psychiatrist I had waited months to get in to. Now I have a part time gymnastics coaching job and my husband thankfully found a better job, and we moved from a house to apartment so I can be home to heal. It has been so hard to not be hard on myself - I miss my students so much.
- User type
- OCD Conqueror
- Date posted
- 7y
@AmyGirl, try to look at going part time as an opportunity to explore something you’ve always wanted to do, as opposed to doing something out of necessity. I often will daydream about what career/lifestyle I would have chosen if I didn’t need to rely on my current income. I’m hopeful that, some day, I will be able to explore some of those avenues.
Related posts
- Date posted
- 18w
I’ve been spiraling since a workplace incident last Thursday. I had an uncomfortable and tense interaction with a colleague, and it triggered a lot of obsessive rumination. I spent the whole weekend crying, panicking, and replaying everything that happened. Today, I went back to work — and it was really hard. Everyone acted like nothing happened. They joke with him, treat him normally, even though he bullied me and I’m just… sitting there. I didn’t greet him, and he didn’t greet me. I kept to myself, answered questions when I had to, but didn’t socialize. Now I feel scared. Like I’m walking on eggshells. I keep thinking: “What if I say something wrong?” “What if I make a mistake and they say, ‘You see? She’s the problem’? Acting holier than thou & she's a bigot too!" I know this is partly my OCD and trauma talking, but it feels so real. Like I’m one wrong move away from being blamed or alienated. I’ve even started eating lunch in my car to feel safe. I’m trying so hard to hold boundaries, stay professional, and protect my peace. But I’m exhausted. I feel like a shell of myself and I’m scared I’ll break. I was already a little on eggshells cause most of my colleagues say or do something bigoted every now & then...my bigotry ocd is always scared that when I don't confront them. I'm condoning it & becoming them. I'm exhausted. I want to work remotely so I can stay isolated from people. I don't think I'll ever heal from this. I feel like this incident is one of those that permanently changes you. Like when my parents & siblings says I'm not the same anymore. I'm more panicked etc.
- Date posted
- 13w
Anybody here worried about this bill that just passed? My OCD is firing up again. I’m a community college student here in California who is about to turn 26 this mid November, which means I’m going to be booted off of my father’s health insurance as the law requires. And right now, my mental health (OCD that I’m trying to get diagnosed, anxiety, depression, PTSD that I’m trying to get diagnosed) is the worst that it’s probably ever been!!! And I don’t see it getting miraculously better anytime soon, these conditions are definitely chronic and will be following me for the rest of my life due to my long history of them (never got formal help until I was 16 though). I’ve been battling this stuff since I was just a little girl in the 2000s. After I turn 26 this year, I was just planning to enroll in Medicaid (Medi-Cal) when the time came so I could focus on continuing my schooling and treating my severe mental health issues along the way. I was actually feeling hopeful for once about my life. It’s going to be absolutely devastating if I lose healthcare coverage just because I won’t be able to bypass the red tape being put into place and meet those rigid requirements that the bill is going to require. There is only so much I can handle at one time due to my disabilities. I admire people who can do so many things at once (work a job, go to school, take care of children, etc.), but it’s just not me. It’s a miracle after everything, that I’m even in school and doing okay with it (4.0 GPA). I’m even enrolled in my school’s DSPS (program for disabled students). There has to be something that can be done. Losing my access to psych meds and therapy is going to make my life so much harder than it already is. It could probably even straight up kill me, which would be devastating for my family to have see me pass so horribly. Whether it’s from untreated mental illnesses or from the simple fact that I could get sick and die from whatever else due to not being able to access healthcare. Sorry for the long post. But I seriously cannot be alone in this right now…
- Date posted
- 13w
I corrected someone’s racist comment — he whispered it, I tried to shut it down, but he kept pushing. When I disengaged and went back to work, he started swinging his phone in my face. Later, he spiraled and assumed I had told everyone what he said. He attacked me in front of everyone, shouting in part about the rscist conversstion, calling me immature & saying i shouldnt talk to him. And no one said a thing. What hurts the most is that I’ve supported all of these people when they’ve had bad days (including when they cried at work) — but now, when I’m being publicly berated, I’m left out in the cold. I was even called immature and told I should never speak to him again. Honestly, I’m angry. I feel used. I’ve given so much, and now I’m spiraling, suppressing panic attacks daily. This happened almost a month ago, and I can’t let it go. I want to leave my job so badly, but it feels foolish to leave a “good” job because of this — and yet I feel bullied and emotionally unsafe. The reality is: This is the third time he’s shouted at me. We spoke previous times, I told him dont shout at me & apologised and I forgave him — twice. I don’t shout back. As a Black woman, I’m painfully aware of how I’ll be perceived. So I just take it. So now I just don’t greet him. He doesn’t greet me either. The silence gives me peace — but deep down, I’m spiraling because no one held him accountable. People moved on like nothing happened, and it feels like they think I’m the issue. I didn’t say anything racist. I didn’t cause this. So why was I left unprotected? Especially since they claimed they agreed with my response & that his racism was wrong. I tried to confront the bigotry ocd & protect another class of people. I got berated. My sister made a good point — this is work. These people don’t have to protect me. We’re not friends. But I’m still hurt. No more lunches. No more small talk. I’m not trying to be petty, but I’ve changed my behavior. I let him leave the office first, so if he doesn’t say goodbye, it’s clear. But on the two occasions I left early, I felt guilty for not saying bye — and now I’m spiraling about that too. I feel so alone in this. Like I’m carrying the weight of this entire situation in silence. And maybe… five years in this job is too long anyway. Someone please drag me. I have no close friends, my sister & my parents are tired of discussing this. My therapist wants me to be her & confront him or be passively aggressively mean. But I'm like this man won't react. This is the third occasion & corporate.
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