Forced to resign due to disability - need advice

Casey1709

It’s OK, Martin Lewis was around for dinner tonight as he wanted some advice.

I’m glad you agree you give out wrong information. You said you would not post again but here you are.

Genuineguy03

Andromeda

You certainly are stuck inregards to JSA etc.

And whilst the law would require your employer to make reasonable adjustments, such as reducing your hours. Its certainly an option to enquire about. But if you feel that you still wouldn't be able to fulfill your duties then its understandable for you to not pursue that option. And I suspect fear of dismissal be on back of your mind too if they agree to reduced hours.

Have you looked at ESA? Or PIP.

Genuineguy03

Your right Casey, I did say I wouldn't reply again. But then in came the personal insults. And I do have the right to change my mind.

I certainly hope you enjoyed your dinner. And i hope you released Martin afterwards, as I don't think Lara his wife be too happy if you kept him in your custody. Nor would Lara be fooled into believing you were giving him advice either.

LilElvis

Genuineguy03 wrote: »

@Lilelvis

The OP said she was struggle to do more than 20hrs. Therefore reduction in her hours is a reasonable adjustment

Conditions like endometriosis don't just flare up outside of working hours! Even the OP recognises that a change in hours/ days won't work:

Andromeda14 wrote: »

But the reality is that I can't just pick and choose which days i'm able to work and don't expect my employer to be okay with that. I recognise that if they cannot rely on me to be there every day then that means I am unable to fulfill my contractual duties regardless of whether or not I have a disability.

Genuineguy03

Lilelvis

May have escaped your attention, but disagreement was about whether reduction of working hours was deemed a reasonable adjustment - in general.

And some people can and do work when suffering chronic pain, albeit not necessary full time hours.

As the OP orinigally stated they managed to do up to 20hrs before it became a struggle for her. That's what my initial advise was based on. The op also stated that she had asked if she could reduce the number of days. A reduction in hours to part time. Could haveeant only working 14 hours over 2 days a week.

Now I accept the OP feels its best for her to leave, as that is her choice to make, not anybody elses. But its only right she knows what her options could have been if she formally requested a reduction of hours as a reasonable adjustment to part time hours, with hours and days to be negogiated, to enable her to continue in employment.

Or is the rule of thumb in this forum to advise those in similar situations as to the OP to forget it and leave? - without advising them on what options are available to them, so they can make an informed decision based on knowing what said options are available. Think id prefer to know what my options are, more than i being fobbed of with a simple "I feel for you, you should leave"!

Savvy_Sue

Andromeda14 wrote: »

My problem is that if I wait to be dismissed then I can never really return because I will be blacklisted and working through my breakdown and agoraphobia will feel like its all been for nothing but if i hand my notice in I am still unfit to just jump into another job and will not be able to claim JSA or disability benefits (don't meet the criteria) so unless I am miraculously cured from my pain in the next week or so then it's a poor outcome either way!

Which is why I suggested, some time ago, that looking at part-time jobs within your institution would be a good idea.

Casey1709

Genuineguy03 wrote: »

Your right Casey, I did say I wouldn't reply again. But then in came the personal insults. And I do have the right to change my mind.

I certainly hope you enjoyed your dinner. And i hope you released Martin afterwards, as I don't think Lara his wife be too happy if you kept him in your custody. Nor would Lara be fooled into believing you were giving him advice either.

You really are comedy gold inventing things that were not written. What makes you think Martin was a prisoner. Martin doesn’t tell his wife everything he needs advice on.

Remember to keep looking up to me.

sangie595

Whilst I am sypathetic to your situation, you are relying on sooner questionable premises..

Andromeda14 wrote: »

Since you are a sufferer, you should really know it takes on average 7.5 years from the onset of symptoms to get a diagnosis because the doctors fob you off. If you are going to attempt to quote dodgy statistics, at least quite them correctly. Endometriosis UK may be a respected support group, but a self selected group of people on Survey Monkey is (a) not reliable statistical data, and (b) that claim includes the time periods, often substantial, when women haven't even sought treatment from the doctor. You can't be fobbed off by a doctor you haven't even seen! So yes, the road to diagnosis is incredibly long. The pain absolutely can be constant. Everyone experiences it differently and it can be so debilitating you physically cannot move so I think it's safe to say it can impact significantly on ones ability to work. I didn't say that it didn't. I said that it isn't classed as a disability. It is a health condition. There are women out there on morphine that still doesn't even begin to touch the pain! I'm actually quite surprised you would come on here and make these damaging, sweeping statements which are entirely incorrect. No. You are making massive sweeping statements based on extreme cases (which your are not) and dodgy statistics. My statements are entirely correct and rely on the norm. If, since it is thought 1 in 10 women have endo, everyone was in the circumstances you describe, industry would grind to a halt. Just ask any woman on any endometriosis forum and i'm pretty sure they would disagree with everything you just said. More dodgy statistics. Of course they might - people on fora tend to represent self selecting groups. If you ask people on this forum you'd tend to find that they think employers are unfair. Funny that. Must be because it's the kind of forum that attracts people with that view.Quite often it's missed during laparoscopy because unless you're seen by a specialist in endometriosis, a general gynecologist won't have a clue. Wow, I think you'll find that since gynecologists are the specialists, they'd disagree with you telling them they don't know their job! And the only way to ensure you're seen by someone with experience is to go privately. The current wait time for an NHS laparoscopy in my area is 3-6 months. So, not 7.5 years then?Anyway, wasn't really looking for endo advice but thanks for your input.

To everyone else, i'm sorry my original post erupted into an argument. I have read all the comments and thank you all for the advice. I'm not looking for a payout or anything like that. I genuinely care about my job and don't want to be dismissed especially since I've worked so hard through the agoraphobia to get back.

But the reality is that I can't just pick and choose which days i'm able to work and don't expect my employer to be okay with that. I recognise that if they cannot rely on me to be there every day then that means I am unable to fulfill my contractual duties regardless of whether or not I have a disability.

My problem is that if I wait to be dismissed then I can never really return because I will be blacklisted and working through my breakdown and agoraphobia will feel like its all been for nothing but if i hand my notice in I am still unfit to just jump into another job and will not be able to claim JSA or disability benefits (don't meet the criteria) so unless I am miraculously cured from my pain in the next week or so then it's a poor outcome either way!

Despite the fact that you seem to have managed to find a website with some information about endometriosis, you seem to have missed some information. The treatments are not complex, and even as a temporary measure until you have a diagnosis, there is absolutely no reason why your GP cannot prescribe drugs which are known to have reliable intervention regimes. All are reversible, and they do not reduce or remove the lesions, so do not impact adversely on the conditions for proper diagnosis. Painkillers are not the treatment of choice. Some people may select to use painkillers only, but for their own reasons. So why are you not having that conversation with your GP? They can easily prescribe drugs that will almost certainly reduce or (in many cases) eradicate the symptoms. Wouldn't that be a more effective outcome than giving up your job, or getting dismissed?

Andromeda14

sangie595 wrote: »

Whilst I am sypathetic to your situation, you are relying on sooner questionable premises..


Despite the fact that you seem to have managed to find a website with some information about endometriosis, you seem to have missed some information. The treatments are not complex, and even as a temporary measure until you have a diagnosis, there is absolutely no reason why your GP cannot prescribe drugs which are known to have reliable intervention regimes. All are reversible, and they do not reduce or remove the lesions, so do not impact adversely on the conditions for proper diagnosis. Painkillers are not the treatment of choice. Some people may select to use painkillers only, but for their own reasons. So why are you not having that conversation with your GP? They can easily prescribe drugs that will almost certainly reduce or (in many cases) eradicate the symptoms. Wouldn't that be a more effective outcome than giving up your job, or getting dismissed?

YOU are the one making massive sweeping statements and doing every person who suffers a massive disservice with your assumptions on my pain levels, what treatment I have or haven't sought and ignorant dismissals.
You said in your post "not likely to impact on work" - your exact words. Not that I have to justify myself to you but my pain is so bad that I can't move and I faint. Which means in my case, this impacts massively on my ability to work.
I have been back and forth to the doctors for years about this but since I am in my 20's all they've done is pump me full of different hormones and tell me it's probably IBS, will settle once i've had a baby and refused to do further testing. It's incredibly demoralising and my experience isn't unique.
As I have a stomach condition, caused by years of being fobbed off with NSAIDs, I am limited to the types of pain relief available to me and the ones that do work have made me so drowsy that i've not been in a fit state to go into work. I have been back and forth to my GP about 100000 times trying an array of different pain medication in order to function. But again, thank you for your assumptions.
You're assuming my case isn't an 'extreme case' based on what? One forum post? Therein lies the problem. Thank goodness we have endometriosis experts such as yourself telling people how to feel.
I saw a new GP who listened to me and suspected endo immediately, referred me to a gynecologist back in June, after a very long wait I saw that gynecologist last month who, just from reading my notes, completely dismissed me and decided it was IBS and told me to go down that route first before he would do a laparoscopy. Really easy though yeah?
If you check the NICE guidelines if you have suspected endometriosis you have to be referred to a gynecologist with a special interest in endo who has also completed further training which most of them have not done. If you have suspected severe endo, general gynecologists are legally not allowed to treat you and you must be referred to a BSGE specialist centre. But GPs aren't aware of these rules let alone the patients so that's why it's frequently misdiagnosed and why in my case I was referred to someone who didn't have a clue and told me it can't possibly be endometriosis as it only causes pain during menstruation not all the time as in my case (which is the biggest load of rubbish in the world)
I am now forking out money I don't have for a private appointment with a specialist next as being dismissed and not listened to for the past 7 months, wondering why I can't just get up and get on with things like everyone else, why it isn't really 'easy' for me has left me on the brink of suicide.
Just because your experience hasn't been severe doesn't mean everyone else is as lucky.
Pain management is one thing, but the treatments for endometriosis can certainly be complex dependent on how progressive the disease is and where it's grown. You're telling me having a hysterectomy is not a complex treatment option? Removing endo from the bowel and bladder ins't complex? You're suddenly a surgeon now too?!
I can't even be bothered saying any more. If fellow sufferers aren't taking symptoms seriously and being dismissive of a persons ability to function then what hope do we have for people with no clue about what it's like?!

Andromeda14

Genuineguy03 wrote: »

Andromeda

You certainly are stuck inregards to JSA etc.

And whilst the law would require your employer to make reasonable adjustments, such as reducing your hours. Its certainly an option to enquire about. But if you feel that you still wouldn't be able to fulfill your duties then its understandable for you to not pursue that option. And I suspect fear of dismissal be on back of your mind too if they agree to reduced hours.

Have you looked at ESA? Or PIP.

Yes, but i've heard and read that it is notoriously difficult to get benefits for mental health conditions, especially anxiety. I can cook and clean and look after myself and pay bills etc so I don't think I meet their strict criteria. I will look into it further though thank you.

Savvy_Sue wrote: »

Which is why I suggested, some time ago, that looking at part-time jobs within your institution would be a good idea.

Yes but reducing my hours won't make a difference if I have a flare up of pain that falls on a day when i'm supposed to be in. I did read everyone's advice.
This forum is so hostile