Holidays/festivals whilst on the sick

When I'm signed of work for mental health (bipolar) and im having a manic episode you should see the crazy shit I've done it looks like I'm having the time of my life. Thankfully a lot more people are clued up on mental illness now so are less judgemental

Speaking as someone who is going through this atm, all of the above. It’s bloody murder. Self-employed so trying to keep going, but I think I’m going to have to take some time off after my current project finishes. Even if I was still salaried though and on a fit note, I wouldn’t be letting anyone tell me I couldn’t leave the house. I was signed off once with depression and the doctor specifically told me to do things that would give me a lift, including things that involved going out. I felt so much more ready to return because I’d spent time actually listening to what my body and brain needed.

I think it is taking the piss

in my twenty years of teaching I have had time off sick for mental and physical health. and there is no way I would feel well enough to go to a festival if I was not well enough to go to work.

I had a horrendous miscarriage with a horrific bleed two weeks later. I felt guilty for going to look at bedroom cabinet on the day I was due to go back.

if one felt well enough to be at a festival I think one would be well enough to be at work.

If they are well enough (mental or physical) to go to a festival and still don’t feel well enough to go to work- They need to get a new job. The job is the issue not the illness.

Tricky, especially if it’s mental health. Our organisations stance is that you are still entitled to live your life whilst unable to work. My stance as a manager is be considerate to your colleagues and carefully consider what you post online.

Ah.

This is why after my breakdown I was too scared to leave the house (well that and the psychosis making me believe oaps were spying on me for the government 😬) I remember being off sick and terrified to even go to the shop in case someone saw me.

After I then tried to kill myself and lost my job I basically struggled to leave the house at all for the next 6 months. I remember telling my psychiatrist of my fears of being judged. You know what she told me? "You can't hide inside forever, it's not healthy to isolate yourself. You need to try and push back against those thoughts and get out in public. You need to speak to people and see people. Starng at 4 walls will not help your depression but trying to get out and live again might " I tried to make excuses including that I couldn't afford to travel, after losing my job, her solution was making sure I applied for a disabled persons bus pass, she signed the forms to confirm I was too mentally unstable to drive, (which admittedly at the time was very true if I'd had a car back then I'd have driven myself off a cliff or into traffic quite frankly) so then I literally did not have that excuse to not leave the house.

And eventually I started venturing out. First to the local shop, then I worked my way up to the supermarket (though after 9pm when it was dead and not busy)..and yes..who k horror I also ventured out socially to spend time with friends. None of me doing any of that negated the fact that at that time I ABSOLUTELY was not well enough to be able to work.

I do work now, but ironically Im kind of back in the same situation of not leaving the house, having a life or any kind of hobbies. Simply because I have to put all of my energy into trying to stay on top on my mental illness whilst working. Id love to have a life outside of work but after I've been at work I am mentally, emotionally and physically drained and quite simply do not have the bandwidth or energy to do anything more than rest in-between work. 🙃

Common because the NHS fucks your mental health.

Do what you need to do. Anyone else can get stuffed.
Sorry about your DM

Diagnosed anxiety isn't being a little bit worried about something.
It's 100mph thought patterns and chatter in your brain and once you've examined that conundrum from every angle and solved it.
Well here's another to be getting on with it can be relentless .
Oh and if you've a partner you may feel the need to vocalise this repeatedly .🤯

Back in 2019 I had 10 weeks off with work-related stress. While i didn't do loads and didn't post about it on SM my GP did encourage me to go out as much as possible and engage in things that make me happy. If going on holiday or festivals make them happy and they do not have the time/ability/funds to go while working why shouldn't they go when they are not

NHS staff here. Common place in nhs. These people know how to play the system. Lady in my team been off sick or on/off for 3 years. Takes the piss

Well holidays and fun with friends do tend to help with mental health issues.

Walk a mile in someone’s shoes before you judge. I was actively encouraged to go on away by the GP and work whilst off with stress. i didn’t however post it on social media.

I am off at the moment with mental health and I have posted pictures at my Cousin’s wedding, at the beach, the pub etc. These photos were with my Mum who has died today of pancreatic cancer. She was given between 3 to 6 months to live and lasted just over 2 months. I cherished ever moment with her and hope my colleagues and friends understand.

Yep, I only added colleagues after I left that job.
You open yourself up to a whole world of trouble if you add people on SM that you still work with.

I think the line is already set and that is with OH and GP.... not collegues,

Absolutely. People from work generally shouldn’t add each other on social media, precisely to avoid situations like this. My colleagues have no business knowing what I do outside of work, and I have no interest in knowing what they do in their private lives either.

I don’t disagree, but the OP said there should be a line. The obvious rhetorical question is: where exactly is that line.

But being fit to work is more than being able to physically commute there, right? You have to be physically capable of doing the job when there.

For example, colleagues can't work where I am if they're still needing to take strong painkillers (so anything better than paracetamol!), because of the potential for impaired decision making. I've never had a broken leg and I hope I never do, but that sounds like a scenario where I'd be on more than paracetamol.

That’s kind of what I’m saying. It’s impossible to have a line, really. So if somebody is diagnosed sick (whether mental or physical, as XB pointed out) then they are. I think MH is more difficult, but valid of course. So this is where we are. Some colleagues won’t like it.

Doing something you like, and working, are totally different things with totally different demands.
If you can't see the difference then I wonder how you made it to adulthood.

Are they too anxious to do anything they don’t want to do?

That is with OH departments and GPs. Nothing to do with anyone else.

Where do you think should be the line then 🤔

Yes, fair point. But at least it can be talked about in practical terms. MH is a different matter, not always, but for HR it’s another scenario.

So you claim to know all the ins and outs of your colleagues that might be off with MH issues (BTW is a huge catch all term.. not everyone is off with depression).
I am sure their GP knows better than you.