NC for obvious reasons but I'm aregular.
I handed in my notice 2 weeks ago and have every intention of working it in full, my new job doesnt start until 2nd January.
I have GAD (generalized anxiety disorder) and although I've had flare ups every few months, I've never needed to take any time off for it and I manage it with CBT, fluoxitine and propranolol. After my initial diagnosis and up until now I've managed it pretty well and to me it's just been an annoying background "thing" I have to deal with, I havent been as bad as I was right at the beginning since I started medication etc. When I was first diagnosed, I was offered time off work but I said at the time I wanted to continue working because I bloody loved my job and I actually think it massively helped to keep going on as normal.
Anyway, my company had a restructure and this meant me giving up my team management responsibilities (I had 16 direct reports and I LOVED my job) to be more focused on client management. This is why I handed in my notice in the first place, the job wasnt what I wanted anymore and it was with a very heavy heart that I realised I had started to hate my new role and dreaded going to work for the first time ever. I've been here 4 years and I'm one of the longest standing member of staff in my office, so I've got a lot of friends and support here. Until now, my anxiety has never been related to work at all.
Anyway, since the job change my anxiety is starting to snowball. Instead of an occasional blip every few months, I'm currently experiencing panic every day and I've stopped sleeping because I'm dreading work. I've also started making little errors because I'm tired and overstretched and I can't concentrate at all.
At the weekends I'm not leaving the house and I've lost all motivation to get dressed and get myself out which is completely unlike me. Every morning I'm bursting into tears at least once as I get dressed and in the car because the feeling of panic and worry is overwhelming me a bit.
I'm now really worried this is morphing into depression. I've never had issues sleeping and even at my worst with the anxiety when I was first diagnosed I never lost the will to get up and out of the house. I just have a really strong "something is really wrong" feeling all the time and it's not ok.
Writing that out, I need to go and see my GP and I think I need to not be at work for a couple of weeks until I can get myself level.
How does that work with work as I'm technically in my notice period, albeit right at the beginning of it? Does that mean they can not pay me for that time? What's the law on this? I can't afford to not be paid so if that's possible I'll need to be in work but if I do that the liklihood is this is going to get a hell of a lot worse unless they can prescribe/ offer more intensive treatment?
Argh.