need time off with depression and GP not understanding

[bruby15]

Hi, I would like to ask for an opinion on my situation. I work in a highly stressful job and have been dealing with a situation of bullying, grievances, the managers are going crazy with targets and micromanaging us, constantly looking over my shoulder to see a manager hovering to see what I am doing, we have this crazy computer software as well that we have to use to log in every time we do something and log out when we have meetings or use the toilet, it is very Big Brother like situation. A couple of weeks ago I felt I could no longer cope with the madness, they increased the targets and also are going more crazy with the supervision and I was always one of their best workers however the pressure is too much. I also have an ongoing grievance with them for a salary problem. I was signed off work with depression and anxiety 2 weeks ago and the GP I spoke with was very robotic like, seemed to follow a script with her questions and very reluctant to sign me off. She finally gave me 2 weeks when I said I had suicidal thoughts. Now today had to call again to extend my sick note and again she gave me 2 weeks as she changed my medication. I was asking for a month. I am not happy she keeps on giving me 2 weeks as this causes me more stress and anxiety. I had colleagues who were signed off for 4 weeks and 6 weeks at a time and I find that more reasonable. I am very unhappy and stressed and I was wondering what shall I do to be signed off for longer . Definitely I am not able to go and face those people and I want to take several months before I consider to go back.

Gp here. Being signed off for a long time for this sort of thing is disastrous, people just then get anxious about going back and suddenly a month has turned into a year.i usually do 2w at a time with reviews each 2w and plans made about the progress back. Rarely more than 4w at a time max. Taking several months is usually a bad move. If you're being bullied you need to talk to your union.

Hi, thanks for the reply. I have been talking to the union and we are in the process of grievances however my employer seems to want to cover everything up despite the evidence and witness statements I provided. I have been dragging this feeling of hopelessness and despair for years, this was the moment I felt I could not cope any more. My GP sounded very robotic like I said , on the phone. I spoke with another GP a few weeks before going off sick as anxiety was affecting my sleep and she was offering to sign me off and sounded more human and empathetic, I did not want to get off sick at that time, I only did it when I absolutely could no longer cope. This sort of treatment from GP makes me feel even more depressed and anxious and worried. I had palpitations for months and self-medicated with 2-3 glasses of wine for the last few years after work. I stopped the wine when I was signed off sick 2 weeks ago. The wine helped me relax after work as I was coming home tied in knots and with pain all over my body because of stress. Also hemiplegic migraines. I am not someone who likes to takes the piss and takes sick leave for no reason and definitely this interaction with this GP made me feel worse and made me feel I was being seen as a fraud. Do people need to kill themselves before being believed that they are really struggling mentally?

If you sign off for too long, it becomes to hard to get back to work.
Your employer, and your doctor, are working to support you being at work. You cant just avoid dealing with the work issues for a while and hope that makes things better. To fix things, you need to be an active part of the process.

Probably stating the obvious here but if I were you I'd use the time you have off to look for another job. In your situation I would quit my job if it was making me that miserable, I'd take myself down to an employment agency and get temp work to tide me over. Would your financial situation allow this? Or do you have savings or a relative who can support you financially in the short term. I think otherwise you're just burying your head in the sand.

Honestly it sounds to be that you hate your job and are not necessarily medically depressed. They are very different things

@Crazycrazylady
Have you heard of work related stress and anxiety? It is a very real thing.

Sounds like a really tough work-situation OP.

From an outsider's perspective, your GP is trying to support you to stay in work and wants to check on you every 2 weeks - that seems pretty responsible to me?

Unfortunately it's not about what you want, it's about what you medically need and the GP is currently best placed to advise you on this (as the medical expert).

As others have said, it seems you need to focus on improving the situation rather than trying to avoid it - is looking for alternative employment an option? Or could you request a secondment to a different team while the grievance is ongoing? Lots of employers also offer Assistance Programmes which may help you access talking therapies if this is what you believe you need.

Good luck!

You need to look for a new job OP. Getting signed off can be helpful in the short term but even if you find yourself feeling better you will still be returning to this awful environment, wether that’s in two weeks time or six. I have a lot of sympathy as I have been very effected by toxic work environments in the past, unfortunately the only solution really is to leave although I know it’s not always simple or easy. Good luck

I dont feel well enough to look for a new job now. Thank you all but you are not being helpful.

Add someone who has had two periods of absence for mental ill health I would say the GP is going the right thing. Being signed off on its own will do nothing, what you need is a treatment plan. Are you starting in meds? Normally they will sign you off until these have kicked in. Off not medication what are you doing to aid your recovery? GP should only issue fit notes in conjunction with some treatment plan and also plan for return, phased out otherwise.

I am sorry things are so hard for you

If you're having suicidal thoughts then it's quite obvious that its not just a case of hating your job. Has your gp referred you for any talking therapy op? I know exactly how you feel about hating your job and and I would be having panic attacks on my way into work, i was far, far too ill to consider even applying for any other jobs. I took 5 weeks off, but they would only give me sick notes 2 weeks at a time. But all i had to do was phone up and they extended it. The doctor told me that is standard practice with my GP at least so that they can keep an eye on you. although having said that they are happy to sign me off on medication for up to a year so that doesn't really make sense!! Good luck op. Cbt has saved my life. If you haven't tried talking therapy its definitely worth considering.

Hi OP, I would explicitly ask for a longer period off work, it's clear you aren't well enough to work right now and need a break. If you've told her you're suicidal and she's still just given you 2 weeks, she's clearly not taking it seriously. Tell her you want longer and if she doesn't listen, move to a different surgery. Good luck

If you've told her you're suicidal and she's still just given you 2 weeks, she's clearly not taking it seriously

Actually, the GP giving two weeks to ensure she sees you again in two weeks is taking you seriously - to see how you are, review your antidepressant for side effects, maybe increase the dose, discuss therapy and any life changes you can make. Rather than give you a long sick note and maybe not see you for six weeks. You have assumed the worst and that the GP thinks you are a fraud, but in my experience it's standard to issue a sick note until the next appointment, not longer (unless a very long term problem, or something with a clear end date like after surgery). I'd book a face to face appointment with a GP next (the one you had a better relationship with if possible) and also start thinking about what would need to change for you to return to work and discuss with the GP.

I think the GP always signs off for the shortest time appropriate. I've been off with mental health issues since mid-November, 3 weeks spent in a psychiatric hospital. Early on my notes were for a month, when I started to improve I had 2 week notes and now I have a month again to give me time to get through a medication change.

Mental health can change quite quickly so it's better to have more regular reviews. Also like others have said, the longer you're off the harder it can be to go back and you can become more depressed due to becoming isolated and anxious about going back to work... If you're really not happy see a different GP and see if they have a different approach but it really sounds like they're acting in your best interests. Hope you start to feel better soon.

Psychiatrist here.
From what you write you sound very stressed and somewhat angry about work and now your perception that the GP isn't helping. I would say these are fairly normal human reactions given the situation rather than evidence of a mental illness such as depression (even with suicidal thoughts), although hard to tell via an online forum. Some jobs are genuinely awful. I'm not trying to minimise the issue as you're clearly distressed, but it's important to identify what is driving your unhappiness. If it is work factors, how is sick leave going to change this? What steps are you taking while on sick leave to improve your mental health? Stopping alcohol is a great idea as it's a depressant - well done for doing that.
I agree with others who recommend looking for a new job if possible. Long term sick leave is almost always bad for mental health because it raises anxiety and leads to avoidance behaviours.

Annabel makes really good points OP. I am sorry that things are tough for you at the moment. I absolutely understand how work triggered stress and pressure has an awful impact on your emotional wellbeing. I have had two periods of this and agree that prolonged absence makes things worse. Ultimately I had to make changes - work wasn't going to change. I left one job (which was hard after 18yrs) and retrained and with my current job after a week of a/l I have had a long look at what I can do to effect changes. This is hard when you are anxious but i think change is usually the only answer.
I am sorry if this isn't what you want to hear but give yourself sometime to get things into perspective and review your options.