Is it risky to get signed off work with stress or depression?

[Workquery1]

Previously diagnosed with ASD and depression. Declared ASD at work but I’ve not asked for ASD reasonable adjustments because not even sure what would be allowed. Never mentioned I have depression as worry about stigma

Recently depression has badly flared due to stressors at my job. I don’t have energy to shower daily or do basic self care. Bad IBS and insomnia too.

I cannot risk losing my job though especially with the current job market

Received good performance review but because of this manager continues to throw more workload including responsibility that is above my job ‘grade’. I’m regularly tearful because of the amount of pressure and workload is tough to keep up with. I tried so hard to politely decline the offer to take on extra responsibility due to workload and a knowledge gap but it was still forced on me. Now I’m soo stressed I will forget to eat three meals a day, no energy to do anything after work, fall asleep without brushing my teeth, and the constant dread of work the next morning. I’m scared I’ve forgotten to do something at work due to my brain being overwhelmed and I’ll get in trouble, be the ‘scapegoat’

There is also lots micromanaging, if you slightly overran on your lunch break or showed away for too long on teams, the manager will come for you.

This extra project I’ve taken on I’m pretty sure I’ve made plenty of mistakes and I’m just so scared what will happen. But I’m a junior grade and I never volunteered to be given this responsibility.

I’m really struggling to cope lately and having intrusive thoughts to be free from work (eg dreaming of walking on tube tracks before work or stepping into road).

Is it too risky if I get signed off work with depression? I’m public sector FS but not civil service if that makes a difference. I worry it may be seen as an ‘excuse’ or it may jeopardise my career (finding job market impossible so very grateful I at least have a job)

Thanks but I’m not too sure I have many marketable skills anymore. ChatGPT thinks I do 😂 but not sure how accurate it is. I’ve luckily always worked after uni but now feel like there’s not enough junior jobs in London these days

The junior jobs that do still exist are either extremely competitive (sometimes even 500 - 1000 applicants for a job!) or they have very strict / specific requirements that rule me out. Transferable skills don’t seem to count for much these days, I found it easier to get interviews with my weaker less tailored CV a few years ago compared to now

Apologies just realised I accidentally sent reply twice forgotten I’d replied yesterday sorry shows what a mess my brain is

& thank tou all for comments

Can you you take two weeks annual leave. Get yourself together and focus on a long term strategy. This way no sick leave needed adding to your stresses.

Another issue is the micromanaging impacts our annual leave too. Quite a few rules for annual leave, you need to give at least 1 month notice to take just one day of annual leave and for taking as long as two weeks off you’d have to give much more notice. Also can’t take annual leave if it overlaps with some projects and can’t take it if two people from the team are already on annual leave.

I check our calendar/ schedule few times before requesting annual leave dates and I’ll be nervous waiting for the reply, as they will send a passive aggressive ‘reminder’ about the rules which we should be aware of if you accidentally requested a day which breaks one of the above^ they will think you did it with malicious intent rather than a mistake.

I make sure to phrase it politely and say “if it would be possible please could I request…” I don’t simply expect to be given a day off

You wont lose your job unless you are off for a very long time( >a year) but in some places it may limit your progression opportunities, wrongly.

In my experience of public sector, previous sick won’t be an issue.

I was off for several months before leaving and starting a new job (both public sector but not related). I had to declare my sickness as part of the application. I was very, very worried as it was my dream job but honestly, it barely came up. They did an occupational health referral which I didn’t even have until several weeks after I started, and OH were far more interested in the back problems I disclosed (which I had no sick leave for) than the 3 months I’d had off with depression.

Thanks but my biggest fear is that having sick leave (potentially could be 10 days) comes up on my reference and makes me a red flag to new employers who may then withdraw a job offer.

No one in the team has been promoted in the past 6 years, only one person who left team entirely to start different role internally

Go on Facebook and search up the work from home hub

There’s plenty remote jobs on there - not sure what your current role is but there’s a good variety of roles so you might find something

I’m an employer, and I absolutely would not withdraw a job offer because someone had been off for 10 days. You sound in a really negative place, which isn’t surprising if you are feeling stressed.

Please speak to your GP, and once you have had a bit of a reset, think about how you approach things at work. If they don’t know about your neurodiversity and your mental health issues, then they can’t do anything to support you at work. Is there an EAP you can access at work? (Employee assistance programme). Buried away at work there will be something about getting an occ health referral or requesting reasonable adjustments. Find that information. Don’t assume HR won’t understand, they often get a bad rep because people see them as on the side of the company etc. They are a business function, but part of their job is to ensure that the company meets it’s legal obligations - if you can disclose your neurodiversity and mental health, they should, in the public sector, have appropriate processes in place.

I spoke to HR before about struggling with job due to ASD and wanting reasonable adjustments. I was told for reasonable adjustments I need an occupational health referral and I will have to first inform my team leader and line manager who will then choose to refer me. I then asked HR is there anyway I can self refer as I’m not comfortable for them to know nature of my disability but they said they don’t think it’s possible to self refer to occupational health

My issue is I’m too scared to disclose and ask for referral from team leader and manager, especially as one is a bully who will tell the other bully in team (they are very close even outside of work)

Also I don’t even know how to phrase reasonable adjustments without it being seen as being lazy. I don’t know if reducing workload will even be possible, if they give it to others team will build resentment and worsen bullying

thank you, I’m not sure if I’ve accidentally looked at wrong thing, but tried a few different groups on Facebook and most opportunities seemed rather sketchy?

I always presumed fully remote jobs will be far more competitive anyway

I’m currently in a FS operational role and I don’t mind working from the office (ideally at least 1/2 days wfh but willing to work entirely from the office if it means leaving current job sooner)

DH has been signed off work for six months and going back next month. It was stress. GP could see how badly it was affecting him. He's got other jobs he can try when he returns through his employer. He gets two trials to see if a job suits and if nothing can be done he will retire on medical grounds.

Hopefully your symptoms can be managed well enough to carry on but if not get signed off and look after yourself.

Join a union ASAP. If you are already a member, please contact them for advice and support. If you can, maybe use your employer’s counselling service. Please take card of yourself.

Occupational health is your first port of call for all stuff ASD related if you're after reasonable adjustments.

Definitely join a union. DH had his union rep at meetings. Makes a difference.

@user1476613140 I’m so sorry to hear your DH went through this, and wishing him well

Apologies not sure if you saw my previous post but to get an occupational health referral I’m too scared to go through team leader and line manager. HR said self referral to occupational health is not possible even though I have medical evidence of my diagnosis

Think we have a union for banks but never joined as it’s quite an expensive monthly cost, will look into it

I think this going off with stress is absolutley fine if situation is short term and or can be changed.. If it's just the nature of the job itself and unlikely to change I think you'd be back to square one as soon as you go back to work so depending on if it's just work life then I'd focus on finding a new job .

I do understand your fear, but it is impossible to put reasonable adjustments in place without your manager being involved or aware. It really does sound like you’re in a very negative place, and I do understand why, so you really need to focus on getting better before you can think about how to deal with work, which is why I’d really recommend speaking to your GP or EAP first.

have tried so hard to stay focused on finding new job, but years on and nothing is working, no employer is willing to give me a chance even when its supposedly a junior role

According to news articles, there has been a significant reduction in junior jobs in the UK so feels impossible to escape

I’ve lowered my standards, never mind a ‘side step’ I’m now willing to take a pay cut that will mean I earn less than my first job after uni (that was over four years ago)

You don't need to disclose anything to your employer to use the Access to Work Mental Health Support Service (via Able Futures or Maximus), although they can support you with talking to your employer about reasonable adjustments sometimes.

You sound like you've got yourself stuck in a doom loop and you do need to do something to break that.

I am not sure that "talking to" ChatGPT about this on a daily basis is going to help. It's just predictive text trained to say what you want to hear, so there's a risk it just reinforces how you already feel and feeds you misleading information. It doesn't understand what you're saying to it and it doesn't understand the responses it's giving you.

I agree with this. I think you need to to stop hyperfixating on applying for other jobs, and talk to Chat GPT about strategies for boundary setting in the workplace instead. Otherwise you will just take this issue into your future employment.

Thanks will look into it

I do feel pathetic relying on chatgpt but at same time I don’t know how else to improve my prospects and I need chatgpt to review my CV because don’t have anyone in real life to review it. Whilst at university I had careers service which I used a lot but no longer able to use them as it’s been a while since I’ve graduated.
Also many people recommend to use ChatGPT to help with job applications including those with prestigious careers. Many employers are using AI to write job ads and then to review initial applications

Obviously I wouldn’t get it to write my CV or application from scratch because know it would look too obvious, I just get feedback on grammar or how to rephrase things

I have worked for other employers and never experienced bullying or this type of toxic environment. Funnily enough when I first joined my company I initially worked in different team with different managers and never felt like this, my life has turned upside down since working with these people

I think some may think I’m simply exaggerating or my autism makes me incapable of coping in a normal corporate job because I can’t set boundaries but I personally think my current role and having to work with these people is toxic. I’m sorry to say but I thibk some people who have luckily never experienced work bullying don’t understand how bad it gets

You know nothing about my life experience, and as it happens I have experienced bullying and toxic workplaces. That is precisely why I know how important being able to set boundaries is.