The Forums › Forums › Emotional Journey › I'm Scared › PLEASE tell me how do you deal with it??? › Re: PLEASE tell me how do you deal with it???
I know those ups & downs at work. And I know the importance of making your employer aware of it. Under the law, it gives them big responsibilities, and it gives you big protections.
First of all, you need to meet with your company’s Human Resources department. Bipolar and Depression (and, in some places, ADHD) are legally recognized as disabilities. You should provide HR with a letter from your doctor, stating that you have these disabilities, how they affect your ability to function, and the concessions you may need because of them. The law states that your employer must take your disability into account when evaluating your performance. They cannot unreasonably withhold any concessions you may need. They cannot do things which they know (or ought reasonably to know) will be hurtful to you, or will make things more difficult for you.
And, if you have told them of your disability, they cannot tell others without your permission. Your immediate supervisor should be aware of it, but it’s up to your own discretion whether to tell your immediate co-workers.
Does your job involve a lot of paperwork? Are you in an open cubicle in the middle of the room? Do you often have to attend long meetings? These three things are huge problems for people with even one of the “trifecta” you describe. It helps to have someone help you with the paperwork, to move to a closed cubicle in a corner of the room, and to have a tacit agreement that you only need to attend certain important meetings, and that you can get up and pace or take a quick break every so often.
These next things apply to both work and home:
We have a hard time remembering things when people tell us more than a couple of things at once. We’re very visual, so we need to have those things written down. Also, it takes so much of our energy to concentrate on what we’re doing, that we can’t handle sudden interruptions. We actually physically feel it. It’s helpful to have people send you an e-mail to set up a time to meet. Or to silently leave a note for you instead of talking to you—unless it’s a real emergency, that is.
As for meeting deadlines and dealing with big tasks, break the tasks into smaller chunks that you can easily accomplish. Write them down where you can see them, and check them off as you complete each one. Just don’t get so busy organizing all this that you don’t get around to actually doing anything.
Hope this helps!
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