How Low Can You Go?

[lost]

Just to the point I just don't know any more.

I'm in my late 40's and remember symptoms when I was 5 or 6. I have had 6 crohns surgery's over the last 10 years and just found out I need another resection and will likely end up with a ileostomy.

I worked as a waist water treatment operator for 10 years. I ended up getting charged for something that never happened and the charges were dropped. Due to the changes that happened from 911 I got fired and no longer able to work in waist water due what will show up when they run my record.

I'm currently working in a warehouse. When I feel great my metrics are great, but when I'm not feeling good my metrics drop. In the last 4 months I have had 2 write ups over my metrics and have told them I can not handle my work when everyone comes to me to help them with there issues when I'm not feeling good. Over the last 5 months I have dropped 35 pounds and I'm down to 114.

I'm living in a converted box semi on my parents property. It's build much better than a RV. I also have a SUV and a trailer. At this point I'm $11,000 in medical debt.

At this point I just don't know what way to go with my life. I have been told to look into disability, but talked to a disability lawyer and was told I need to be unemployed. There is no way I will make it to surgery at my current job. I just applied for a bunch of jobs, but do not see anything out there that pays within $1.50 of what I'm currently making.

What do people do once they get to this point in life?
What help is there out there to look into?

 

[t-bone]

You got this

luck favors those who stay in the game
and
chance favors the prepared


... it may not look like it sometimes, but just the fact that you're still putting in work means things willl turn around.

We've all had our tough patches, but, somehow, things always get better.

Just keep workin on it, and good things will happen



sounds like you built a cool little homespace!

Remember, as long as you got a roof over your head, everything else is just details

 

[lost]

Thank you t-boon

 

[user 446001]

Sorry you are having such a hard time with your health and with your work. Are you able to get some accommodations to make your work day a bit easier?
No one wants to have an ileostomy, but so many people say they feel so much better, and have a better quality of life once they get one.
I truly wish you well.

 

[lost]

I have looked into accommodations, but as an order picker there is not much out there. I have tried for office jobs a few times, but get told they need me on the floor to much. I have been wearing ear buds the last 2 days with no music and 100% ignored everyone that tried to talk to me. Did get 1 team leader form a different department pass me a note asking me to do something and told them I needed my manager to sing off on it.

Right before I left yesterday my manager called me into the office for a talk. He wanted to ask me why I was not helping people and why he needed to sing off on me doing stuff for other departments. I pulled up the same graphs they used on me to write me up and how there were 2 team leaders working in our department at the time that should be taking care of the issues.

I decided to take over and went down the road of root cause analysis and it came down to poor training by the 2 team leaders. I also pulled up his graphs comparing the 2 team leaders metrics to mine showing how bad there doing and asked why they are training people. I made a proposal to sit down and make a PowerPoint covering all the main issues the pickers have as long as some else would do the voice over. This way they could get all the new people to watch it a few times during there training and would have all the needed info on how to do there job. I just got an email approving me an office day Thursday to make a PowerPoint with a few hours of the person that will do the voice over for it.

 

[Delta_hippo]

Sounds like you are being as proactive as you can. Good luck to you and I hope you catch a break soon.

 

[lost]

Thank you Delta_hippo

 

[t-bone]

How's things?

Anything we can help with?

 

[lost]

Life is sill no great. I'm hanging in there.

I'm doing a lot of thinking and looking at all my options.

 

[t-bone]

Good to hear you're still in the game!

This is just a tough condition, in a tough year, and for many of us, we feel pretty alone and isolated at times.
... people that have never been thru what we go thru on a daily basis will never "get" what it's like

We're lucky to have this forum to act as our extended family during these challenges

If you have any questions or need anything don't hesitate to ask!

you are not alone, we will always be here for you!

 

[cmack]

AMEN!

 

[cmack]

I got your back too. We're all in the same boat to some degree.

 

[lost]

I ended up asking the DR for a low long round of prednisone and went to weekly shots of Humira.

Work has been a bit better. We had a mass casualty code (I work in a medical warehouse for a group of hospitals) and forgot I was on the call list. I was the only one that showed up out of 5 called (the 3 team leaders did not show up). Ended up getting everything picked, shipped, and delivered in under 90 minutes.

My department head has called me into the office a few times to talk. My department head was not aware of some of the stuff going on and is trying to change a few things.

 

[t-bone]

Sounds like real progress!

Super cool your bosses are working with you as well!

There's a lot of times it feels like one step forward and two back, but it's so cool when you can get a couple steps in the right direction
You, and you alone did that by staying in the game and doing what you could when you could


I admire your persistence!