Maintaining a Job!?!?!!?

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Slandur

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Just curious what kind of jobs you guys have? I tried maintaining a busser position to no avail. On my feet and leaked too much... I'm still working on my degree so can't find any "real" jobs, or so my parents say. So I'm stuck in a bad job market with crohn's. I think I'd be able to do 4 hour shifts part time, but I can't find them! I know some of us can't work. That's why I play online poker, it's the only job I can do from the toilet.


So who's working and how hard? :D
 
I worked for five years in the Kroger produce department, then got fed up with the BS, then went to be a financial cashier for a hospital, then the hospital got bought out by Ohio Health and then they didn't need the cashier's position, then I eventually went back to kroger for another 4 years to finish the physical damage they started, then became a stay at home Dad for our daughter, since the wife had better job potential (yeah, how's that for role reversal folks!). So now I'm finally working on jump-starting the career I've actually always been meant for, novelist and screenwriter.

And yeah, bussing tables'd be a b**ch even without Crohn's. I've got a sis that was a waitress for years that now manages a restaurant in Chicago. I heard many of the tales.
 
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job?? What is that lol

I am finally a fully qualified accountant and finding a job has been a nightmare! Mornings for me are always terrible. Every job I have applied for want an 8am start, I physically cannot get ready for that time! If only flexible working hours were an option, but they arent :(

ANy advice on how I could ramp up my saleability?
 
Well...the world starts between 8 and 9 usually for those "regular" type jobs. Painful as it seems - maybe getting to bed really early and then getting up really early so your gut can have time to do its thing before you go to work might help?
 
I am the supreme overlord (aka Network Administrator) of some 500-600 client PCs and 30-35 servers at a local custom / semi-custom cabinetry manufacturer. The job is constantly filled with stress which is horrible for my Crohns, but I enjoy my work. I've dealt with computers them since back in the days of "CPM" and "DOS". I'm fortunate enough to have been mostly self-taught with no school bills to worry about. My boss is super cool about my Crohns as is the rest of our I.S. department. Heck when I was in the hospital this past summer our director was going around our department asking if anyone wanted to donate there vacation time. He was going to check with HR if it could somehow be transfered to me...They couldn't do it anyway, but it was a very nice gesture. I count myself very fortunate to have the job I have working for the people I work for.
 
I currently work at a coffee shop while getting my bachelors. I work 20-22 hours a week and usually 7 hour shifts each. Its pretty easy because theres a bathroom right across the lobby that I can run to whenever I need to. I worked in retail for about a year and that didn't work out just because the corporation sucked. However I was flaring during that time and I found it very difficult to run to the bathroom because most of the time I was left by myself at a cashwrap in the middle of nowhere (big store).
 
That is da bomb Shawne! I would have loved that world about 8 years go, I'm just so burned out on computers and networks now I could care less. Very nice gesture that they tried to do for you though :O)
 
I work a normal 8 hours a day 5 days a week as a residential building designer/draftersperson for a small family business so that helps as they are pretty understanding. I have had to take a few weeks off this year just before I was diagnosed.. its also good that the toilet is only a few meters away from my desk!! :)
 
Im a shift supervisor/inventory manager at a drugstore. crohn's has been good to me to the point where it lets me work a full i day. I start anywhere from 5am to 7am on a typical morning and work until 2pm - 5pm, 40 hours/week (this week im doing 6 days at 48 hours). Thankfully my boss is very understanding and he lets me have a pretty flexible schedule. When I'm not supervising a shift he lets me make my own hours.... if I have a Dr's appt I can switch my hours fairly easily
 
I work 10 hr days in a shop that builds cabinets for hospitals, schools, etc. I use to work 10 hr days in the 2nd biggest cabinet shop in the country and I like the one I work for now a lot better. When I had my heart attack in Feb of 2008 they put me on short term disability and paid my insurance premiums while I was off.

When I was first DX I worked for Kmart and they were great for a couple of years. Than they started to jerk me around.
 
Yeah don't work for Kmart/Sears... their corporate tends to suck. I reported legitimate harrassment through the hotline they have and all they did was tell my store manager (who the harrassment was about) and then she hated me more.
 
Oh where oh where are those 4 hour shifts that will prevent my incontinence from causing problems. From what I'm reading, I think it's safe to say to work for a private business, and not a corporate one.


I've had jobs at Macy's, a pet store, a movie theater, and plenty of restaurants... I just can't maintain right now, it's been really tough.
 
shawne said:
My boss is super cool about my Crohns as is the rest of our I.S. department. Heck when I was in the hospital this past summer our director was going around our department asking if anyone wanted to donate there vacation time. He was going to check with HR if it could somehow be transfered to me...They couldn't do it anyway, but it was a very nice gesture. I count myself very fortunate to have the job I have working for the people I work for.
Click to expand...


WOW! That's amazing. You've got some great coworkers there. I wish it had worked out for you. Those extra days are always nice to have for us Crohnies.
 
Same position as Mini. I was "let go" from my job working for an internet services company because I was always sick. Prior to that job I was working for El Goog but quit because the stress and travel was just too much on my body, loved the job, liked most of the people but I just couldn't do it.
 
I work for the worlds largest publisher of health/science/technology etc. information. I manage a handful of scientific journals covering Magnetic Resonance, Geochemistry, Mass Spectrometry, and Solid/Structural Engineering. I manage the process from when a research submits their work, through the peer review process, and production. Compiling and proofing the issues before releasing to printer.

I am lucky that I work for a European based company that gives us a ton of time off, sick days and great benefits. They have been very good to me about missing full days for IVs and Colonoscopies. Especially in the last year.

For the most part it is a low stress job, in a cubicle, in front of a PC all day. I would love more money/challenge. But for now I will stick with what I have and be thankful.
 
I was in the Military and sucked it up for almost 2 years until it became unbearable. I changed my life, and planned around the symptoms to prevent issues at work, but when I became undeployable because of inadequate treatment facilities in Southeast Asia, they medically discharged me. I guess it was for the better, but I miss the lifestyle. I have yet to find a job.
 
I used to be a Learning & Development Manager for a huge international corporate - loved it, and got to do loads of travel. Got made redundant last year AND diagnosed with Crohn's within weeks...crap time!

So, I decided that maybe I should follow my dream and be a teacher... got a job teaching in a school, and lasted two months before a big flare and have been off work since. The problem is, you can't just abandon a class of 30 kids to go and murder the toilets....riots break out, and kids vanish from the room! I can't see how I can go back to work unless I get to some break through with Crohn's that allows you to time your assault on the bogs for the 11.15 morning break.... and an assault that doesn't last more than the 10 minutes of the break!

Before I got admitted to hospital, I had been teaching a riotous crowd of 15 year old boys and had an"issue" in the classroom.... I was seriously frankensteining behind the desk, knuckles were white, and the old sphincter sadly let me down.

The saving grace was that the boys were all so disgusting they thought one of them had farted really badly and accusations were hurled all over the classroom, two accusers even squared up to each other, no one for a moment suspecting that the stinker was the teacher... it was a close one, and I doubt I would be lucky enough to get away with it again...

I have done two psychology degrees and have a lot of coaching experience, and am seriously wondering whether freelance is the way to go - at least offering life coaching I can run one hour appointments, and schedule at my own "convenience"...

Right now I can't see how anyone in their right mind would want to employ me, I am the interview candidate who would be more interested in sick leave, and toilet facilities than salary!

Hopefully I will find a way through this mess... in the meantime it's Statutory Sick Pay for me, and a VERY modest lifestyle compared to what I once enjoyed in the corporate world! Damn rcession - I am so SKINT! (And I lost money on my house which I had to sell when I got made redundant...meh!)

Lishyloo x x x
 
Your stories make me realise how lucky I am - I'm a project manager, freelance, work from home but with a contract to a large company for 3 months at a time. I do one day a week in the office - means being up at the crack of dawn to deal with going to the loo, but not a big deal once a week.

Lishy - freelance is the way to go. It's insecure, but very, very well paid. You give up sick pay, holiday pay, etc BUT you bank a proportion of your hourly/daily rate so that you always have a buffer.

PM me if you want to discuss further - no idea what you're qualified for, but my current employers have no idea that I have CD or RA - I haven't lied in any way, it's just never been an issue.
 
i used to work in bookstores. I managed the fiction dept. It was great. Sure, there could be major stress. But the Crohn's beast took that away. Too much movement, you know?

I then started working at call centers. I absolutely hate being on the phones all day. I made my way up to an account manager, so no more all-day-long phone work. But then I had surgery and moved back to Atlanta from Ft. Lauderdale. Now I out on FMLA at another call center, and have been out for 2 months. I don't think I'm going back.

Having to start and start jobs is psychologically damaging. The interview process can be stressful. And honestly, the older I get, companies are less-inclined to give me a chance.
 
I am lucky ... I work in IT managing prod support and development teams and can pretty much work from anywhere. I do work from home a couple of days a week. And bring my laptop when I get remicade infusions, so I dont have to take vacation time. I am pretty much on call 24x7x365, so a couple hours here and there dont make much of a difference in the over all grand scheme, they still get thier hours out of me. It is realitively low stress and I work with a great group of folks
 
With my public job I work 40 some hours a week as a EHS/Operations manager.
The rest of the time I work with horses, rodeo, coaching little league baseball and football.
 
I'm a therapist. I have quite a hefty commute to work which means I have to get up unreasonably early in order for my body to settle before I set foot in the car. If I'm feeling particularly ropey I won't eat. I take 'fortijuice' with me & I always carry immodium & water. Fatigue can be a problem. I'd like to work closer to home but I have to go where the work is at the moment, keeping my eyes peeled for a post closer to home.
 
I'm a full-time law student, which has been good over the last year and a half when I've had two major surgeries. They can't fire your from law school. :p

Next year I start work at a big law firm. We'll see how I (and my body) cope with it. I've always been pretty good at pushing myself. I've never had to take any time off from school or work because of Crohn's unless I was actively in the hospital. Seriously...sometimes I'm ridiculous. :)
 
Lol... me too Erin (re the ridiculous part)

Good luck with the law firm, I just applied for a Forensic Scientist 1 position but I'm still going to see what becomes of my application to grad school.
 
I am a high school teacher, the teacher in the next classroom and I are close and she knows if I run past to keep an eye on my class. Last year I had to have 5 weeks of to have surgery and my principal was amazing about it, more concerned about how I was feeling emotionally, before that I had kept if pretty down low as far as admin at work were concerned, I figured they didn't need to know until they needed to know.

Before that I was studying and working in a finance company call centre, they were good too.

My biggest problem is that I always run out of sick leave and don't get paid for weeks on end
 
I work for a large greenhouse in New Brunswick, Canada. They produce plugs and rooted cuttings and ship them all over North America. I am in the sales office, training to become a sales rep. I enjoy talking to customers all over Canada and the US. I work 40 hrs a week. The bathroom is not too far away, Thank goodness!!
 
Work is my big dilema right now. I am an elementary teacher in the same school for 10+ yrs. I have been on sick leave for 3 months- didn't qualify for FMLA because of too many absences last year. My former principal and admin were great about comp time and covering classes if I had an appointment. All of my sick leave days went to my Remicade treatments. We get 10 sick days per year and it just isn't enough anymore as my Crohn's has just progressed over time. Plus with my immuno suppressants- if a kid coughs near me I get sick. I am currently applying for disability retirement and hoping it will go through. I will only get 65% of my pay, but maybe I can pick up a 10 hr per week part time doing something to supplement. My biggest fear is losing my health insurance and having to sell my house because my parents have run out of money to lend me.
 
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I'm a weekend co-ordinator in a group home caring for ladies with mental retardation. My clients are fairly self sufficient so if I end up on the pot every 10 minutes they are ok and there is very little going on during the weekend that they HAVE to go to if I'm too sick to drive the van. I also acrue sick time at work, 4 hours each pay period. I am down to about 12 hours currently but with what's left of my vacation and personal time I just got I can miss another week and a half without effecting my pay and my vacation time builds up in July again.
 
how do you manage work and all the dr appointments, treatments, tests? work has been so flexible, but I always feel stressed and starting work at six in the morning to make up for dr appointments during the day is not cutting it.
 
The company I work for is really flexible with leaving early, taking long lunches, etc. I also get a lot of sick time, vacation time, and personal days. Have not really run into a problem. Lucky to have the job I do.
 
I work 40 hours a week for the government as a writer/editor. My hours are very flexible and I am aloud to work from home if I really really need to.

Work is still the biggest stress factor in my life, and I long for the day when I can work part time. I am also constantly worried about getting fired for missing days. Sometimes they are more understanding than others.
 
I work in a special school for children with ASD, and Like Lishy said, it's hard to just get up and run off to the bathroom, I only have 8 kids in my class, but if you turn your back for one minute, they're off!
but there are 5 of us in our class, and we cover each other, thank god
I'm off sick at the mo, for 3 months after a spell in hospital, and work have been great, but employers do have a duty of care to look after us disabled people, and our school documentation is bob on, or they could be in breach of contract, it's only when some people have odd days off for nothing, that gets peoples backs up, we call these 'trigger' days, have 5 of them in a row, and you've had it!
Gosh! I've got one on me haven't I? it's cos I'm the Unison union rep there too!
 
I think we are lucky living in the UK though, Astra. I've heard of some people living in the states who aren't protected from being unfairly dismissed due to illness or are even discriminated against during the job interview process due to having a long term illness. They also have much less holiday time than we do.
 
yes Misty
we are very fortunate, we slag this country off all the time don't we? but I've been appalled with the treatment of our bowel buddies over the pond, with insurance and medical bills, and the discrimination and unfair dismissal, etc
good old Nye Bevan hey?
When he said a NHS for all, he bloody meant it!
 
I know! But Americans are so patriotic and let's face it, we are only patriotic when it comes to any sporting event lol. I think it's the weather that makes us slag everything off.
 
I work in a children's hospital as an X-ray tech. Its fairly flexible as far as me having to leave to go to the restroom. There are many of us in the department so if I have to step out for a few minutes, they don't miss me too much and my co-workers cover for me while I'm gone. However I work in the operating room taking x-rays in there about half of my day at work and whenever I'm in a surgery case, I'm pretty much stuck for the whole case. It really sucks because sometimes you just got to go... I actually had to ask the surgeon the other day do you think I can go for a quick restroom break??? Thankfully he was understanding about it and said it was no problem, but of course it was pretty mortifying!!!
 

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