Working full time

[Bubble_by]

Does anyone else work full-time with endo? I do and have never been so tired in all my life. Was wondering if anyone had any coping tips as working part-time is not really an option for me (sadly).

[happyseal]

I hope you find a way around it. I didn’t have any great ways to cope with it and had to skip work so much. Lately, I’ve been thinking of some sort of remote work so I can work from home and cut down on certain stresses etc.

[Infullbloom in reply to happyseal]

Hi,

I have bad news for you. I work full time (I'm a trainee doctor) and I'm currently doing a rotation in child psychiatry which is a totally home based job due to covid. I'm even more tired now than when I was working in hospital! I don't know what it is but I have less motivation overall and less energy. I think staying at home 24/7 has a detrimental effect on my mental health. I feel that I have to constantly fight my fatigue, force myself to go out, exercise otherwise I will spiral into even worse fatigue so working from home is like a step back for me. If you think that staying at home will not affect you negatively mentally then go for it.

[happyseal in reply to Infullbloom]

I guess I have to think more about it... going out definitely has its plus in my mood and social life, etc.

How did you used to manage endo working normally? My employers were very understanding but there’s just so much they could do.

[Infullbloom in reply to happyseal]

First, I didn’t know what was wrong with me. I had a lot of back pain when doing ward rounds. Working as a junior doctor in hospital equals to 8 to 12h on feet so I was always tired. I thought I was just lazy and weak. I even called myself lazy bum for always looking for a place to sit. I just kept pushing myself with painkillers and a lot of coffee. Later I developed pain from a huge cyst, managed on lots of codeine, later amitryptillin. After my lap I had to go on antidepressant to boost my motivation and energy levels.

Work for me is important, it’s the core of my life, I have nothing else so it keeps me sane, motivated, gives me satisfaction.

If you struggle with excessive tiredness it’s worth considering mental health comorbidity such as depression that can give symptoms of fatigue, poor sleep, lack of drive and can intensify somatic pain. A large proportion of people with long term illness suffer from depression and anxiety. It doesn’t have to be a severe depression to make you tired.

I’ve just finished 3 night shifts in hospital. I would not have survived them without my antidepressant. So sorry but no miracles here

[Bubble_by in reply to Infullbloom]

I'm a nurse on an adult psychiatric ward so I totally relate, but working from home isn't an option either for me either 😩

[Rjb_88 in reply to Infullbloom]

I feel the same as you, work full time (and I have an 18 month old) and working from home all week really impacts me with fatigue etc, but when I’m in the office I can get through it all better

[EndoG]

Hey, I work full time as a teacher. I agree, it’s completely draining to work full time with endo!

About 2 weeks of the month it’s exhausting and painful, but the other 2 weeks make up for it for me because I wouldn’t be happy in any other job.

I have a tens machine and a wearable/portable heating pad, as well as loads of pain killers to get me through the hardest days.

If only part time work would pay the bills!

Do you have any pain relief you can use at work? X

[happyseal in reply to EndoG]

How does the pain killers work for you. For me the pain killers make me brain dead and dumb, so during the painful days I’d work very slowly and sometimes make dumb things.

Tens machine and heat pad sounds great go to.

[Bubble_by in reply to EndoG]

I know right? It's ntt so much a pain that an issue, I had a laparoscopy in March and things have gotten a lot better, but its more just the general tiredness.

[Jaci71 in reply to EndoG]

Hi,

Can I kindly ask which wearable portable heating pad do you use? Many Thanks 😊

[BeTheSunshine]

I take energising vitamins to try and give me a boost. I buy the ones you fizz in water. I’m also working from home full time due to covid and my bed is just too tempting some days. I agree, going to the office was better because there were more distractions to take your mind off of it but when at home, alone, it’s terrible. I also really struggle to get out of bed in the mornings due to lack of motivation, even though I enjoy my job and it is worthwhile but I think it is just what’s going on in the world at the moment. I feel like I’m waiting for something, but not sure what it is. Xx

[USgalwthendo]

I work full time with stage 4 endo. My cycle is 25 days and about 5 of those are severe pain and the rest are mostly exhausted. I might get a few days occasionally where I have energy and I tend to power clean my house on those days as it gets sadly neglected otherwise. At work I wear a heating pad. It’s activated charcoal and disposable and discreet under clothing. It’s ThermaCare brand in US sold at most pharmacies and on Amazon. I take ibuprofen. But for the exhaustion there’s not much I can do. I just try my best and take things a day at a time. I’ve almost run out of sick leave and I can take unpaid leave while keeping my job but then I can’t pay my bills so have to keep working and I’m nowhere near retirement age. I’m trying to work with my employer now on disability accommodation so that maybe I can at least have a private working area(right now I share an office). My hopes is that I can have some privacy when grimacing in severe pain. It’s embarrassing and I don’t want to be going through that in front of coworkers. Crossing my fingers that my job will let me have some discretion around my physical work space. I am considering work from home as well but only 2 out of 5 days. My work will let me split my time from home and that may help a little. Is your job able to let you do a split tour: some days at home and some in person ?

[Bubble_by in reply to USgalwthendo]

Sadly it's not an option with nursing ☹️ still it's good of your work to do that 🙂

[Lynne_support Partner Endometriosis UK]

Hi Bubble_by

It might be worth having a chat with your employers to see if you can find a way to manage your endometriosis at work. This publication is an overview of the legal situation when it comes to managing a woman with endometriosis endometriosis-uk.org/sites/....

Best wishes

Lynne - Endometriosis UK

[mrskiki]

Yes, I have worked full time all my life and am often exhausted and usually spend my weekends recovering. I was only diagnosed recently but had a good idea i had endo. I always used my annual leave instead of taking any sick leave every month so managed to sort of cover it up so I kept my job. But I think the long hours and stress made things worse.

[Bubble_by in reply to mrskiki]

Yes I can second that, it's awful, isn't it?

[mrskiki in reply to Bubble_by]

I can't imagine it being discussed with management at work either, I mean I saw their behaviour when a colleague hit menopause, she was soon out the door. Then again I'm in a male dominated tech job. I am finding it great working from home. I do need to get out for walks and get outside but don't miss the plastic artificial light office and management scrutiny one bit!

[Bubble_by in reply to mrskiki]

Oh how awful and unfair. Yes I wish I could stay at home too.

[mrskiki]

Yes, it would give you a bit of a break, I don't know how people manage being on their feet in hospitals, schools, shops etc