Returning to work/school

[toujoursmelissa]

Hi All,

 

Wondering what your experiences of returning to work and/or school post-stroke have been?

 

I'm 6 weeks post-stroke and started back to school this past week. I'm a graduate student and had been taking 2 classes, which I dropped after having my stroke. It was hard to do that, but it would have been too hard to go back after missing a month of school and the level of work that I have to do...Right now I'm back kind of part-time; I have a lab meeting on Tuesdays, and a seminar on Wednesday and Friday to attend. (I'm a social psychology student; it's nice to be in this field because even though my area isn't heavily brain-oriented, I'm surrounded by people who understand the brain and are very understanding of what my brain has to do and that part of my brain has died and that I need to rest/recover/rewire!)

 

I'm finding that I am entirely capable of being back, but I experience a lot of anxiety surrounding going to school -- about to look for previous threads about anxiety or start one of my own, actually, so I'll save that for another discussion! In addition to the anxiety, I am concerned about impeding my recovery by being more active and trying to go back to my life. At the same time, I wonder if going back is going to be helpful to help me recovery and feel more normal/doing things that I used to do naturally?

 

I have an office that I can go to if I need to get some rest...have gotten earplugs and a sleep mask so that I can block out sensory stimuli as needed while I'm there. I can take the bus (which is what I used to do before the stroke) to get there, but have asked friends if I can get rides to campus with them so that I can avoid the stimuli/effort of taking the bus so that I can have more energy while I'm on campus to work.

 

My OT recommended that I try to keep my activity in 45-min blocks and then take a break, which isn't fully possible for me, but I think that when I have enough rest I can go a little longer. I can also recognize when I need a break and it's possible for me to duck out of things early. It's not entirely awkward for me to leave seminars early, leaving lab meetings (which are scheduled for 2 hours) could be awkward, but luckily it's a supportive environment with people I am close with, so if I need to go, it won't be a big deal if I need to do so.

 

Any tips/tricks that you have discovered, advice for going back? Thoughts on whether or not it might slow down recovery, etc?

 

Thanks so much

[merichsen]

Melissa,

What you can do in your mind's eye is often quite different than reality. I swore I could handle going back to work, my husband tried to convince me I couldn't. I thought it was just because he didn't want me to and preferred me being a little less independent.

He suggested before I made any decision to recommit I give myself a trial run rather go on blind speculation. Since I would need to be up and in the shower by 5:30 every morning to be at work on time, he suggested I try the stress of my putting myself to the test of just getting out of the house every morning in time for work for 2 weeks to see if I could handle that.

As much as I hated to admit it he was right. There was a world of difference between doing things without the pressure and stress of a deadline of time constraints and doing it at my leisure. In my mind's eye I was idealizing it the way I wanted it.

It was not stressful prestroke, but that was not working with a stroke altered brain.

 

Maybe take little chunks and see if you can handle those before you bite off more than you can chew, crash, are overwhelmed, and disappointed.

 

You're not in a race. Take care of you, the rest will always be there.

 

Keep us posted on how you are doing and what you decide.

 

Maria :friends:

[lharrison]

melissa, i know exactly what you mean about wanting to go back to work because you are stress free fekling dgood and you are thinking that you could do it but i would give it some time and really think about it there is alot that could happen to you while you are working that could cause you to get highly stress out so maybe what you should do is start yourself slow do they have a job that you could do that is less hours?or part time?it is important for your recovery to get into the being normal as possible but not at the risk of your health so just take it slow it will come but don"t rush it

[Pwilson18]

HI... IT TOOK ME 9 MONTHS TO RETURN TO WORK AFTER MY BRAINSTEM STROKE. FIRST, I CHECKED WITH SOC SEC IF I COULD WORK AND COLLECT MY SSDI. YES, WAS THEIR ANSWER, AS LONG AS I WORKED 12 HR A WEEK. 2ND. GOSH I REMEMBER BEING ANXIOUS AND SCARED. I HAD A LOT OF HIDDEN DEFICITS BUT ALSO USED A ROLL-AIDE WALKER TO HELP ME WALK AND WITH MY BALANCE. AND 3RD, I KNEW I COULD NEVER BE THE DOCTORS ASSIST, MAKE SNAP DECISIONS, RUN, RUN, RUN. SO WORK, FOUND ME A NONTHINKING, EASIER JOB TO DO...OPENING MAIL FOR THEIR 3 PRACTICES.. AT THE SAME PAY RATE.ITS NOW BEEN ALMOST 2 1/2 YRS FOR ME. FOR ME IM GLAD I DID, IT GETS ME WITH PEOPLE, IT HELPS ME FEEL BETTER, CONFIDENTER, I IKE THE PAYCHECKS. I TRY TO GET MY CLOTHES, COFFEE POT AND LUNCH READY THE DAY BEFORE. ITS LESS STRESSFUL.BEST WISHES FOR YOU! PATTY

[fking]

In your situation, I agree with Maria above, every mind and brain is different in what it can process in a time period. Stick with what you do best and trust your instinct on how to go about getting it accomplished.

 

I worked 3 years then gave it up and that was 2 years after the brain bleed stroke. I remained hospitalized for 5 months still came home in a wheel chair unable to walk. I use a cane, scooter now and I drive! :big_grin:

[toujoursmelissa]

Melissa,

What you can do in your mind's eye is often quite different than reality. I swore I could handle going back to work, my husband tried to convince me I couldn't. I thought it was just because he didn't want me to and preferred me being a little less independent.

He suggested before I made any decision to recommit I give myself a trial run rather go on blind speculation. Since I would need to be up and in the shower by 5:30 every morning to be at work on time, he suggested I try the stress of my putting myself to the test of just getting out of the house every morning in time for work for 2 weeks to see if I could handle that.

As much as I hated to admit it he was right. There was a world of difference between doing things without the pressure and stress of a deadline of time constraints and doing it at my leisure. In my mind's eye I was idealizing it the way I wanted it.

It was not stressful prestroke, but that was not working with a stroke altered brain.

 

Maybe take little chunks and see if you can handle those before you bite off more than you can chew, crash, are overwhelmed, and disappointed.

 

You're not in a race. Take care of you, the rest will always be there.

 

Keep us posted on how you are doing and what you decide.

 

Maria :friends:

 

Maria, Thank you for this! (And thanks to everyone else who has responded so far Everyone is SO right...and I think the way Maria put it here is pretty much it. Luckily, since I dropped my classes, I have a lot of flexibility about what I do/don't do, but yes, I think I need to NOT idealize it and face up to the fact that really, just doing regular stuff is stressful -- I used to make dinner every night, but my fiancé and I rely on what is convenient a lot, or he does a lot more hands-on helping when I fix dinner. I used to shower every morning -- I've switched to a nighttime shower so that I am not "wasting" energy on getting clean in the morning -- just these tasks that weren't stressful pre-stroke have become bigger productions for me now that I've had a stroke. Yes, I'm anxious to get back to my pre-stroke life, but it doesn't work the same way. That life was stressful before, and I need to be really gentle with myself about getting back to it.

 

Everything that everyone had to say here is really helpful...it helps to hear it outside of my own head and from the perspective of others who have had strokes

 

 

 

[lydiacevedo]

I'm 3 months post stroke. at 3 weeks post, I returned to work part time, 20 hours a week. I've worked up to 30 hours a week, can't get any farther that that.

 

At first, everyone was wonderfully supportive and understanding. However, this is corporate America. Understanding is fading away. I can't seem to get "back to normal" enough to satisfy people. I am now getting things in order to take medical retirement.

 

With school, perhaps things are different than with work. I hope they are.

[DreamOfAngels]

I thought I was ready about 3 months after my stroke for part-time. Then went back full-time....then it was clear I wasn't ready and I've been spirally down since then. I've been in the hospital for severe/major depression/anxiety that I didn't recognize until probably 6 months after my stroke... Take your time is my advice and make sure you are seeking counseling for depression even if you don't feel like you need it - you'd be suprised... I was

 

doa

[Gavin]

Hi All,

 

Wondering what your experiences of returning to work and/or school post-stroke have been?

 

Any tips/tricks that you have discovered, advice for going back? Thoughts on whether or not it might slow down recovery, etc?

 

 

I returned to work after 4 months. I did become very tired after a short period of time. You just have to build up endurance and that takes time. I think it is important to discover what your physical limits are and build up the endurance from there. I would say that I returned a little too early, but it was important to me that I restart my life as soon as possible.

 

The best tip I can give is rest when you can and get plenty of sleep. Make sure you do daily exercises, stretches etc.. Everything your PT/OT has given you in your rehabilitation examples. Also make sure to eat healthy and when you should. Basically the typical things that a normal person should do anyways. It's all common sense stuff.

 

Cheers,

 

Gavin

[Itzury]

I didn't want to go back to school after my stroke!! I felt so weak, I could barely walk, and my friends were no longer studying, since it took me a year to go back. But I went back to school and it was so difficult!! Nothing stuck in my brain! And to walk from a building to another one was a challenge!! It was pretty difficult, but I think my limits were more mental than physical, still are. I graduated a year ago and I haven't been able to find a job, due to my own insecurity and fear of not be able to do things right. But something helpful for my body and mind has been getting into a club to do exercise. Besides of being helpful to my rehabilitation, it's being helpful to my re-integration to the society and to be in a better mood

[ksmith]

I couldn't go back to work after my stroke. Being in the brain stem, it disrupted so my being, I wish I could've. even almost two years still can't return to work or school. I envy those who can but i enjoy the extra time with my family. This just goes to show that all strokes effect people differently. I spent my first year in rehab jus learning how to do basic needs.

[mcdube]

Melissa,

 

I returned to my office job within a year of the stroke. Started part time at first because I was still in PT/OT. Getting ready for work in the morning was very hard. Doing what I used to do at work was ok but I could not learn to do new tasks. I had a hard time with directions. I chose to ignore all these things and persevered for 20 years at which point I had a burn out. I had to medically retire and I realized that I should have retired a long time before I did. My depression/burn out lasted years and caused me to be unable to take care of myself like the financial stuff. My son took over those tasks for me. If I would have retired way before, I know I would not had been as bad as I was. It got to the point where I cried every morning while getting ready for work. I am not saying you cant or should not go back to work/school but take care of yourself and be aware of how you feel. Good luck to you.

 

mc

[stillsmiling]

Hi All,

 

Wondering what your experiences of returning to work and/or school post-stroke have been?

 

I'm 6 weeks post-stroke and started back to school this past week. I'm a graduate student and had been taking 2 classes, which I dropped after having my stroke. It was hard to do that, but it would have been too hard to go back after missing a month of school and the level of work that I have to do...Right now I'm back kind of part-time; I have a lab meeting on Tuesdays, and a seminar on Wednesday and Friday to attend. (I'm a social psychology student; it's nice to be in this field because even though my area isn't heavily brain-oriented, I'm surrounded by people who understand the brain and are very understanding of what my brain has to do and that part of my brain has died and that I need to rest/recover/rewire!)

 

I'm finding that I am entirely capable of being back, but I experience a lot of anxiety surrounding going to school -- about to look for previous threads about anxiety or start one of my own, actually, so I'll save that for another discussion! In addition to the anxiety, I am concerned about impeding my recovery by being more active and trying to go back to my life. At the same time, I wonder if going back is going to be helpful to help me recovery and feel more normal/doing things that I used to do naturally?

 

I have an office that I can go to if I need to get some rest...have gotten earplugs and a sleep mask so that I can block out sensory stimuli as needed while I'm there. I can take the bus (which is what I used to do before the stroke) to get there, but have asked friends if I can get rides to campus with them so that I can avoid the stimuli/effort of taking the bus so that I can have more energy while I'm on campus to work.

 

My OT recommended that I try to keep my activity in 45-min blocks and then take a break, which isn't fully possible for me, but I think that when I have enough rest I can go a little longer. I can also recognize when I need a break and it's possible for me to duck out of things early. It's not entirely awkward for me to leave seminars early, leaving lab meetings (which are scheduled for 2 hours) could be awkward, but luckily it's a supportive environment with people I am close with, so if I need to go, it won't be a big deal if I need to do so.

 

Any tips/tricks that you have discovered, advice for going back? Thoughts on whether or not it might slow down recovery, etc?

 

Thanks so much

 

 

Hi,

I am a total of 4 months since my stroke. I too was in school online when my stroke struck. I am now one week back online in school working toward the second week. I too had to drop from 2 classes which is considered a full load down to 1 class. This has helped tremendously. I have been back to work since May 28th. Most of the time I am able to work a full 8 hour shift. I do have a lot of times I need to sit down for a minute and regroup. Every once in awhile I do to much and need to take the next day off from work. Everyone at work is very supportive also and this helps greatly. I do not feel going to school and work will slow my recovery down in fact I think it helps my brain keep going. I do get tired a lot more often than before and after awhile on the computer my brain lets me know enough is enough with a nice small headache. I suffered anxiety attacks right after I came home from the hospital. They are not as bad or as frequent now which is great. The main tip I can think of is when you need to rest go and do it. Listen to your body. Take it one step at a time. Things get better.

Dawn