I have just returned to work after diagnosis and WLE. Have been fortunate clear margins and no lymph node involvement so just RT in new year.
I have gone back until the RT program starts but I wish I hadn’t bothered no one seems to have missed me (although I haven’t missed them I hate my job!) very few have asked how I am and there is someone on secondment covering for me and due to hr burocracy her secondment contract is for3 months until end jan and cannot go back before.
I feel like a spare part the person who is covering for me is the favourite anyway (she used to do my job before then left and came back to another job - long story) so if I got up and went home now no one would even notice I feel like saying i didn’t choose to get breast cancer in fact I did everything to prevent it! Yet I am the one that is losing out. Just need to get this off my chest has anyone had similar experience? Rebecca x
Going back to work is hard ,things change so quickly and after the experience of cancer you do feel more vulnerable and "different ",it takes time to feel anywhere near normal again.I didn’t go back to work in between surgery and rads as my head was just not in the right place and I couldn’t have concentrated .
Just read your post and wanted to say how sorry I am . I hope things have improved for you . I havent returned to work yet but I must admit when I was first diagnosed I was quite shocked at some peoples reactions . The main one being it was not mentioned . I found it odd because I am a nurse hence all my colleagues are too .
The male ones where the worst and initially I was upset because I would have deemed some of the males to be my besties … I have since discovered it was because they did not know how to approach me or what to say , and this was similar to some of the females . And the reality of the situation was that I did not share my private business with them all prior so I guess for them to start asking me about something so personal would have been quite uncomfortable . I changed the way I was thinking once I realised it was not a intended personal insult to me . Though Id share my experience with you Steph xxx
Hi Steph. My experience was similar but to my colleagues credit they didn’t tell many people why I was off I thought it would get out on the office grapevine anyway but it doesn’t seem to have done. I would of thought nursing colleagues would be a bit more sympathetic. Things have been a bit better but there still isn’t a lot for me to do as there is a thrid person who isn’t needed and i hate not being busy. X