I imagine there might be a few of us in the same position. I work in Financial Services in Ireland. I had only joined the company, which is a UK company, in June 07 and was diagnosed in Dec 07. They have been very supportive and to be fair to myself (!) I worked through chemo and radiotherapy, just went home early when I was tired. I was under no pressure to work, it was my choice, but I know they were surprised.
With the economic climate however, our business is very badly affected and I do worry about my job, in fact I’m almost expecting to lose it.
Its a total bummer to have gone from diagnosis, to treatment and then worrying about secondaries to now have something else to worry about!!!
Sorry, just felt like having a moan - anyone else feeling the same?
I know how you feel I started work for a famous bank (in the news at the min) July 07 and was diag feb 08.
They have been so very good but I too wonder about the future!! Finance is a big issue when you have been fighting BC and trying to get back to normal!!
Thanks Kayty,
I feel for you!
I sometimes think I should’nt worry about material things when I’ve had a life threatening illness, as if that is somehow shallow. But assuming I am cured, which I hope is the case, I do need a job, I’m only 46 so have lots of work in me yet!
Oh God, the thought of going through the interview process etc, particularly in this market. And what about our medical history, do we tell up front and risk not being selected or say nothing and let it come out of a medical (if required) or just come out eventually, in which case is there a trust issue…aghhhh…
Know how you feel. Older than you but just had first back to work new job interview yesterday. I did tell them on the form, and noone mentioned it at interview - but you do wonder. Waiting anxiously for news…
Hope this post doesn’t come over as depressing as it’s not meant to be !
Think I may work for the same company kayty (UK bank in yorks about to be taken over if it goes through ??). Worked for them for almost 19 yrs, most recently as an MA - how good does that look now ?? The news just seemed to get worse each day over the last year !! however, the support from day 1 from my original boss was fab - he dealt with HR and queries from staff until I was up to it myself and other staff have been lovely as well.From a financial position I’m ok as I practised what I preached and had a critical illness policy with the same company and they were so helpful in getting the claim sorted. Plus I had 6 months full pay & 4 months half pay. Now I’m on no pay and just ICB but no mortgage !! And no kids !!
I was diagnosed July 07 and have been off sick ever since apart from a month in Aug 08 when I tried to go back doing basic beginners stuff but could not hack it and got myself in a real state. I’m signed off til Dec but won’t be fit enough to go back then and am now looking into retirement on ill-health grounds (at 43 I’m too young for early retirement) with the full support of the medical people caring for me & the union. It’s going to be a long process and my case may well be turned down but I’ll make sure I take my time and get the best possible case together. It was good to ‘get permission’ from the consultants to be off sick and for them to say that although it’s over 12 months from diagnosis, it’s still early days for me with the amount of treatment I had & I shouldn’t punish myself for not being back at work. In spite of the side effects of hormone therapy playing havoc with my emotions, this has been a good week for getting things straight in my mind and knowing the doctors will do all they can to help - I feel much stronger now. I even asked for a prognosis for recurrence & survival rates - which I knew weren’t good to put it mildly (even the nurse said they look awful !!) - but I’m being positive about them and will use them to my advantage in my retirement application.
With not having kids, work had been such a big part of my life as you may gather (my ex-boss said to me the other day that to some extent you become institutionalised after so many years & he’s right) but I’ve now realised I have to put myself first - although it was traumatic being back at work for that brief time, it did make me see I couldn’t cope in that environment.
To end on a positive note, I’m going to see how things go, not stress about it, take all the therapies etc on offer from the NHS and if it all works out and I do get retirement, I will then look for another job in due course - or perhaps go off on some sunny holidays, ha, ha !!!
I must admit, I worked in 2 Japanese banks in the City for 10 years and I’m glad I’m not in that environment now given the current climate. OH has a relative who recently moved into a big barn conversion in Essex and who can now not afford it as he works for Lehmans; my SiL works for another bank and is getting really worried she might lose her job on account of the mortgage and the kids.
I went to a new job at the beginning of the year and it was a disaster, it put my confidence back big time. However, it made me realise I didn’t want to go back to an office and I’m now retraining as a copywriter and working in my OHs web design and development business. I started doing a few professional copywriting jobs recently and hope to be able to freelance next year. I’ve always been creative but just didn’t have faith in myself and now is my chance to pursue that route.
I am sorry you are so worried about your job, I totally understand. After 10 months of treatments last year I got back to work in Jan this year, a few weeks later my DREAM job came up and I applied and by some miracle I got it, I started in April. I thought my world was such a perfect place and the previous years battle against cancer had been won and I life was going to be great.
Now, just last week I found out the cancer is back, don’t know the extent yet as waiting for tests, but I feel so awful, like I have let my new boss down in getting sick again. Stupid I know, but that’s how I feel. He is being great, he worked for a guy who had a brain tumour (and survived!) so understands but I can’t help worrying.
So, what I am trying to say is it is perfectly normal for us to worry about all kinds of things surely, I panicked that my boyfreind would leave me (he stuck by me for 3 years including the last hellish one) that I would lose my job. I would think that being like this makes us just so much more sensitive than we would normally be.
Keep on fighting, keep on doing the best you can and I hope all will be well for you, especially as it sounds like you overacheived by getting in and working when they didn’t expect it, respect to you for that as not everyone can manage it, we all react so differently and that is not our fault when this knocks us off out feet. If your fears did come true, there’s other jobs, and I dont see anywhere on the application forms that asks if you had cancer once upon a time.
So sorry to hear it has come back - that is awful for you. I am sure you will get lots of support and inspiration from other women on this site, many of whom have secondaries/recurrence.
Your health is so much more important than your job, this expereince has made me remember the fact that our employers could and would replace us, but to our friends and families we are irreplaceable.