Dealing with Work Stress

[ttcinct]

Hello all,

My husband and I have been TTC for about two years now. We've gone through six failed Clomid cycles, laparoscopy and hysteroscopy found stage iv endo, two cysts, and polyps and a growth in my uterus. Husband is fine. We are on our second IUI cycle with Gonal F.

As if dealing with this wasn't stressful enough, I find myself very frustrated at work. I don't feel like I have any support at all. Apparently my HR department has never dealt with long term infertility before, and although I've applied for FMLA and been approved I feel like its always an issue when I have to take time for appointments or procedures. My doctor says if I am not pregnant after this cycle she wants to consider moving to IVF, which I know will involved more time off work for the retrieval and transfer.

Does anyone have advice for dealing with a not so supportive job situation?

 

[timeforababy]

what are their rules with regards to persons with chronic illnesses? Do they get extra time off/flexibility etc? Just explain to them that you have chronic illness and that should be a reasonable expectation with regards to time off?

 

[ttcinct]

Well they approved the FMLA but I'm trying to figure out if that would affect me when I do get pregnant since you only get 12 weeks a year I think. I dunno, it just seems like no one knows the answers to my questions and I feel like I'm torn between work and getting pregnant.

 

[TeddyBearPug]

If you have been approved for FMLA you shouldn't have any problems legally for taking off. Now your supervisors may give you a hard time because they don't understand the illness or your situation. But since you've been approved there shouldn't be anything they can do about it. My husband had to use FMLA recently and the way they explained it to him was that they had to make reasonable accommendations and it is a rolling 12 week period off. So you can only be off 12 weeks within a year but it keeps rolling, so you should be fine by the time you have a LO. i hope this helps