Chakra

I just wanted to share with you a portion of my story that could help tons of people who are contemplating sobriety but not sure how it will affect their job.

Not everyone has this luxury and I'm sorry if you don't BUT many people have great benefits with their company to help them through initial stages of sobriety.

For me, I called the EAP (Employee Assistance Program) and told them I was experiencing severe depression which was my immediate concern. I admitted that I am a 23 year alcoholic but was not ready to commit to quitting. I was given a referral to a therapist in my area who has helped me tremendously. Although I mentioned I am an alcoholic not ready to quit, she never pressured me to do so. 3 sessions later, I advised her I was ready to stop drinking. I had already found this site and had been reading and posting for a couple of days. I continue to see the therapist and stay active with SR. I was given 6 weeks off to work through my depression and get sober.

The moral of the story is, USE YOUR BENEFITS if you have them. Don't be ashamed to go to HR about your options because this comes up probably a lot more than you think. Plus, they are YOUR benefits to be used as needed. It really has been helpful to have this time to heal. Whats even better is that I had the time to decide that I wanted to stop drinking. Not because of something stupid I did the night before, but because I had the time to make that sound decision. I wish the best for everyone here and just wanted to let you know, there is nothing wrong for utilizing the programs that are put into place for you. Good luck to all!

LexieCat

Thanks, Chakra,

It's also important to note that in the U.S., the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) can provide some job protection. Employers can discipline for alcohol use that interferes with job performance, but they can't fire you for being an alcoholic and may have to provide reasonable accommodations (time to attend meetings, therapy, etc.). I'm no expert in it, but your EEOC representative should have information.

Chakra

Awesome to know Lexi! You know, If I had known all this stuff earlier, I would have done this much much earlier in life.

LaFemme

Thanks! My previous company had a similar program, but I was too scared to try it, although I did use their free therapy, I lied about my alcohol abuse, might not had I known about the ADA.

Chakra

Same here AND if I had made that call to EAP before, it would have been a different story. They sort of "gave me permission" to take the first steps and confirmed there was nothing to be ashamed of. Also, that it is just as justifiable for an absence as an injury would be.

Fandy

I have great insurance benefits also...(I am a state government employee). When i sought help I called my insurance company directly to get information about how and what was covered. They gave me a list of several names o licensed psycho. in the geographical location i asked for....my co-pay was 15.00 per session and my limit on treatment was over $15K in 10 years time.

whatever treatment i sought was only between me, the insurance company and my psychol.(who treated me for over 3 years) no one from work was privy to that information...there is a law called HIPAA, which is supposed to protect the patient's privacy...the fines/penalties for violating these laws by accessing information about treatment are quite hefty....you cannot even discuss patients where it can be overheard.

i had to complete an online course for admins. yesterday to be sure i can effectively supervise medical students....who tend to gossip without thinking.

Chakra

Awesome to know. If someone you report to discusses what reason they speculate your are absent for, I wonder what their consequence is. It is loosely thrown around at work when someone goes out on Short Term but I didn't really care since I don't plan to stay here.

LexieCat

I don't know that your supervisor has a legal duty not to gossip, but if there were any malice involved, it might be considered a violation of the ADA.

Chakra

I'm pretty sure she is not supposed to discuss it although not punishable by law. It is against the company policies. Its up to me if I'd like to pursue action I think.

LexieCat

Depending on your relationship with her, you could always just tell her that you really hope she will appreciate your need for privacy on this. I always think formal complaints are a bad idea unless you REALLY gotta go there...

Chakra

I haven't spoken to her about it and don't plan to really. BUT I don't trust her. I'm more consumed right now with planning my move back home than this stuff but just thought it was worth discussing.

a fallen man

we have a very good EAP program where i work. i came close to calling it more than once.

the only thing that stopped me was i didn't want to leave my co-workers hung out to dry as i do some things at work that nobody really else can do at this time.

now....that said....if i had gone into treatment through eap they would have just HAD to bring someone in from another city to do my work and honestly wouldn't have missed a beat without me. but our management staff is pretty tight and like a small family so i didn't use it.

i used to surf some of the rehab places and honest to god i could have used a stay just to remove myself from here. plus they were in some beautiful locales.

i finally used sr to get sober. it was rough at first with the sleep and whatnot but it gets better every single day i'm sober.

i think it's awesome that i work for an organization that has a really good EAP. and i'm a much better employee now. i always prided myself that i didn't miss work due to drinking. but i wasn't the most productive employee either due to feeling foul.

chakra....thanks for bringing up the subject. it could make the difference in someone stopping drinking for the rest of their life.

Chakra

I think the key is at some point, you have to put your sobriety first and nothing should stop you from using your benefits. Everything will fall into place after you return to work as it should and in the grande scheme of things, they will not die. I too felt bad BUT I knew I needed more than just to get sober and it would make the difference for the rest of my life which I deserve.

I am impressed you got sober while working. It could not have been easy.

a fallen man

well i had worked while drunk until around 11:00 every morning for years. lol.

i didn't drink at work but i knew i still had enough in the system from the night before that i was probably technically still under the influence. and i had to arrive at work by 6:00.....i ain't gonna lie....it SUCKED. but i told myself the lie that if i wasn't missing work i wasn't really an alcoholic...see how well that worked out...lol.

i was coming off a 3 day weekend and came back to work on a tuesday and was absolutely TOXIC. i worked half a day and told my plant manager that i had to take the rest of the day off and had to do something about my drinking.

he followed me to my car and i gave him about a fifth of vodka i had in my trunk so i wouldn't be tempted. in my past attempts i had just poured it out and he had told me if i ever quit again to NOT pour it out but to give it to him.

the funny thing is after i had been quit for 2 months and he saw the changes in me he decided to quit as well.

i'm not saying my way was the right way. i helped check my brother into rehab 5 months after i quit. he is still doing well also.

i really feel for the folks on here that have ZERO resources from their employer. my brother's insurance paid for almost every bit of his rehab and it was not cheap at all.

Chakra

Haha Ya, working while the booze is still flowing through your system DOES SUCK.

All in all, that was an AWESOME story. Thank you for sharing and congrats on your sobriety. The people who you inspired are probably eternally grateful that their life hopefully won't suck from now on.

Fandy

If you can prove that your privacy was compromised, it can become a civil suit...not that I am encouraging that, but the Health Information Protection Privacy Act isw put in place to protect the patient and their treatment is nobody's business but theirs and their docs.