Working With MS
Sebastian shares his experiences with multiple sclerosis and work.
So first off, I would say that you should probably check with your local MS Society concerning the laws in your country about having a chronic condition and signing a work contract to make sure that it's not an obligation.
In my country, for example, it is and I didn't know.
Should I Tell My Work About My Condition?
Regarding the choice of telling your colleagues and your superiors about it or not, I would say that it's recommendable to inform the colleagues and the superiors about it.
Try to deliberate with yourself if you feel like your condition might have reached a stage where you could potentially have an accident at the workplace in which the assistance of a colleague who is aware of your situation and who knows how to react will be of great help, then I would say, definitely say it.
If you, however, feel like you can hide it, well then it's entirely up to you. But I would say that in conclusion, it's a much greater relief to let everyone know and be open about this and that you feel like any mistake that you make is justified.
Ask for Help When You Need It
I, for example, suffer from mind gaps doing a task that I've done at least 50 times, all of a sudden I find myself completely lost. It's of great help to me that my nearest colleague is aware of it so that she's patient with it and she walks me through it again. If she didn't know it, I think she would get quite exasperated with me.
There are situations in which it's a great relief to let someone know and to know that you can be entirely yourself and just admit a weakness.
But of course, we're all, as MS patients, we're all different. Various stages of the disease and as individuals, we also have different approaches to life.
So it's entirely up to yourself to decide what you feel most comfortable with.
