you know the vacation thing might be a way for your boss to preserve your privacy. There are such taboos and stigma's attached to mental illness that by not volenteering confidential info it was an attempt to "protect" you ... you know the situation best, but when depressed we sometimes forget that a situation is not all bad.
Like now, you will have the opportunity to educate your close aquantances and either ignore or lie to the rest. The time you took is your business ... and if you work in the female soaked environment I do ... you will have the upper hand in controling the rumor-mill. I was diagnosed with depression, szchophenia, and laziness by the half of the company that knew me...
I can imagine the scenario you're talking about, going back to work and
facing people's expectations (I hate the "what did you do on the
weekend question" when sometimes what I did was just get through the
weekend). Maybe your boss isn't sure how to handle your situation and is saying it's vacation so that you will have the option to talk about it or not, depending on how private you want to be. Maybe you could just say "I had some personal issues to sort out" and leave it at that, unless it's someone you feel comfortable talking to.
Whatever the case, you've found a great place here. I found it's a great relief to be able to speak to other people who get what you're going through. No one here will judge you for what you're dealing with, we're just cheering each other on as much as we can, and trying to learn together and from each other. I wouldn't say that my social circle would win any prizes either and that gets to me as well. But as you so nicely put it, I keep trying because I'm not keen on the alternative either.
Good luck and welcome (or is it the other way around?)
Hello, Mickey and welcome to the Depression Center.
This is a great place to drop in and chat with others like ourselves. I was talking just the other day about social anxiety and how I very often failed to follow my own advice and I ended up being "stayed away from" by my colleagues... I get panicky and then, to compensate, I get razor-tongued and nobody around me at the time knows what's going on with me. So they tend to avoid and that's way, way isolating, isn't it?
Sometimes I've been able to explain to one or two people about my anxiety in social settings but I can't really do that with everybody... I wish I could introduce myself like that and not be thought of as a very modern stand-up comedian!! It's a dilemma that I still have to face still but I must admit that the problem seems less overwhelming since I hit my 'fifties!!
Now, if I could just have had that "it doesn't bother me" attitude when I was in my twenties then I'd have had a life a lot less laboured....
I think you'll find that MANY individuals have uttered those exact sentiments. Depression is isolating!
Luckily, you are no longer alone. Our members are very friendly and understand what you are going through as they are also.
We strongly recommend you begin working through the tools of the program and have a look through the Mod' Corner forum as there are a few posts on transitioning back to work.
I'm new here. I'm currenlty on leave from work. My boss won't acknowledge why I'm off and has told my co-workers I"m on vacation which only makes it more difficult to return to people possibly wanting to ask questions of a supossed refereshed happy person who just had a vacation.I'm supossed to go back to work next week and am quite afraid.
I'm isolated and have no friends or support system other than my therapist.
I'm feeling quite alone and find nothing despiste my many many attempts to fit in, works for me. It's like people can see that I'm damaged and stay away.
Anyway, I keep trying. I'm not keen on the alterntive.
