Without medication...

[Dreamline]

I can't function...I barely go by at one job that I really liked with the help of

[Phyllis]

I don't have a job per se... I'm a stay at home mom of 4 kids ranging from 2 - 16. Some would say that is a job. So with that in mind, I need my meds. It is very difficult to function without them.

[Ramji]

A year ago I was barely holding on to my job .... I would have lost it if i was working somewhere else, but the company I work for has good insurance and I have a very understanding boss.  I was on short term disability while receiving ECT treatments.
Now I am doing very well at work at just had my 6 month review and score an "Achieved" on all my goals
 ... there wasn't an option for doing well this in poll. 
I'm on minimal medication and seem to get a little better every day.
I'm sure I still seem a bit eccentric to most folks, but that may just be the way I am aside from the BPD.

[Joe Buck]

 I deffentally need my meds...a treatment that works for me. Have a intresting story about meds. Was a salesman for a large corporation for twenty years...those 20 years diagnosed as unipolar (major depression) &  on & off medication instructions by 2 p/docs. I was a excellent employee, my customers, where like family to me...had won numerous national sales awards. Had a 2 month medical leave for ECT...for black hole depression. New (third) p/doc diagnosed me with BPD. Went back to work...company refused to let me drive company vehicles...reason dangerous reason:on medication. The company did not fire me...just forced me out. Company offered me 2 management positions...in shit hole locations. Needles to say I was on medication before...with zero accidents & infractions. This was the start of a  long downword spiral...lousy jobs, insensitive, unsympathetic, inconsiderate people abounded...then the coup de grasse...divorce (X was not to kind to me) As far as work goes...quite some jobs...for my health...age discrimination was a barrier...most jobs little or no benefits...so reluctantally went on SSDI... in one year eligible medicare. All in all...it is a miracle...I'm still kicking. F*ckem all...if they can't take a joke!!! When it comes to employment rights...the employee holds most of the cards. For instance...in 1992 (2 years after the Disabilities Act of 1990, was enacted) appox. 400,000 discrimination cases were filed & only 5% (20,000 cases) made it to litigation. Why?...the deck is stacked in the employers favor...there is little money to be made...so for those 2 reasons...lawyers refuse to litigate, discrimination cases. The Disabilities of 1990 has a catch 22 type of legal irony to it...especially for people with brain disorders...due to dilemma, of disclosure, with the fear of discrimination. ONE CAN"T USE THE DISABILITIES ACT OF 1990...IF SAID PERSON DOES NOT MAKE EMPLOYER AWARE OF THEIR ILLNESSES...dammed if you do...dammed if you don't? I'll back out of this now...extended exposure to this crap...is not to kind to my moods...JB (Bob)

[Phyllis]

I have experience with the Disability Act. Contacted the department at college to tell them I was going to be leaving due to my diagnosis of BP (This was when I was first diagnosed. Have a 4.0 average until I started meds, then I started bombing and was zombified, couldn't concentrate etc. etc..). Their response? "What would you like us to do?" Hell! Isn't that YOUR job? To tell me what you can do?

[Dreamline]

I am applying for this job I really really want that I have a really really good chance of getting.  If they ask me do you have any medical problems...I don't know if I should lie or tell the truth.  Worse yet I have a back problem too but it shouldn't interfere at all with the work...so that may not matter...but the bipolar thing...as long as my medication works for me it won't be a problem but I don't know that yet...I dunno. 

[Ramji]

I am applying for this job I really really want that I have a really really good chance of getting.  If they ask me do you have any medical problems...I don't know if I should lie or tell the truth.  Worse yet I have a back problem too but it shouldn't interfere at all with the work...so that may not matter...but the bipolar thing...as long as my medication works for me it won't be a problem but I don't know that yet...I dunno. 

Dreamline,

I don't know where you are located, but I don't think they can ask that in the U.S. because of HEPA (sp?) laws.
My employer even avoided mention of it in my review to protect me if I should apply for a position elsewhere in the company.
I have NOT identified myself as having a mental disability.

[Mixedmaniagirl]

I am applying for this job I really really want that I have a really really good chance of getting.  If they ask me do you have any medical problems...I don't know if I should lie or tell the truth.  Worse yet I have a back problem too but it shouldn't interfere at all with the work...so that may not matter...but the bipolar thing...as long as my medication works for me it won't be a problem but I don't know that yet...I dunno. 

It is ILLEGAL to ask about your health at all. They CANNOT ask you about this.

[Phyllis]

Ohio must be different. They ask those questions all the time even when getting a Drivers License.

[biPOLAREXPRESS]

"Personal Health Information is protected, and your rights may have been violated. There is no harm unless you are forced to provide the information. There is no law that says the employer can ask you to voluntarily provide the information."

I got that from yahoo answers. It was the easiest for me to understand. The other places I looked gave me to much legal mumbo jumbo.....

Hope it helps

[Mixedmaniagirl]

Ohio must be different. They ask those questions all the time even when getting a Drivers License.

A driver's license is different. The only thing that an employer can ask is if you can perform the duties of the job with reasonable accommodation..............
Some key aspects of Title I of the ADA that may pertain to persons with a health or physical condition include:
*Limiting the medical information that an employer can ask a job applicant during the application stage. Employers may not ask questions about the applicant's medical condition or questions about the use of prescription drugs including insulin during the application process.
*An employer may not require an applicant to take a medical examination before it makes a conditional job offer, or after a job offer unless all applicants are required to do the same.
*If during the application process an applicant voluntarily informs a potential employer that he/she has a health or physical condition, the employer may only ask two questions about their health or physical condition: if the job applicant needs reasonable accommodations and what those accommodations are.
*After making a job offer, an employer may ask questions about an applicant's health (including asking whether the applicant has diabetes) and may require a medical examination as long as it treats all applicants the same.
* If an employer discovers that an applicant has a health or physical condition they may not withdraw a job offer if the applicant is able to perform the fundamental duties ("essential functions") of a job, with or without reasonable accommodation, without posing a direct threat to safety

[Dreamline]

Hmmm...I'm in Virginia...I'm not sure how to answer if I am disabled...up until recently, I have been disabled to the point I couldn't work, or even function at home.  But as long as the lithium works for me I can function somewhat...not normally but for me this is amazing.

[Joe Buck]

Disclosure of your illnesses is a personal choice. Through the 9 year maze of BPD I have experienced...I now am very selective on who I disclouse to.  All employers are differant...some are accommodating, understanding...other employers will screw you, at the drop, of the hat. Get realistic...employer's can get dam neer any info they want, about you...if there's a will there's a way. With the present economic state...employer's can cherry pick & be oh so selective. Don't get me wrong...I do not enjoy being on SSDI. Some positives...I am out of the rat race...I loved my job as a salesman...the corporation I worked for was inhuman. A good friend of mine lost her sales job, due to discrimination of her BPD. As she & I agreed...both jobs where very stressful...stress is a trigger...so could we have hacked it. No answer to that. My heart goes out to you...that has to go out & face the music. Do the best that you can & my your glass be half full. Winning the lotto would be, nice...JB (Bob)

[Cathy]

Hard to say whether I can hold a job...the last office job I did I got fired from...but I've been modelling for a couple of weeks now and that has gone fine, though Lithium makes me shake a little when posing. Interview tomorrow for a part time shop job, wish me luck!!!

I always thought disclosing an illness was an optional thing, there is usually a tick-able box that says "prefer not to disclose" or similar. Though I suppose that is pretty damning in itself. Other times the wording gives you a loophole as it says  something like "Do you have a long term illness or injury that will affect your ability to carry out day to day duties?" so you can safely say no provided you think you have half a chance of doing the job well.

[Cathy]

Sorry I should say I am on meds...can't remember how well I functioned without them.