Disability Leave

Some companies offer the possibility of disability leave for individuals navigating health barriers at work. In these situations there are typically two types of disability leave: Short Term Disability (STD) and Long Term Disability (LTD). Depending on the definition, company policies, and regulations surrounding leave in your workplace, the benefits and constraints which come with these programs are subject to change. However, we have created a general guide that more-or-less can give you tools that may be helpful to navigate your situation. Keep in mind that these expectations and tools may not be helpful, effective, or applicable to your unique situation and to use critical thinking when implementing strategies from our page.

I. Know Your Rights

  • Gain a detailed understanding of the company policy and save segments of the policy for easy access in the future.

II. Develop A Realistic Documentation System

  • Access to your file - In many jurisdictions patients have a right to information regarding assessments, and in some cases that can include disability assessments.
  • Document Meetings - If any discussions are held live, make sure to consider the benefits of summarizing:
    • Very important: Meeting outcomes
    • Very important: Next steps
    • Symptoms: Very relevant if speaking to an individual directly responsible for handling decisions associated with your health information.
    • New medical documentation
    • Accommodations requested and justification
    • Examples of continued compliance with the program

Medical Letters

III. Navigate Self-Advocacy

  • Regardless of the result, try to remain resilient and explore other options or avenues for support if needed.
  • Make sure to stay positive as much as possible. Expect to have your needs dismissed – the company wants you to get back to work. If you find yourself struggling to have your needs met, just keep asking for what documentation would be required to get access to the help you need. Keep calm and don’t take the situation personally – if you know that you qualify for help based on your research into the policy, the rest is a matter of documentation.

Expect Resistance

Here are some common strategies that may be used when advocating for medical leave. It’s important to be mentally prepared to encounter these situations to stay regulated and keep acting in your best interest.

  1. Selective Interpretation of Policies: Companies may selectively interpret their STD policies or eligibility criteria to justify denying certain claims. They might focus on technicalities or ambiguities in the policy language to argue that the employee’s situation doesn’t meet the requirements for coverage.
  2. Documentation Requirements: Companies may impose stringent documentation requirements or administrative hurdles for employees seeking STD benefits, making it difficult for them to navigate the claims process effectively. This could include complex forms, multiple levels of approval, or tight deadlines for submitting documentation.
  • Your best bet here is usually to request accommodations, list the requirements to stay in the program and that you continue to fill. Explain that due your current state may not allow you to participate in certain ways, and request information on the documentation required to access that support.
  1. Intimidation or Retaliation: In some cases, employers may use intimidation tactics or retaliation against employees who apply for STD benefits. This could include threats of removal of benefits, termination, or facing barriers to promotions in the future at the company.
    • Document what happened and the nature of the intimidation privately. A history of these strategies whether implemented legally or not can help your case if the situation escalates.
    • If there is no way to have your needs met without conflict, you will need to learn at your company who is in charge of risk management (typically HR). HR is responsible for preventing lawsuits. It is crucial that HR understands that you are interested in being flexible and part of the solution BUT that you also know your rights and can defend yourself, as they are responsible for keeping the company out of trouble.
    • Your relationship with HR vs. what you share with your boss is not the same; they do not have the same responsibilities.
    • If your company does not have an HR department you might not have as much to go on. Smaller companies typically do not have as much insight into the legal risks they are exposed to until they are confronted with a lawsuit. Even then, they will not necessarily have procedures in place to de-escalate and work something out with you.
  2. Undermine Severity
    • Document symptoms and articulate how they affect your ability to work in writing.
    • Refer to our list of symptoms below and how they affect you.
    • If you see any symptoms missing, use ChatGPT to generate symptoms associated with your diagnoses and predict how they can affect someone’s work. Delete output that does not relate to your situation. Be generous and honest with the severity and diversity of symptoms: the squeaky wheel gets the grease.

IV. Symptoms

Below are examples of explanations you could use to describe how your symptoms affect your capacity to work. Feel free to adapt these to suit your unique situation. To access a list of symptoms without explanations attached here.

Mental Health Symptoms:

  • Anxiety often leaves me feeling on edge and overwhelmed, making it difficult to concentrate on tasks and causing frequent disruptions in my workflow.
  • Panic Attacks occur unpredictably and can be debilitating, often leading to a need to step away from work duties to regain composure.
  • Racing Thoughts make it hard for me to focus on one task at a time, resulting in decreased productivity and increased frustration.
  • Intrusive Thoughts undermine my concentration, causing me to lose track of what I’m doing and leading to frequent errors.
  • Dissociation episodes make me feel disconnected from reality, making it challenging to stay present and engaged in my work responsibilities.
  • Emotional Numbness can make it difficult to find motivation or derive satisfaction from my work tasks, impacting my overall productivity.
  • Mood Swings can affect my interactions with coworkers and my ability to maintain a consistent workflow.
  • Feelings of Worthlessness and Hopelessness can significantly impact my motivation and ability to meet job expectations.
  • Difficulty With Decision-making can lead to delays in completing tasks and difficulty prioritizing responsibilities.
  • Memory challenges can result in errors in my work and difficulty recalling important information.
  • Disorientation episodes disrupt my ability to focus and complete tasks accurately, often requiring additional time to regain my bearings.
  • Flashbacks and Violent Nightmares disrupt my sleep, leaving me fatigued and less able to concentrate during the day.
  • Night Sweats disrupt my sleep and leave me feeling exhausted and drained the next day.
  • Dysregulated Sleep like hypersomnia, leave me feeling groggy and lethargic, impacting my ability to perform tasks efficiently.

Physical Symptoms:

  • Fatigue makes it challenging to sustain my energy levels throughout the workday, often resulting in decreased productivity and difficulty concentrating.
  • Digestive Problems such as diarrhea can be unpredictable and cause frequent disruptions in my workday, requiring frequent breaks.
  • Rapid Heartbeat episodes can occur suddenly, leaving me feeling anxious and unable to focus on my tasks.
  • Sensory Sensitivity and Overwhelm to noise, light, or touch can be overwhelming and make it difficult to concentrate on my work.
  • Episodes of Hyperventilation can be alarming and require me to step away from work tasks until they subside.
  • Skin Rashes and Skin Picking episodes can be distracting and cause discomfort, making it difficult to focus on work responsibilities.
  • Dysregulated Eating such as binge eating or loss of appetite, can affect my energy levels and concentration throughout the workday.

Self Care:

  • Laundry Tasks like folding laundry have become challenging due to fatigue and difficulty concentrating, often leading to not having access to clean clothes to start my workday.
  • Personal Hygiene Difficulties maintaining personal hygiene can impact my confidence and interactions with coworkers, my readiness to present in a professional capacity, and undermine my recovery.
  • Preparing and Eating Food Challenges with cooking and grocery shopping can result in irregular meal times and reliance on convenience foods, affecting my overall well-being, recovery to full capacity, and nutrition.
  • Cleaning Being unable to clean up after cooking can lead to a cluttered living environment, adding to my stress and anxiety levels.

V. Be Prepared for Outcomes

  1. You find a way of working with your current role or supports until you can find a new job.
  2. Lose your job but negotiate more favorable terms of severance.
    • This is a good place to assert yourself without going through a legal process that can potentially satisfy everyone.
    • Negotiating severance generously can help bridge your needs financially, freeing you of the stress of your current environment while also allowing you to focus on your health and a new job.
    • You may be asked to sign an NDA, which assures the company that the severance (assuming it’s paid) relieves them of their duties to your case.
    • If you’ve played your cards right, made informed decisions, taken care of your emotions, and negotiated well, your severance should be fair, and you shouldn’t be worried about signing the NDA or interested in taking them to court.
    • Important Instead, you should be focused on healing and what exciting adventure you want to take on next. Letting go is part of healing. Don’t let bad experiences harden your heart or blacken your spirit. You can always learn from upsetting experiences, and thinking of them this way can prevent them from being remembered as traumas.