from OR

January 6, 2000

Greetings from another webfoot!! I moved to Idaho 12 years ago, but I'm

still a webfoot at heart. As far as your disability, I'd say go at your

case from the depression angle. The recognition of FMS as a cause of

disability is still tenuous at best. Progress is slow. Suggest to your

attorney that you go from the angle of the emotional impact of chronic pain

and see if that is better.

Also (disclaimer...I don't mean this to be offensive to --GA)...but her

post about car accidents really hit home with me. Since day ONE that I

started feeling the effects of FMS, I have noticed that my driving skills

have gone in the toilet. Honestly. MANY times I have thought to myself, " I

shouldn't be driving, the way I feel! " . I have such a deep feeling that I

am not safe behind the wheel. For one thing, I have so much pain a lot of

times that I can't concentrate on operating the car. Secondly, look at the

pills I'm taking all day long. Thirdly, I am TIRED all of the time.

Yawning my head off and sleepy. I have a 45 minute commute home after work,

and frequently I can barely keep my eyes open. I am still working 40 hours

a week, but how I'm doing it I don't know. Just gritted teeth, I guess.

Back to my driving. I haven't had a car accident that I have caused in 32

years of operating motor vehicles. (The one accident I've been involved in,

I was stopped at a stoplight and a car ran right into the side of me....I

couldn't have prevented it.) So, does that give you some idea that I'm

super-cautious??? It should. In the last year, I have had more " near

misses " than I have had in my entire life. It's just because I'm not

focused. I am driving in a total fog most of the time. I just wonder how

long it's going to be before I get in a bad car accident, particularly

driving the number of miles that I do every day. (Sixty miles just to work

and back.)

So, Welcome from OR...and I can empathize.

For one thing, your employer probably couldn't " legally " give you the

ultimatum he did. But forcing an employer to keep you on when they don't

want to...I couldn't do it. I'm very fortunate in working at a university

where they have allowed me a flexible work schedule in order to get my hours

in. I couldn't make it if I had to adhere to the " clock " schedule. Just

too many physical problems.

Best wishes to the List! Jan M

Jan Musick

Recommended Posts