Mental Health LOA from Work

[arielroux]

Those of you who have taken a leave of absence from work for mental health reasons, how did you go about getting that approved?

I've started researching it through my own workplace, and I believe I would be covered under FMLA. I also have a TON of PTO remaining, so I would be able to use that in order to still receive pay while I was on leave.

I'm more wondering about the logistics...I am severely suffering right now. Stress, anxiety, bouts of crying or anger or silence, severe lack of motivation, carelessness, etc. I am due to be screened for adult ADHD in a couple weeks, but I honestly think I need a break. I believe that work is my main source of problems and I need to figure out my life. I can't stay in this job long term and I really need to start researching and working on what to do next and how to get myself out of this position. That being said, work is paralyzing me and I am so drained by the end of the day that I get nothing done to work towards getting myself out of this...funk, for lack of a better term.

I reached out to the psych who will be doing my ADHD testing in a couple weeks to see if we can start some regular counseling sessions, and I did let him know that I wanted to discuss an FMLA leave of absence with him, as well. I'm hoping I'll hear back from him today.

I'm just wondering how this process went for any of you who also took mental health leave. Just taking these steps this morning was overwhelming to me, and so I'm feeling this "need to know" regarding the process so I can try to temper my stress and anxiety right now.

[spindle92]

The fact that you are recognizing these stressors and reaching out for help is a huge step in the right direction.
Good for you!
We try so hard to keep everything going and our mental health is usually what suffers the most.

I am currently on an LOA from work for mental health and my employer was wonderful about it.
My employer is a huge corporation and it was surprisingly easy to go about.
I spoke with my HR director, filled out a form, and had my psychologist write a quick letter and all was a go.

[arielroux]

Sept 13, 2021 10:47:55 GMT -5 spindle92 said:

The fact that

Thank you for the kind words, I really appreciate it. I know the stigma around mental health is improving, but I still have this fear that I'm going to be judged for wanting to take a time because of a mental health issue and not a physical ailment.

I'm glad to hear that the process for you was simple. I'm really hoping that mine will go the same way! Just the thought of taking leave right now makes me feel better, so I truly hope I can get to the point where it actually happens.

It was a really tough weekend for me and it hammered home the fact that I need to take action.

I hope you're finding your leave to be helpful, and I'm sorry you're struggling as well.

[basilosaurus]

Sept 13, 2021 10:47:55 GMT -5 spindle92 said:

The fact that you are recognizing these stressors and reaching out for help is a huge step in the right direction.
Good for you!
We try so hard to keep everything going and our mental health is usually what suffers the most.

I am currently on an LOA from work for mental health and my employer was wonderful about it.
My employer is a huge corporation and it was surprisingly easy to go about.
I spoke with my HR director, filled out a form, and had my psychologist write a quick letter and all was a go.

I managed a psych clinic, and we regularly filled out forms people brought from their HR. Very simple process on our end. 

I'm happy you're recognizing what you need to do to take care of yourself. 

[spindle92]

arielroux, and thank you for the kind words.
If you would like to chat privately, please feel free to PM me.

I completely understand being nervous, as I was too. what finally pushed me over was the morning I sat in my car and just cried and cried before work. It wasn't necessarily work that I was crying about, it was the combination of everything but work was the one stressor that I could kind of control.

Good luck, you can do this.

[momof2]

Some of this depends on the size of your company. I work for a massive international corporation. When an employee that works for me goes on leave, they get the paperwork and submit it to our medical team. That team then approves (or I guess might not, but I have never heard of someone not being approved). As the manager, I get an automated message that X employee will be on leave until Y date. I get zero info on what the issue is. Right now, I have an employee that was out for 12 weeks or so. I don’t know what the issue is at all — although she did vaguely mention to me that PT was helping. My two employees out on maternity leave did tell me they were pregnant so they get their parenting leave after the STD runs out.

I guess at a smaller company, maybe more details would be known. But I would think most companies would really avoid that due to legal concerns.

[arielroux]

Sept 13, 2021 11:15:00 GMT -5 momof2 said:

Some of this depends on the size of your company. I work for a massive international corporation. When an employee that works for me goes on leave, they get the paperwork and submit it to our medical team. That team then approves (or I guess might not, but I have never heard of someone not being approved). As the manager, I get an automated message that X employee will be on leave until Y date. I get zero info on what the issue is. Right now, I have an employee that was out for 12 weeks or so. I don’t know what the issue is at all — although she did vaguely mention to me that PT was helping. My two employees out on maternity leave did tell me they were pregnant so they get their parenting leave after the STD runs out.

I guess at a smaller company, maybe more details would be known. But I would think most companies would really avoid that due to legal concerns.

Thank you for your input!

I do work for a large global company, so I know there would be a lot of privacy surrounding the request. I don't know anyone personally who has taken leave (other than maternity/paternity leave) so my knowledge on what actually happens is so limited.

I do know that they have the ability/right to NOT approve the request for leave and that definitely stresses me out, but at the same time, due to legal concerns I don't see them denying it. But that it definitely in the back of my mind.

Right now I haven't said anything to management or HR because I just called my psych about it this morning. I want to talk with him before I mention anything to my workplace.

[momof2]

Ok, at a major corporation, you should be able to find the required paperwork on your internal website. Get your doc to fill it out and submit it. Personally, I would tell your manager “hey, I am having an urgent health issue and my doctor is going to request a leave of absence that will start in just a few days. Here is what I’ve done to make the transition smooth.” Assuming your manager isn’t an idiot, they won’t ask you any specific questions about your issue. If they are an idiot, just say “I would rather not get into the details, but here is what I’ve done to make this smooth.”

[arielroux]

momof2,thank you again for your advice and input. I really do appreciate it, and can use all the help I can get right now!

[momof2]

Let me add this. I’ve never heard of anyone not being approved, but I have seen them approve a shorter leave and requiring the doctor to fill out the paperwork a second time to confirm the situation hasn’t changed. This seems to be a formality only from what I have seen. But if your doc requests 12 weeks and they only approve six and then want paperwork again, that is a possibility.

[basilosaurus]

Sept 13, 2021 11:37:58 GMT -5 momof2 said:

Let me add this. I’ve never heard of anyone not being approved, but I have seen them approve a shorter leave and requiring the doctor to fill out the paperwork a second time to confirm the situation hasn’t changed. This seems to be a formality only from what I have seen. But if your doc requests 12 weeks and they only approve six and then want paperwork again, that is a possibility.

We regularly filled out paperwork to file for continuing leave. Our letters were very short and contained almost no information. It was a couple sentences basically saying person has been under our care since x date and needs continuing care. Please contact us if you have concerns. To my knowledge we were never contacted.