Matters
Getting back into
the workforce
by Elizabeth Giardina
In March of 2009, after work- ing at the same firm for seven
years, I was abruptly laid off. As
the initial shock wore off, anxiety and depression kicked in.
My anxiety was not misplaced. I
spent eight months searching for
a new job.
ILLUS TRATION BY STEVE VANCE
I made use of the employment services offered by the
Society’s New York City-Southern New York Chapter to
network with others. While this
was a huge help psychologically,
the stress of not knowing what
my next steps would be led to an
exacerbation of my symptoms. I
went on a steroid treatment and
for the first time, I truly felt the
effects of having MS.
I eventually did land a job,
After being laid off,
the author finds a
new job. It comes with
challenges.
but it came with challenges. My
first eight months of employment were spent in a temporary
position with no benefits, an
hourly salary and a big learning curve in an area of finance
outside my expertise. When I
finally was hired as a full-time
employee, I not only took a
salary cut, but was also given a
position lower than vice president, my previous title.
Commuting stress
My new office is located out-
side of New York City—which
has proven to be my biggest
challenge yet. I own an apart-
ment in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn,
and work in Purchase, N.Y., a
distance of about 45 miles. A
In the past, I took public
transportation to work. It was
nice to be able to relax and even
shut my eyes. Now, because I’m
so far away, I have to drive. This
has brought on an entirely new
level of stress. I often feel sleep-
deprived and I find that my
body gets stiff after being in the
car for such a long period.
commute in rush-hour
traffic can take well over
two hours each way.
Disclosure stress
Then there’s the added stress of
disclosure. My old colleagues
were almost like family members.
They knew I had MS, and participated with me in MS fund-raising events. At the new job, I
didn’t think there was any need
to tell my boss anything until I
started to experience symptoms
I couldn’t ignore. Numbness and
tingling up my legs has been
causing me to limp slightly and
inconsistently.
Trying to decide if and when
would be the appropriate time to
tell my boss was tough. I wasn’t
expecting sympathy or special
treatment, but at the same time,
I felt like it was important to let
my boss know about my situation. Disclosing ended up being
the right thing to do for me. My
boss directed me to our human
resources department, which
provides resources that I was
unaware of. And he is also more
