coping at work

[nobody girl]

how do you cope at work when you are depressed?

i have been very depressed. sometimes work is stressful and it is hard to function at work. nearly everyday one of my coworkers asks me "are you okay?" and of course i have to blame it on being tired. another one of my coworkers said a few days ago "you know you can tell my anything right?" and i just sort of feel she was talking about my si. i do my best to keep the scars hidden as a don't want si to be an issue at work, but i'm afraid that people have seen them. i don't want this kind of attention. what do you do when you have a hard time acting normaly, becuase of depression, at work? and how do you deal with coworkers knowing about your problems?

[toXic]

well at my work there's only 10-13 people on staff, and only 1 or 2 of them know about my SI... one of them has actually talked to me outside of work about it, and even found me a number to call incase i needed someone to talk to. it was a relief to me knowing that at least 1 person cares... so maybe your co-workers just wanna help?

when i'm feeling down at work i tend to do the quieter jobs (i work at a paintball field). other than that i really don't have much advice

[balletomane]

I would thank them for their concern and continue to be friendly with them. You don't have to tell them anything you don't want to though.

I'm still a student, but last year I was doing a long term project in a biology lab. (It required that I behave in a consistently professional manner.) When I started to get upset, I would excuse myself and walk around the halls a little bit. Just taking those little moments to myself helped.

When you are really stressed out, is it possible to ask a coworker to help you out with something? Are there any minor tasks you can delegate? If someone is on their way to the post office, can they take something for you, etc? Sometimes passing on the little tasks makes things less stressful.

[nobody girl]

thanks for the replies.
belletomane--maybe i could ask for some help sometimes. everyone always talks about how i always work so hard and stay on task.

i think one of the more difficult things about my job is always having to put on a happy face. i work in retail and i'm told to be as polite and perky as possible. thats pretty tough though when you just want to crawl into a hole. and i hate the fact that i don't hide it very well.

take care,
mary

[_MessedUp_]

I'm lucky in a sense that although i was suffering badly with depression when i got my job, in a sesne it did help me come out of it. But i know what you mean. When yuo feel like shit, when you don't want to have to see people, when you just want to be alone, you're forced to out on a fake smile and pretend life is great. I had that problem when i was 16 and had my first job. My depression and SI were probably at their worst then, yet being an idot i got myself a really stressful job. Eventually it led to me ODing and i had to leave. I hope this won't be the same for you, and i'd seriously advise you to put yourself first, if you recogise that you're heading that way, its not worth forcing yourself into it.

Maybe talking to others would help, as is suggested? Do you ever feel kinda isolated etc? Maybe thats why you throw yourself into work> It might make things a bit more bearable if you were able to talk to someone you work with?

sorry i'm i'm going off on one here hope things work out ok hun

Take Care

_MessedUp_