I have no doubt that God is using your illness for your greatest good and His glory. And starting this vlog and movement is already a testament of how God is using this as a means to encourage others who might be in a similar situation. Great job on the first episode! I certainly think there should be a provision for people with chronic illness to have more sick days; perhaps even provide provision for work to be done at home. Not every employer will be happy to hire people with chronic illness but it would certainly help quicken recovery if more days were granted. I look forward to more episodes. You guys are awesome!
Our aim is to use this suffering for the good of others because we know somehow God is using it for ours. We definitely agree with the idea of work being done from home. Not everything can be done remotely but a good deal of it certainly can. Thanks Lenny!
This is a sobering and eye-opening video. Thanks for posting. I certainly think companies should at least make provision for working remotely. It’s a little silly that some businesses are so dogmatic about people working at the office when their entire workflow only requires a PC and internet.
Agreed agreed agreed! While some of my duties require my presence in the office, I can still do a lot remotely. Even just one day per week working from home would make a difference. Thanks for the feedback Steve!
I know that the typical ideology behind companies is the bottom line, so cost to company is what they will want to look at, BUT I definitely think there needs to be a category for chronic illness. As you know both hubby and I are type 2 diabetics. Our MA requires us to see a number of specialists once a year to check various things. Everything from eyes, to liver, kidneys, feet, bloods etc etc. While my husbands company gives him A LOT of sick leave, he is unable to use it for prescribed doctor's visits, so unless he is actually sick, he is unable to use his sick leave to go to these medical appointments, thus he uses vacation leave: which I think is really dumb. He is managing his chronic illness so that he stays healthy, to me a it's a no brainer. Another thing I've found the last couple of years is, people don't always understand the emotional toil a constant chronic illness can take. Ensuring you eat right, take your meds, any time you out go, go to other people's homes, etc etc etc, it get's exhausting. The other side of that is the actual monetary cost of managing a chronic illness outside of the med's your MA does cover. Currently we spend over R20 000 a year on med's the MA won't cover. In my case I'm diabetic, but not diabetic enough to qualify for certain meds??????????? The other cost, is the actual cost of living, supplements to counter certain side effects, eliminating cheaper food choices because they cause severe sugar spikes. It's a whole confabulated mire that you have to negotiate on a daily basis, which non-chronic people don't always understand.
It is so exhausting! I'm glad you brought up the emotional/mental side of it, it is definitely something we'll be posting about in the future. Medical aids often seem like both a blessing and a curse, the frustration of dealing with them can add to an already stress-filled life. We currently pay about R14,000 per year for meds and supplements outside of MA's coverage and with the addition of 1 new medication that may possibly maybe help with Damon's photophobia its about to double. We're blessed to have many people in our lives who understand living with a chronic illness is never easy but we're aiming to increase that awareness and understanding and expand to those outside our circles too. Thanks for your input!
