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[riptide]

And yet another AND...

Riptide, I'm bringing this up here, since this is where you have shared about your disability issues. I am wondering whether your admitted tendency to over-think/obsess about issues is getting in your way and actually sabotaging you. On other threads, you have described situations that make you angry and stressed, and most of them have to do with ways that you think other people are behaving inappropriately. In some cases this inappropriate behavior has a direct effect upon you, but in many cases it is indirect. So, I want to ask--do you have some kind of support to help you work through this stuff? By this I mean counseling, peer groups, or whatever--but some way to get feedback and help so you can try to let go of some of this stress? Even online, many of the Forumites seem to be picking up on a lot of underlying anger, and I know from what you have shared that inappropriate anger can be a problem for you.

Hm.  I am not sure quite how to respond to this, but I think I got the message.  Thanks.

[sciencephd]

If you define "physical illness" in that way, then all serious psychological disorders are probably physical illnesses. 

Is the MRI a standard method for establishing that a psychological disorder qualifies as "physical" ?

Are you using "physical illness" in a technical sense, as defined by insurance companies, or is this your interpretation ?

I am suggesting that the poster above was misclassifying PTSD and was incorrect by stating that a person with PTSD was "clinically healthy," because the brain studies show otherwise. 
Cancer = changes in the cells; PTSD = changes in the brain structure

Studies have used MRIs because they image the brain and they clearly show the difference in the hippocampal volume. 
We have no "standard method for establishing that a psych disorder qualifies as "physical"" because we don't know enough in the field...
But we do know that study after study shows decrease in hippocampal volume and measurable loss in neurons in those with PTSD.
These studies also show that hippocampal volume reduction is specific to PTSD and is not associated with disorders such as anxiety or panic disorders.
 
As for other psychological disorders, they may or may not results in the changes in the brain structure that we see in PTSD. 
For example, people with bipolar disorder have an average of 30% more of signal-sending brain cells called monoamines in their brains as seen in PET scans.  Monoamines send signals between the neurons and have long been thought of to be responsible for Bipolar because they are involved in mood regulation, stress responses, and various cognitive functions.  So, is this structural?...sure, we are talking about cells...

Yes, but that is not the question I was asking.  It is not about whether PTSD has a physical origin or manifestation.  Physical illness is not the same as a psychological illness with a physical origin or physcial manifestation.  It's as important not to make artificial distinctions or set up false dichotomies.  Acutally the poster said "otherwise clinically healthy".

Priveleging psychological illnesses that manifest in a change in an MRI over ones that do not, does nobody any favours, except perhaps insurance companies.

[msparticularity]

And yet another AND...

Riptide, I'm bringing this up here, since this is where you have shared about your disability issues. I am wondering whether your admitted tendency to over-think/obsess about issues is getting in your way and actually sabotaging you. On other threads, you have described situations that make you angry and stressed, and most of them have to do with ways that you think other people are behaving inappropriately. In some cases this inappropriate behavior has a direct effect upon you, but in many cases it is indirect. So, I want to ask--do you have some kind of support to help you work through this stuff? By this I mean counseling, peer groups, or whatever--but some way to get feedback and help so you can try to let go of some of this stress? Even online, many of the Forumites seem to be picking up on a lot of underlying anger, and I know from what you have shared that inappropriate anger can be a problem for you.

Hm.  I am not sure quite how to respond to this, but I think I got the message.  Thanks.

I don't mean to discourage you from venting here, or asking for support. This is a great place to do it! I was just concerned in case you need to be finding more direct--and personal--support.

[flowerring]

I agree completely. I 've had a chronic condition since I was 14, but have always managed to plow through, despite 5 major surgeries.  I think this issue really needs to be brought to the forefront of work/life balance.  As a woman, I do appreciate the attention that work/life balance issues devote to childbearing and childrearing.  However, I think people need to understand that having a disability and chornic condition is also a very important aspect of work/balance.  I gasp at how many of my female colleagues "bash" the ill, and question their commitment to their work.  If one were to say the same thing about women and thier kids, well, there would be utter uproar.  Having children is hard, but in many ways, having a disability is much, much harder.

[tangerine]

I agree completely. I 've had a chronic condition since I was 14, but have always managed to plow through, despite 5 major surgeries.  I think this issue really needs to be brought to the forefront of work/life balance.  As a woman, I do appreciate the attention that work/life balance issues devote to childbearing and childrearing.  However, I think people need to understand that having a disability and chornic condition is also a very important aspect of work/balance.  I gasp at how many of my female colleagues "bash" the ill, and question their commitment to their work.  If one were to say the same thing about women and thier kids, well, there would be utter uproar.  Having children is hard, but in many ways, having a disability is much, much harder.

Well said. Many of my colleagues seem to think they deserve course releases because they have children. Give me a break.

[starrigyrl]

This is a legitimate question, but I'll probably still get reamed for it--- When does the reasonable accommodation become unreasonable? I worked with a good colleague several years ago who was struggling with severe clinical depression. She is a very good teacher and an excellent researcher, but her mental illness impacted both her work and mine. Because we shared an office, I probably spent 45 minutes every morning getting her calmed down enough to stop crying and teach her first class of the day. Sometimes I had to field emergency phone calls from her and teach her class because she couldn't get out of bed. I even made a few trips in the middle of the night because I feared suicide after a frantic phone call (I realize this is above and beyond normal office relationships). This person and I are still friends, although we no longer work together (we've both moved on to other positions), and since she has been receiving the appropriate medical treatment, she has managed her professional life more effectively.

Here comes the part for which I will no doubt get clobbered, but I have wondered this about both colleagues and students. I think most of us try very hard to make reasonable accommodations for other human beings who have different physical or mental needs than we do. But there are limits. We don't let blind people drive buses or fly airplanes. When does a mental disability become insupportable in the academic environment- when does it become an unfair burden on colleagues and students? (and before you "yell" at me, head over the Classroom forum and check out the way people talk about students with special needs, or just look back in this thread at how even people like sikora- who has disclosed her own unique challenges- talks about difficult colleagues). Maybe "colleague from hell" had a personality disorder; should s/he have been allowed to drive someone else from their position? 

[msparticularity]

Here comes the part for which I will no doubt get clobbered, but I have wondered this about both colleagues and students. I think most of us try very hard to make reasonable accommodations for other human beings who have different physical or mental needs than we do. But there are limits.

I'm not going to jump on you--I agree with you totally. "Reasonable accommodations" should consist of making adjustments that make it possible for a disabled person to do his/her own job. For depression, for example, my old university disabilities officer typically helped negotiate things like no early morning classes (since antidepressants can make one foggy in the mornings). Or, a schedule might be arranged so the person can keep a Thursday afternoon therapy appointment every week--so no advisement or meeting responsibilities then.

In my case, what I have most often needed to help me with the RA is to not have to be in my office more than 3-4 days a week, so I can work from home as much as possible. Also, I teach afternoon and night classes since my illness and medications can make mornings difficult for me.

I think the burden that was put on you by your former colleague's illness was way, way out of line!

[tangerine]

This is a legitimate question, but I'll probably still get reamed for it--- When does the reasonable accommodation become unreasonable? 

I agree with everything msparticularity wrote. Accommodations should not shift a burden to anyone else. They are only intended to help the person effectively fulfill his or her own job description. Modification in schedule means timing, not reducing (without leave or sick days) or shifting it to someone else. Yes, what you have described is out of line.

Many of us don't feel well some days, but do our own jobs. It is but one of many of life's possible reasons that must be balanced with working life.