Bipolar Today

---

Sane Research today put out a study about mental illness in the workplace in Australia. The results are not especially surprising, but are still disconcerting. First, they discovered that four in ten workers never disclose their mental illnesses to their employers. Second, they discovered that on thirty percent were offered flexible working arrangements. This shows a couple of things. First, people with mental illness fear repercussions should they disclose their status. Second, many employers are either unwilling to or unsure how to accommodate mental illnesses. An article about this was written in The Australian

Commentary

I don’t find this study surprising. If anything, I would have thought the number of disclosures would be lower than this. The article chalks up people not reporting to stigma, but I don’t think that is entirely correct. Many of us look at mental illness as a medical condition, and so private. When people don’t think it’s necessary, they may not disclose it to their boss. While it is true that I didn’t for years disclose my bipolar disorder to my employer, I didn’t disclose any of my other medical conditions, either. On the couple of times I simply couldn’t work, I simply said that I was ill, which was true.

However, mental illness isn’t just an illness; it’s a disability. That means 1) we shouldn’t need to be afraid for our jobs if it is disclosed and 2) we should be able to expect some sort of accommodation. The problem is that a lot of employers just have no idea how to accommodate mental illness. This is partly because we a lot of the time, we don’t know what to ask for. I know that flexible hours are one thing people with bipolar illness could benefit from, but there are other things as well, such as not being expected to interact with clients while hypomanic, for example, or avoiding certain types of stressful situations. This, though, is an important conversation for people with bipolar disorder to ask ourselves: what exactly do we need?

Related posts:

1. Mental Illnesses Usually Provide Stronger Core Relationships: Study
2. Mental Illness in California Prisons
3. State Mental Health Funding Cut By $1.1B Since 2009
4. Iowa Mental Health Court Helps Keep Mentally Ill out of Prison
5. Alabama Set to Close Four State Mental Hospitals