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    To teach or not to teach

    For the most part, I enjoy teaching. I have the dream job. I teach from home using my computers, a headset, and my professional attire--sweats and t-shirts. I draw disabilty retirement, which with only five years in the school sytem to begin with isn't all that much.

    My health--I am taking Tysabri, but I do struggle with fatigue and brain FOG! I teach college classes and work about nine months out of the year. I feel great in the fall, but the three seasons are challenging for me. I am 39 years old and have three kids, two of which are grown-one is 16.

    My situation--because of the fatigue and my finances--my health insurance premium is $800 a month plus my medicines and business expenses pretty well equal my take-home pay. I also have disabilty insurance on several credit cards that have been used to pay for my medical expenses.

    If I were to quit and take my disability, then I could save quite a bit of money. I had a SSD hearing back in December. I had to "play the SSD game" for my school district as part of my early retirement. I wasn't interested in disability, but I had to go all the way until I was turned down before I could continue with my retirement disability. Anyway, the judge told me he would disable me in a minute if I would quit working.

    My question for everyone here is if I quit working, my financial situation would improve immensely and I would get some rest, but getting this job back would be almost impossible. I would miss teaching, and I worked so hard for my credentials.

    Has anyone else regretted quitting work and now realize you can actually do it?
    Melissa--Betaseron 2007-2010; Novantrone 2008; Tysabri 2010-2012; Rituxan 2012; Tecfidera 2015; Currently-No DMD

    Healer is my GOD!

    #2
    Get out of the box..

    Ok. so it seems you are caught between a rock and a hard place. My advise would be to "think outside the box".

    Is there something you can do that would still satisfy your desire to teach and make your life easier? Private tutoring? Test prep classes? Maybe you could consider taking your knowledge to a different level? write a book for new teachers as guidance? Or see if you could become a guidance counselor? Perhaps you could teach night classes? usually those that teach at night have a MUCH easier schedule. Perhaps you could find a happy medium that would still provide the income that you desire as well as the much needed rest.

    I wish I had better suggestions. I hope it all works out for you!

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      #3
      i don`t have any experience with teaching, but i miss working. i like all the ideas jenniferautumn had, and they sound worthy of looking into. also, what about volunteer work? good luck.

      dave
      hunterd/HuntOP/Dave
      volunteer
      MS World
      hunterd@msworld.org
      PPMS DX 2001

      "ADAPT AND OVERCOME" - MY COUSIN

      Comment


        #4
        Hi,

        I'm a teacher too and would be heartbroken if I wasn't able to teach anymore. For awhile, I also battled horrible fatigue and at times was afraid that I wouldn't be able to continue with the job that I love.

        I actually lost my wonderful job as an assistant professor at a community college in 2009 when I was denied tenure because I wasn't able to keep up with the commitments that went with the job and because I had to postpone working on my master's degree because of the fatigue and other issues.

        I tried various medications that were supposed to help with the problem, amantadine and Provigil. However, neither of them worked for me, and Provigil actually gave me horrible chest pain.

        In September of last year, I got a job as an instructor at a private college. I was still very worried that the fatigue issues would make me loose this job too, even though the schedule is much better for me.

        I started researching other ways to help with the fatigue and read on this site about two anti-oxidants which had been proven in university studies to be as or more effective than amantadine in combating fatigue in MS, chronic fatigue syndrome, cancer, aging, and other illnesses. I was skeptical, but decided to go ahead and give them a try. (What did I have to lose?)

        Long story short, the 1,000 mg of acetyl L-carnitine and 200 mg of alpha lipoic acid that I now take daily have given me my life back. I no longer suffer from the bone weary, draining fatigue. I can do things now that I haven't been able to do in years. (The university studies used 2,000 mg of acetyl L-carnitine, so there is room for adjustment before reaching the therapeutic range shown in the studies.)

        These supplements have been amazing. And the thing I like the most is that they are natural substances which our bodies need anyway. There are few side effects, though if you are taking thyroid or diabetes medications, you need to consult with your doctor first, as these substances can increase the effectiveness of the medications. (It's actually best to consult your doctor before taking any new medications or supplements.)

        I bless the day I heard about these supplements. They've helped many other people here as well. If you haven't already, give them a try. But again, check with your doctor first.

        Hugs and happy teaching!

        Lisa
        Joy is not the absence of suffering. It is the presence of God.
        Cut aspartame from my diet in 2012 and my symptoms have slowly disappeared. Interesting!
        Alpha Lipoic Acid (200 mg) + Acetyl L-carnitine (1,000 mg) = No more fatigue for me!

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