~Working with horses and Calling in sick

This just shows what a lack of understanding there is out in the general population about this debilitating condition.
Migraines vary hugely, there are medical names for the different forms of migraines. Some can be fended off a bit by the timely swallowing of the right pills. Some just can't. My sister has an epipen to inject herself, even that doesn't work. Some are controlled by low dose anti-depressants, or beta blockers. Sometimes the "cure" is almost more frightening than the pain, but I think most of us sufferers will take just about anything.
To those who are boasting that they manage to work in spite of migraine because of the right drug or whatever - well isn't that nice for you? Unfortunately there are others out there who are reduced to shaking, disorientated, puking heaps. So just be pleased you aren't among them, because if you were you wouldn't be here boasting about how you manage to carry on.
I've been hospitalised several times as a result of migraine, unbelievable as it sounds. By the time they take you in your veins tend to have collapsed and so they have a bit of trouble getting the cannula in. My boyfriend was in tears in the cubicle once watching me screeching as they tried in vain to stab and then hanging off the trolley throwing up. If you think I'm being dramatic no apologies, people need to understand this problem.
I'm lucky because I don't get those any more, I get slightly different ones caused by a neck injury, which are horribly painful but sort of manageable with drugs. Even then sometimes I won't drive to the horses because I know I'm dangerous. I just have an arrangement with a friend for the really bad days so that the pets get cared for.
 
Flame_ said:
but I don't think its reasonable to expect general full time employers to be OK with it, especially when the job involves responsibility for animal care. I'm a bit old fashioned in that I think that if you're employed to do a job then you pretty much need to turn up and do it, and if you won't or can't, then its not the job for you.
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Seems a little unfair to me that a medical problem is not an acceptable reason to potentially (for me) have to take 2 days off in 3 months. I try to schedule them for times they don't interfere with my duties - I am currently at university again and have shifted my meds so I have no weekend - Saturday and Sunday are agony in bed days, but occasionally it runs over the Monday as well if I am unlucky. I know full well that if I had a "proper job" I would have to risk taking days off regularly because of this and feel that one day every few months due to a medical condition is more than acceptable. If all employers thought as you did then I would never get a job. I have a friend who actually manages to hold a job down with a faulty immune system - she gets every bug going, a common cold will lay her up for a week with the potential for being hospitalised, yet her employer understands this and helps her work around it - she goes in as much as possible when ill and they have cover in when she can't get in. All employers should have adequate staffing to cover for illness, especially in a high risk industry where a grumpy horse can potentially kill someone.

conniegirl said:
Kylara, I dont know if it has been suggested but what about the contraceptive implant. I have an implant and havnt had a monthly in nearly 3 years.
Or
A friend of mine suffered horrific monthlys found that a IUD realy realy helped hers!
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I have a weird shaped pelvis or some such thing which means no IUDs :( The high level NSAIDs were great and took the edge of so I could actually walk downstairs and go outside for a little bit without being in bed bound writhing agony lol, but my dodgy undiagnosed (other than "no idea sorry, you'll have to deal with it") stomach/gut problem means they are a no go now :( I deal with it now after suffering since age 9 with the ******* - against all docs expectations they are actually getting worse too which is rather funny - I love my new doc though as she is trying loads of different things as she said "if it was a bloke's arm being horribly painful every month I bet we'd have a cure by now ;) I don't believe women should just deal with it, we need to find a way to fix it" and this is how we have come to the meds I take for 3 months on the trot, she was hoping they would hold out for 6 months but no luck.

thatsmygirl said:
HATE TO SAY IT....., I use to be this bad until I had my son ;/ honestly no pain since and that was 13 yrs ago.
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Haha! So blokey doc was right! Well seems a little bit of a drastic cure ;) , but glad it worked for you :)
 
If my employer whined like this about me on a public forum I'd be looking for a new job and handing in my notice PDQ. This is hugely unprofessional of you. An employee is not trying to inconvenience you by phoning in sick - they deserve your sympathy not your condemnation...
 
honetpot said:
Slightly off topic but does anyone get migraine hangover the next day? Its like your there, no real symptoms but everything is a bit distant and disconnected?
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yeah, can still feel off my face the day after-and not in a good way. worse if I actually take the meds which I try not to.


although wheat is my main trigger, skipping meals when I am busy, car sickness (and I can get that when driving), low pressure and Lush shops can set me off.
 
honetpot said:
Slightly off topic but does anyone get migraine hangover the next day? Its like your there, no real symptoms but everything is a bit distant and disconnected?
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Yes, completely. My mind feels completely foggy and I can't think straight at all the day after one. I feel like I am in a strange bubble and nothing makes much sense.
 
I think, Fides, that if you read the OP first post , it was more that the employee did NOT ring in sick, just failed to turn up, that left the employer in the lurch and unable to source alternative help.

Quite reasonable really in view of the nature of our business - the horses have to be done they cannot be put in the 'pending' basket until another day.

The employee does not need to hand in her notice she no longer has a job! My staff are required in their contract to notify me by a certain time if they are going to be off sick.
 
sport horse said:
I think, Fides, that if you read the OP first post , it was more that the employee did NOT ring in sick, just failed to turn up, that left the employer in the lurch and unable to source alternative help.

Quite reasonable really in view of the nature of our business - the horses have to be done they cannot be put in the 'pending' basket until another day.

The employee does not need to hand in her notice she no longer has a job! My staff are required in their contract to notify me by a certain time if they are going to be off sick.
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If the OP has sacked an employee for phoning in sick they may find themselves being taken to tribunal with every chance of losing. Phoning in 45 minutes after the start of the day is not considered unreasonable. Anything less than 1 hour, by general employment law, is perfectly acceptable.

Yes horses need sorting but at the end of the day it is for the employer to arrange cover, not the employee. 45 minutes after the start of the shift may well have been the first opportunity the employee had to phone in. Having experienced bad migraines myself, even with medication, it can take some time before you are oriented enough to be able to see the phone screen and even speak :(

Op if you have fired the employee without warning you could be on a sticky wicket - phoning in 45 minutes after the start of a shift is not gross misconduct...
 
sport horse said:
I think, Fides, that if you read the OP first post , it was more that the employee did NOT ring in sick, just failed to turn up, that left the employer in the lurch and unable to source alternative help.

Quite reasonable really in view of the nature of our business - the horses have to be done they cannot be put in the 'pending' basket until another day.

The employee does not need to hand in her notice she no longer has a job! My staff are required in their contract to notify me by a certain time if they are going to be off sick.
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I think that most of the people who have replied on here have said there is very little warning before you get an attack. So say you get up a six and start one getting ready for work, and by half past you get the start of and attack and you are due at work at half past seven what do you do? I started with one once when my husband was driving me to work, as he had already got me there I decided to go in, I threw up in every waste bin along a corridor and ended up in sick bay, so was no good to anyone and had to take a taxi home when I had stopped chucking.
 
I think you are being a bit unfair, if the person had a migraine they could be so unwell that they are unable to call, especially if they are actually vomiting.

It sounds like you don't believe the person was unwell as really would you expect someone who was in extreme pain including possibly vomiting to drive to work possibly risking their own life and possibly that of others just so your horses are fed on time?

I manage people although not in the equine business it can be annoying when they call in sick but I have to give the benefit of the doubt and most people would rather be in work than stuck at home in bed in pain.
 
Firstly not my horses. I'm head girl, so I'm not even 'boss', but did discuss with said boss about this lady, who had done 5 days covering 4 ish hours each time. Frankly she was hard work, and no matter how many times I asked her to do something like 'that', I still did it myself! She was very sweet, but not cut out for the stand in role that I thought she could have done. She had also previously let me know, somewhat delayed that she couldn't come in due to politicising her horse. Yup, sure may mean a delay, but not a no show!!
I'm sorry I'm discussing her on here, but I'm just getting my point across, and also watching other peoples' experiences and thoughts on the matter. She is a lovely lady, whom I'm sure if she did happen to read this, then would take it all on board and perhaps if there were to be a next time, then would understand how 'we' work, and what to expect.
But, going back to my first point, it was the fact that I had to wait a good 45 mins to hear from her, then it was via text. I sensed no real apology from it either. I also know that her family would have phoned if it was a genuine migraine.
Anyway, that's life, now onwards...
 
Fools Motto said:
Firstly not my horses. I'm head girl, so I'm not even 'boss', but did discuss with said boss about this lady, who had done 5 days covering 4 ish hours each time. Frankly she was hard work, and no matter how many times I asked her to do something like 'that', I still did it myself! She was very sweet, but not cut out for the stand in role that I thought she could have done. She had also previously let me know, somewhat delayed that she couldn't come in due to politicising her horse. Yup, sure may mean a delay, but not a no show!!
I'm sorry I'm discussing her on here, but I'm just getting my point across, and also watching other peoples' experiences and thoughts on the matter. She is a lovely lady, whom I'm sure if she did happen to read this, then would take it all on board and perhaps if there were to be a next time, then would understand how 'we' work, and what to expect.
But, going back to my first point, it was the fact that I had to wait a good 45 mins to hear from her, then it was via text. I sensed no real apology from it either. I also know that her family would have phoned if it was a genuine migraine.
Anyway, that's life, now onwards...
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Personally, I can barely string two words together when I have a migraine. I actually have to point at a towel to ask my OH to soak it in cold water and I can't make any noise at all. Just to send a text would be absolutely agonising, and making a phone call is beyond thinking about. If you can imagine so much pain that you cry out in agony, then imagine so much pain that you are UNABLE to cry out in agony, you may get how bad it is.

The fact that she may well not be suitable for the job in other respects, is completely irrelevant to this thread, and it's pretty nasty to be discussing that IMO. Secondly, she may well have let you down before time wise, but that doesn't necessarily mean that she didn't have a migraine this time. Of course, as most of us have said, she may well just have been taking the mick like a lot of people, but even so, you have no proof of that. You didn't see her out riding, or shopping, therefore you cannot be sure she wasn't telling the truth.

With regards her family calling..maybe they weren't in?
 
Wagtail said:
Definitely. I also feel very depressed and tearful. Anything can set me off.
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Me too - this is where I am today . . . been suffering for the last couple of days after a particularly nasty ocular migraine on Sunday . . . can't sleep, very anxious, still don't have vision fully back in my right eye . . . migraines are a bitch.

P
 
Tinypony said:
Sometimes the "cure" is almost more frightening than the pain, but I think most of us sufferers will take just about anything.
.
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Definatly! Id even take codiene if it would help and then suffer the indignities of wetting myself (and the other end) and the terror of having to consciously keep myself breathing, of having ones heart slow and occasionally flutter and of being totaly and utterly numb, as in someone could place my hand in a fire and I wouldn't notice either them touching my hand or the pain of being burnt.
I get that from cocodamol that is available without prescription so you can probably imagine the emergency when I was prescribed tramadol and took just 1 tablet. On the plus side being unconscious on a ventilator ment I couldn't feel the pain of the migraine!
I have in the past begged my oh to give me codiene or anything to take the pain away and he said it was the hardest thing to do to have to say no to me when I was in so much pain.
 
I have just been diagnosed with migraines and I can honestly say all these people saying they work through it mustnt be suffering with a true migraine but just a really bad headache. A true migraine leaves you completely out of it, pain I can't describe, blinded, sick, confused etc. So yes quite difficult sometimes to call in sick straight away.
 
Mike007 said:
Migrane .. psychosomatic bull. Get over it.
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From time to time (normally if Iv been under a lot of stress or doing a lot of reading) I almost completely lose my vision (can't make out faces & find it very hard to walk as I can't see where I'm putting my feet) all I can see is bright flashing colours & squiggles & this can be coupled with excruciating headache & sometimes nausea. It can last for a day & afterwards I'm left feeling very I'll & exhausted. If not a migraine- what would you describe this condition as?
 
If the person who has been sacked by the OP is reading this, my OH has offered to represent you for free at a tribunal. Phoning in sick is not gross misconduct and the employer can be used for discrimination on health basis.
 
If you were not happy with the employee in general that's fine. But you are treading a fine line by firing her over a medical issue. Was she given the appropriate verbal and written warnings before dismissal? In future you'd be safer covering yourself by following employment law correctly. You are lucky she probably won't do anything as she is a 'nice' person. But if you had someone difficult who knew their rights, then they would have you over a barrel and you could end up in a very messy situation.
 
As an aside, a friend of mine suffers from cluster headaches. They are incredibly painful and often get misdiagnosed as migraines so sufferers are often told; "it's migraine, there's nothing you can do" but they are in fact something slightly different. For some unknown reason - there has been little research according to my friend - they often respond positively to pure oxygen. Worth a try if you believe you have migraines and have a relative on oxygen, there won't be any side effects so there's nothing to lose! My sister tried with my nan's oxygen but it didn't work for her, unfortunately.
 
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NZJenny said:
I don't have a helper. I look after four horses on my own, every day. Have done so with cracked ribs, arm in plaster, crook back, death in family etc etc ad nauseum.

A migraine would mean take a pill and get over it.

And if I'm too sick to go to work (not horse related) then I'm definitely too sick to ride. It's a powerful motivator!
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I can't take a pill or anything when mine hit - as fast as I swallow anything it comes back up.

Mine come on without warning or maybe because I fortunately don't get them often I haven't learnt the warning signs yet. Last one started I think with a very stiff sore neck the day before - it came on hard and fast early morning and was with me until the early hours of the next day.

Employees don't have as much motivation to go into work sick - and with a migraine some have enough sense not to drive and be a danger to themselves and others.

I actually get annoyed with those that stagger in to work sick with flu or stomach bugs - I don't want their bugs thank you.

It is frustrating as an employer when your staff don't come in especially when you are really relying on them - a film crew at the school for the day, a childrens overnight camp to organise and your worker phones in sick! Fortunately phoned a friend who came and helped out.
 
Fools Motto said:
Firstly not my horses. I'm head girl, so I'm not even 'boss', but did discuss with said boss about this lady, who had done 5 days covering 4 ish hours each time. Frankly she was hard work, and no matter how many times I asked her to do something like 'that', I still did it myself! She was very sweet, but not cut out for the stand in role that I thought she could have done. She had also previously let me know, somewhat delayed that she couldn't come in due to politicising her horse. Yup, sure may mean a delay, but not a no show!!
I'm sorry I'm discussing her on here, but I'm just getting my point across, and also watching other peoples' experiences and thoughts on the matter. She is a lovely lady, whom I'm sure if she did happen to read this, then would take it all on board and perhaps if there were to be a next time, then would understand how 'we' work, and what to expect.
But, going back to my first point, it was the fact that I had to wait a good 45 mins to hear from her, then it was via text. I sensed no real apology from it either. I also know that her family would have phoned if it was a genuine migraine.
Anyway, that's life, now onwards...
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I don't see that it is somewhat more pressing because she works with horses - any job/career should operate on a system which takes into account that on occasions employees are ill/injured/have an accident etc - if your work structure is such that the whole yard goes to pot when one person is suddenly ill, then your yard could probably learn valuable lessons from this.
 
Thoughts, opinions and other people's experiences count for nothing really, you can't just fire someone on the spot for being sick! There are procedures that have to be followed whether dismissing for sickness or performance and it doesn't matter whether you are working on a stable yard, in an office, in a factory, shop or anywhere else. The law of the land still applies!
 
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