Dear all, Taking it one day at a time and off to a meeting tomorrow, am under some heavy stress at work as where I work part-time employers are getting less rights than full time and as a part timer it is affecting me doing my job. Funny when I drank, I constantly buried these issues but now its becoming a problem to me maintaining my ability to do my job. I have compiled an email, sent it to draft and am going to think about whether to send it tomorrow. It clearly iterates my knowledge under the employment laws what the frameworks are. Quite frankly I'm frightened but am keeping it within the day and knowing that this too will pass. Have applied for other jobs so here's hoping and made an active pitch for paid employment on a voluntary project that I'm involved in. Thinking of you all
here's hoping you get what you need with your work, sounds very stress producing, and thank goodness you are in the Program, and can balance that stress in any meeting of AA.
Hi - I am certain employment laws are different in the country you live in than the one I live in -- so I will not expound on that.
Please know to be certain to pick your battles in sobriety --- carefully choose what is a resentment from what is "real" (again applicable country situations are different)
We need to choose where we place our energies -- positive and negative -- if I am going to tear down a bad effort I want it placed strategically against something that I need to get rid of! - and focused on places I can make a small significant change. That may be the small significant change of being sober today.
If you keep the focus on how things might run better in the organization rather than taking a complaining tone, that might help. If you are trying to affect a system, you are only going to feel good if you do it in a positive way. Work is one of the places where I have made the most progress just accepting it is total chaos, people complain constantly, nothing is fair...it is what it is and I do my best to focus on trying to help kids rather than the other BS. AA is more important than my job...my sobriety and peace of mind are more important...so basically I just let everyone else act crazy and stupid and try not to be bitter like I used to. My life used to consist of getting smashed and complaining about work every night to my best friend/boss...talking about coworkers. Now all of that means so much less. It's a job....not my whole life and I just try to feel good about the good things I do there.
__________________
Keep coming back. It works if you work it. So work it. You're worth it!
Great post LM...and I can use all the follow up. One thing I learned (only one?) LOL in recovery was to define what I saw as the problem or need and then ask my HP if there was anything I could do with it or in it. That has always worked for me after practice. I'm not a hang with the insanity person. I will do my best with what I can and then if my values or spirit is treatened, I let it go. Drinking always tore up my values and spirit. Keep coming back...
Hi - I am certain employment laws are different in the country you live in than the one I live in -- so I will not expound on that.
Please know to be certain to pick your battles in sobriety --- carefully choose what is a resentment from what is "real" (again applicable country situations are different)
quoted for truth. I was fired from a succession of jobs in my first year of sobriety, mote than when I was drinking. I had to take a look at it and I surmised that when I was drinking, working hungover, showing up late, and missing some days here and there, I tried to keep a low profile because of the above. Once I started getting sober I thought that I could complain and tell my bosses what to do, as I was no longer under the cloak of my active drinking. What I see know is that I was not managing my stress/unhappiness (or as the program calls it "restless, irritable, and discontent") and was subsequently looking to make things, outside myself, the object of my discontent.
Oh it seemed real when I did it (caught up in the moment) but later I felt like I went way overboard. The big book talks about "exercising restraint of pen and tongue" and for good reason. What I"ve found helpful is to write a letter to the appropriate person, and then stick it in a drawer for a week. Pull the letter back out and read it, and I'd find that 3/4 of it was overcharged with emotional dialog. I would then say the serenity prayer a couple times and try and think if this was one of the "things that I can not change". If so, I needed to ask myself if it was bad enough to remove myself from it. If not, I needed to "turn it over" and move on. Things like this are prime examples of items that a sponsor can help you with.
-- Edited by StPeteDean on Friday 14th of August 2009 05:01:54 AM
Yes, I know what you mean, unfortunately this was an issue I should have stuck my heels in about last year but completely let things slide. I did not take care of myself and could not have cared less while drinking. HR rang this morning and I need to put together my paperwork and also take care that all is in order providing I have a job in september. Thanks for your share as it was helpful and appreciated.
