Just wanted to say hello

SonjaB

Please could you help i'm new to this forum and would love some advice. I am having problems at work due to OA in numerous joints. I've currently been signed off work for 1 month but was threatened at the start of the year to not even think about going long term sick as they would send me to Occupational Health and write to my doctor, so scared to go back due to the harrassment i'll face, any help would be very much appreciated.

helpline_team

Hi Soniab,
Thanks for your post to Helplines. I'm sorry to hear that you've been under pressure over your arthritis in your workplace. If you'd like some further information or support, do feel free to ring our team on our free phone number, or email your details to helplines@arthritiscare.org.uk and we'll post you an information pack.

Looking after osteoarthritis (oa) is much to do with self-management, so eating a balanced diet to keep weight down and doing the physiotherapy exercises you can learn (and keeping generally active too) can play an important role in helping.

In the workplace you are entitled to discuss 'reasonable adjustments' to enable you to manage. For this to work you'll need to be open about the arthritis and where the issues may be. Some jobs may be easier than others if you live with arthritis. Being able to sit down regularly and move around during the day can often be helpful. If your job involves lifting and handling, you'll often benefit from the guidance of a qualified physiotherapist to give you guidance.

Please see our booklet about work https://www.arthritiscare.org.uk/living-with-arthritis/working-with-arthritis

I hope we can help further - do ring if you'd like a chat.

Kind regards

Guy (Helplines Team)