Ike and the Uncertainty of Having a Baby

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"I think the first thing that i thought was denial. Despite the fact that i am most definitely middle aged now, there was a peroman sa," she says. "It felt different from having a baby and it felt different even from if i needed to have knee surgery or something." She adds: "The place where my mind went was this fear that people would hear that and say, well, i don't know that she's going to be able to do her job now"

When an acute or chronic health issue disrupts our work life, how do we let our bosses and coworkers know? How vulnerable should we be? And, as managers, how do we best support an employee who discloses a diagnosis? We talk with two women who’ve had to consider these questions while navigating illnesses, and they share advice on disclosing and discussing health issues with colleagues.

Guests:

Maureen Hoch is the editor of HBR.org and the supervising editor of Women at Work.

Laurie Edwards is a writer, a writing instructor at Northeastern University, and an advocate for people with chronic illnesses. Her books are Life Disrupted and In the Kingdom of the Sick.

Resources: