Heather MacDonald
University of New Brunswick, Canada
Title: Getting back in the game: Returning to work after a depression
Biography
Biography: Heather MacDonald
Abstract
In this grounded theory study 40 English speaking women from a rural province of Canada were interviewed to learn about their experiences of returning to work after a depression. Women described getting back in the game as being difficult and challenging as they had not completely recovered by the time they returned to work. However, they felt compelled to return to work in order to keep their jobs, in order to resume health and social benefits, and to reinstate their wages. A number of themes emerged from the interview data. These included the presence of stigma, the active pursuit of silence, and battling adversity. Each of these core themes serves to describe the women’s experiences of returning to work. The women described wearing a mask or “putting on a face” to combat the stigma associated with their illness. In this presentation the three themes will be discussed along with a thorough description of wearing a mask. Strategies that employers can employ to ease the transition back to work will be discussed.