One could have called me a sick time hoarder. Despite having MS with disabling issues, I seldom, if ever, missed work. Using sick days would have given me the rest I needed to recover from attacks more quickly. Hoarding sick time gave me security knowing I had it.  As life would have it, my hoarding saved my bacon when I needed a full year off. It gave me the ability to recover, keep my income for a year and return to work a little longer before going out on disability.

I won’t lie, I wanted to use those sick days. Looking back I simply can’t believe the level of dedication and determination I had to persevere. I became quite creative in my lesson planning to accommodate fatigue, limited vision, confusion, and more. Eventually I moved to administration to allow more flexibility in my schedule.