Nacole’s Story

My name is Nacole. Three years ago, I got incredibly sick. I couldn’t stay awake longer than 2-3 hours at a time, I couldn’t stand up for longer than 30 seconds, I couldn’t walk without assistance. I had had other unexplained symptoms for a long time, but three years ago it reached the point where I couldn’t just “mind over matter” it any more; I needed serious medical care.

It turns out that I had endometriosis and that it had gone undiagnosed for 26 years before I found out about it. When the doctor who finally diagnosed me told me I had it, she said I needed a very specialized surgery. My case was quite widespread, and the surgery took nearly six hours. Afterward came a long recovery period – in fact, I’m still in physical therapy years later.

I was living in New York City at the time of my diagnosis. As a professional singer and math tutor my career has mostly been self-employed, but I happened to be working for a year and a half as a math teacher before I got sick. I am so lucky that I was a teacher at that school when I got sick. My employer had a strong family and medical leave policy, and their generosity meant that I could take the time that I truly needed to recover without having to worry about losing my job.

As it turns out, I had to come to Maine for the surgery and stay for a few weeks while recovering enough to return to New York City. The silver lining is that while I was recovering in Maine I met my partner and we fell in love. Now I am happy to say I have been living in Maine for three years!

Having access to paid leave was a lifeline for me. During the majority of my adult life, this surgery would have been absolutely devastating to my financial security. I likely would have lost my home in New York and had to move in with my father in Mississippi.

When you’re so sick that you can’t work or stay awake, how can you possibly go to your job to pay for your rent, food, or electricity? No one should have to rely on the generosity of their employers at the time they get sick to ensure that they are able to continue to pay their bills. While I was really sick, I wasn’t fired, and I was able to stay in my home because I was lucky enough to have an employer who made sure I still had income. I can’t imagine where I would be now if I hadn’t had access to paid leave. And I want everyone to have the same security and opportunities that I did.

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