If you have breast cancer, should you tell your workplace? Let's talk about this.

When the doctor tells you that you have breast cancer, a thousand things probably come to mind. Questions about treatment, family, money, and even your job come to mind, don't they? The biggest question that comes to mind with all of this is, "Do I tell my office? Do I tell my boss? Do I tell my friends?" This is a really big decision. Only you can make this decision, and it should be one that you feel is right for you.

Do you want to say this or not? The decision is entirely yours.

Simply put, this is your personal medical information. So there is no law that says you have to tell anyone about it. However, sometimes it can be beneficial for you to inform your workplace about this.

Imagine, you need to take days off for treatment, maybe you need facilities like working from home. In such a case, if you tell your boss or HR about this, it will be much easier to get those facilities. Also, if your best friends are in the office, telling them can give you a lot of mental strength and comfort.

But, if you want to keep it private, that's your right. Some people think that if they say this, others will look at them with pity, or think that they're not good at their job. So if that's the case, it's better to keep it a secret.

Let's now look at the experiences of several women who have made this decision. These may help you make the right decision for your situation.

How different women faced this challenge

1. "I only told my boss and a few close friends" - Nilmini's story

Nilmini had stage III breast cancer. She was scheduled to start chemotherapy. She knew that once she started treatment, her appearance would change, her hair would fall out, and there would be days when she would not be able to come to work. So she decided to inform her workplace about this.

"I first told my direct supervisor. Then, about a week later, I emailed a few of my closest friends at the office and told them the details." She also gave her supervisor permission to tell the rest of the team. Then she didn't have to tell everyone the story again and again.

She is very happy with her decision. "My supervisor and other friends were very kind and understanding to me. I felt good about telling them, and some of them shared their cancer experiences with me. Hearing those stories gave me a lot of strength."

Nilmini's office friends got together and even prepared meals for her during the days she was undergoing chemo. That was a big help for her family as well. But not everyone has an environment where they can get this kind of support.

2. "I didn't tell anyone at the office" - Deepa's story

Deepa is a woman who runs her own PR agency. When she found out she had breast cancer, she kept it a secret.

"I didn't want to tell my coworkers this. I didn't want them to feel sorry for me, to be unnecessarily worried. Also, I didn't want them to think I couldn't do my job properly," she says.

She didn't even tell her clients . "In my business, if I can't do something, there are thousands of other people who can. I didn't want my clients to leave me."

Keeping it a secret like this helped her personally.

She only told her closest friends about this in her personal life. Because she didn't talk about it at work, she didn't have to face the pitying looks and strange questions from others. Looking back years later, she says that the decision she made was the right one for her.

3. "I spoke openly about everything" - Sanduni's story

When Sanduni learned about breast cancer, she was working as a marketing director at a small startup. Since there was a history of breast cancer in her family, she was always concerned about screenings. She had already told her team about this.

So, as soon as she was diagnosed with the disease, she went straight to her CEO and told him. "I felt a little weird, but I didn't feel lonely after saying it," she says.

Her boss offered to help her. "He was very kind. He didn't know what I needed, and he even brought a bag of groceries to my house. That was a big deal for me."

She told the rest of the team, "We worked as a small team. So I wanted to share what was going on in my life with them."

After the surgery, when she learned that the cancer had spread, she had to undergo chemotherapy. She took disability leave because she expected the treatment to take about a year.

"My boss even paid my health insurance while I was away. When I came back to work, he created a new position for me because he knew that I was having difficulty working as well as I had before due to the cognitive issues and fatigue I had after treatment."

Sanduni says that speaking openly like this helped her get rid of the mental stress of worrying about "what people will think."

How do you make the decision that suits you best?

These stories show how different each person's situation and decisions are. To help you make a decision, let's take a look at a summary of the pros and cons.

Finally, the story of Christina, a psychotherapist, is very important. Since she was self-employed, she had no colleagues to tell. But she told her patients this. She did so to show others that it is important to accept that you cannot do everything alone and to take time for your health.

She says, " There's no such thing as a prize for being strong ." That means asking for help when you need it is not a weakness. If you don't say you need help, no one can help you. So think about your situation, think about your workplace culture, and make the decision that feels right for you. Discuss your treatment plan and any time off you need with your doctor first.

Breast cancer, breast cancer, work, cancer and work, cancer treatment, women's health, mental health