Let me preface this with a few things: I'm not entirely sure if this is the right place to post/ask this stuff but this sub has always been so supportive, knowledgeable and helpful, I thought it was worth a shot.
Also, I am autistic as well as physically disabled. If I could request kindness and patience ahead of time I would greatly appreciate it.
I (28F) started working at a doctors' office in November 2020. I work at the main office, though we have five locations. I process prior authorizations for all locations, and I am the only one who does so/with this job title. And honestly, I know it sounds like a lot, but it really isn't too bad for me. Prior to my physical disability worsening I had no problem working 40 hours a week and keeping up with my work, even being ahead sometimes.
About 2-3 weeks after I started, HR asked me if I wanted to work from home (COVID was surging again and all who could work from home were asked). I said yes immediately. I had just come from working in a retail pharmacy and working from home always sounded heavenly in comparison. I thoroughly enjoyed working from home, so much so that I didn't mind coming in on Fridays for a little while to send faxes and check my mailbox etc.
February of 2021, HR asked me to come back. I told them I would return after my second COVID vaccine, which was scheduled in March. I don't think they liked me saying “no”, but I tend to overanalyze. Upon coming back I was immediately overstimulated, fluorescent lights, bathroom smells, food smells, weird perfumes and lotions and sanitizers. I've basically been uncomfortable since.
I was never given an answer on why I had to come back in, especially when my job can be done entirely remotely. Whether or not they know I'm autistic, wherever I work, management tends to treat me like a child and micromanage me. I have always hated it and never understood it.
A couple months ago, I was really suffering, and I wrote out a letter to my boss, which got turned into a disability request. I explicitly and repeatedly stated the request was to work from home, as did my PCP. Instead, I was given a semi-private workspace. It is a lot nicer, but it is still loud, suddenly and often. People shouting around corners and babies crying and provider's on televisits (I have a fan going, as well as the provider nearest to me has a white noise machine going while she has televisits. I still hear everything). It doesn't even have a door, it has a dollar store curtain rod and a curtain just slightly smaller than the door. I know I can't get a door where there isn't one, but can I at least have a curtain that actually covers the doorway? Come on.
I've only known I'm autistic for a little over a year, and my physical disability has been progressing for the last six months or so. I have an autoimmune disorder that affects my joints, skin, and digestive system. Stress tends to exacerbate some things. Coming into work (especially when I KNOW I don't 'have' to) stresses me out. Every single day.
What can I do to get them to just let me work from home? I can guarantee my productivity is higher when I'm home because I'm comfortable, in my element, my environment, and it makes it so much easier to focus. Semi unrelated, I also don't feel like I'm making as much as I should be, but who doesn't.
I live alone and have a lease through May 2023. I cannot quit without finding other work, and looking for a new job right now sounds more stressful than putting up with my current one. My insurance is through my job as well, and I very much need insurance. My colleagues value me, but that's it, and while I'd like to be angry about it, I'm so damn tired that I'm just melancholy.
I live in Michigan as well.
Thank you if you read all of that and thank you x2 if you have a kind word or piece of advice to share.