Discussing the medical needs of your child with your employer can help to open lines of communication about what your expectations are in terms of flexibility.

• How much should you disclose about your child’s mental health issue? Ask yourself how comfortable you are with your manager and how much you trust them.
• Find out if your company has an employee assistance or employee health office. The employee health nurse can provide confidential advice to employees about health issues.
• Ask if employees are covered under the federal Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Under FMLA, certain employers must grant eligible employees a limited amount of unpaid leave for such issues as taking care of an immediate family member with a serious health condition. If you are covered, then a representative from human resources should discuss rights and options under FMLA with you. By law, companies have to explain FMLA.