Job Discussion Forums

thirstie · Joined: 22 Mar 2004 Posts: 18 Location: Kagawa Ken, Japan

Hi all,

I'm applying for the 2005 JET intake and have just happily downloaded the application form. I figure I have as good a chance as anyone, CELTA, boss who will write me a good reference etc., but I got a bit freaked out about the question about depression.

I've just started a course of anti-D's after a recent relationship break-up and am now stable, happy and planning to stay that way. I've also travelled reasonably extensively through Asia from Korea to SEA so I have a fair idea of what to expect about life in Japan.

If I tick the "yes I have diagnosed depression" box, will I be discriminated against? I have wanted to do JET for years and have waited for a time in life when I know I can dedicate myself to it. Would it be easier just to lie?

Does anyone have personal experience with this dilemma?

Thanks in advance for all thoughful replies, no trolling required.

Cheers again,
thirstie

Gordon · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 5309 Location: Japan

Laura C · Joined: 14 Oct 2003 Posts: 211 Location: Saitama

I concur.

Having had a period of depression should have no bearing on your ability to do a job, but not everyone thinks like that. I don't think JET would automatically disqualify you if you ticked yes, but, as Gordon says, they are going to have plenty of people who say no. I would always lie in this case.

Be careful though, since as far as I remember I had to have a full medical check before I left on JET, so if you do lie you could get caught out. I'm not sure though, as I can't remember the full extent of the medical (I got caught like that a few years ago, ticked No on a form, and got a call a few weeks later from my future boss asking why I hadn't declared medication).

AgentMulderUK · Posted: Tue Sep 28, 2004 2:23 pm Post subject:

TokyoLiz · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 1548 Location: Tokyo, Japan

That's the last tidbit of information you should share with JET. They will definitely discriminate against anybody with a mood disorder.

Before you send in your app, consider how you're doing now, and how you think you would cope in a strange city in your own country, where you have to seek out doctors afresh, meet new friends and cope with a new environment. What would that feel like? Now, imagine you don't speak the language and you have few people around you with whom you can share your thoughts. The medical establishment can't even identify the meds you're on, never mind represcribe them.

I'm not trying to put you off, but caution you about the differences in culture that might magnify your symptoms.

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

I am rather shocked at the ease with which everyone has told thirstie to lie. What are you people thinking? Positive thoughts will overcome his/her medical/emotional situation? Warm and fuzzy messages beat the reality of life in a foreign land?

Think hard, everyone, and especially you, thirstie!

You wrote that you just started taking this medication. Don't know how long that is, but even your doctor would probably advise you that changes in dosage or drug itself might be in order over time, perhaps the time you would spend in Japan. How are you going to deal with that, when you are likely to be posted in a rural area with a non-English-speaking doctor that has a totally different outlook on psychological treatment compared to your own western physician?

What about side effects of current medication?
What are you going to say when you have to refill a prescription that was set by your doctor back home?

thirstie said that he/she "also travelled reasonably extensively through Asia from Korea to SEA so (he/she has) a fair idea of what to expect about life in Japan". Traveling is very different from living and working. You are not going to flit from hotel to hotel, hostel to hostel, etc. You will be living in a cramped apartment, isolated from your friends and family (yes, even in this day and age of Internet and phone cards!) for 12 months. I'm not trying to scare you, but you have to face reality here. Being "stable" but still on anti-depressants does not mean you are 100% cured, and to relocate to such a totally different environment as rural Japan is a huge undertaking. Your surroundings will probably be almost all in Japanese (spoken and written). TV shows will be incomprehensible, as will most supermarket merchandise and newspapers, brochures, timetables, etc.

Work will entail side-by-side dealings with a Japanese teacher who probably has weak English skills at best, and you just might have to bounce to several schools in a month, leaving you with little to no consistency, several JTEs to deal with, and no real handle on the huge number of kids you will see. If your experience is like many JETs, you will not really teach, but you will assist, and that could mean doing very little other than being a human tape recorder. Is this what you expect of a work environment? Moreover, you may not be told of many school events that you would have liked to participate in, certain outings that the kids go on, or school holidays, until the last moment. Is this going to affect you in your current emotional state?

I know people who have lived in Japan for a mere 3 months, with other foreigners from their home country and own company office, and they often did not fare well. Some ate themselves to oblivion (gaining 40 pounds on ice cream alone), some developed a severe hatred for the Japanese business ethic because they (women) were not prepared for the way that women are treated here, etc......... and these were people NOT on anti-depressant medication.

Sure, hide your medical condition (if you can).
Lie to the people who hire you. (It may be grounds for dismissal, you know.)
Come here and discover an isolated community where you are expected to perform quite energetically every day that you work, despite colds, flu, or other medical conditions. (That's "edutainment" in the EFL business, plus it's regular life for everyone who lives in Japan, whether foreigner or Japanese.)

I write all of this because I am thinking of YOU, thirstie, not of a way to beat the system and fulfill a dream. Not all dreams come true. There may be ways to overcome the adversities you face, and we certainly don't know that much about you, but you really need to think about your situation SERIOUSLY before putting on that warm and fuzzy cap that everyone here seems to be handing you.

Why do you think JET puts that question on the application in the first place, people? They know that some people can't handle Japan, even without medication.

canuck · Joined: 11 May 2003 Posts: 1921 Location: Japan

Living in a foreign country is a lot different than traveling through. If you have some metal/health problems, I would reconsider coming to Japan. You're better off in a familiar environment, closer to your family.

Gordon · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 5309 Location: Japan

Billy Chaka · Joined: 20 Oct 2003 Posts: 77

homersimpson · Joined: 14 Feb 2003 Posts: 569 Location: Kagoshima

gochubandit · Joined: 29 Jul 2004 Posts: 42

hye quick question abotu the med check. does JET ask what kind of medications have you been taking? or also the kinds of surgeries/injuries you've had in the past? and how much do they get to see about the medical stuff?

I got surgery in my right hand and broke my left in a fight and the doctor may have written down that i got into a fight. which will look bad regardless or whether it was in self-defense or not.

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

I have not looked at the JET application forms in a long time, but I seriously doubt whether they are interested in any broken bones you may have had.

Their concern is (and should be) about whether a person will survive here while JET sponsors them to work. Work, mind you. Too many treat this as a paid vacation. Despite the bashing that JET gets, even from me at times, the whole idea is that foreigners are hired for a job. The fact that it is overseas in a country where customs and language are so different only justifies certain inquiries about whether foreigners will be able to adjust. I see nothing wrong with the questions posed. Most of the JET ALTs are young and have probably never been to Japan or any other foreign country, and they will be placed in rural environments (isolated areas), which only compounds the chances of severe culture shock.

GambateBingBangBOOM · Joined: 04 Nov 2003 Posts: 2021 Location: Japan

You are supposed to declare any and all medication you bring with you to Japan, and many things that are just over the counter drugs in Canada are illegal here.

You occasionally run into doctors in Japan who say they can only treat Japanese, because Japanese are different.

Also, should you decide to just not say anything, and come to Japan with enough medication to get through the year (I think normally doctors in N.America won't prescribe more than a little at a time), or have it sent over when you are here, be aware that you will probably have to do a health check while you are here. Japanese companies often require them once per year (to check up on you) "because people don't have time in Japan to go to the doctor". Oddly enough, only your boss actually gets the results of your test. It's up to them whether or not to tell you that you are (or aren't) healthy.

Remember, you won't be leaving until July or August at the earliest. Will you still be on this medication then? Is it a short-term thing or a long term one?

kovac · Joined: 12 Apr 2003 Posts: 78

I reckon JET are picky about that kind of thing (ie depression) and sorts...in my home city, the co-ordinator for Japanese language studies at the local university (who was also a member of the JET interview board for that area) told me they even have a bias from which university you went to (ie in my city, 4 universities) if you didnt go to the favoured one, it was marked as a NG almost straight of the mark....on that info...saying you have a mental health "history" would almost definitely up you in the NG stakes....still if your depressed (and unless you know its a long term condition and you live with it) why not take a break and reconsider to pursue at a later date ? You could worsen a delicate condition, Japan isnt exactly the best place to be with any malign of mental health, alot of denial and "brushing under the carpet"

thirstie · Joined: 22 Mar 2004 Posts: 18 Location: Kagawa Ken, Japan

Thanks for some useful feedback.

However it still blows me away how message boards make some people "experts".

I've been wanting to do this for a long time, have had on and off again depression for a long time and have travelled and taught in Asia, generally managing my condition.

I'm aware of the potential stress the postion may entail and know how to look after myself and minimise possible catalysts.

I guess i was lookng for some genuine information about the application process, and was disappointed with everyone's two cents of morality about how I should live my life.

Ta again