Lost meds at work - need advice

[Lightning-Nl]

I work at a certain retail store. This retail store is one of the largest in the United States. I was required to take a drug test to qualify for employment - which I did.

Not surprisingly, the drug test came up positive for Amphetamines. Why? Because I'm prescribed Adderall. So I gave them my RX number, the phone # to my pharmacy and it was all good. Okay let's fast forward a bit.

I, personally, believed that it was none of the stores business what medications I'm on, or why. So I keep them in my pocket in a pill caddie. I'm on IR dosage regiments for all of my meds, so I take them a couple times during the day. I did not make anyone aware of this because I didn't want them to believe that I had issues. But now here's my problem.

Issue #1

I lost that pill caddie somewhere at work today. I don't know when, but it would have had to have been sometime during the last hour I was there. For some reason today, one of the security guys seemed a little suspicious of me and I could tell he was watching me. I tried not to act suspicious - but being diagnosed with anxiety, it's hard for me not to look suspicious. I'm always freaking out because I know they watch everything on camera and I don't want them to think I'm stealing something. I never have stolen something, but even them being suspicious of me - worries me.

Not because I'm planning on stealing something (I would never put my job in jeaprody like that. Plus, I think it's wrong) so I would gladly consent to them searching me or something, but I can't help but look suspicious because I'm always so nervous about looking suspicious. I don't get it. I purposely try to position my self in clear view of a camera when I put plastic wrap for a product I'm stocking on the shelves, so they know that it's just the plastic wrap, and not an item.

Also, on my way out today, the security guy told me to get a jacket and not to wear a sweater. So that makes me worried that they think I may have stolen something today.

Issue #2

The pill caddie I lost contained one Adderall IR 20 milligram and one Ativan 1 milligram. I don't know when or where I lost it, but at quite possible someone found it, and being that nobody knows I take meds, they think I'm using drugs illicitly - which would result in immediate termination.

----------------------

So why am I worried about this? Because I was checking my schedule right now, and on the website it says I've been locked out of my account. There a couple explanations for this. I was hired seasonally, so they could have decided to let me go. But then, why wouldn't they have told me that when I was there today? Plus, I had other days scheduled.

Or, I could have need terminated due to the drugs they found or maybe they found false evidence of me stealing? I don't know. Anyways, they implicated that they were considering me for part time after the holiday. I've run into a little trouble with other employees getting frustrated with me, but I was working as hard as I could. I really feel like I was doing a good job.

Anyways, if the drug thing is actuay what's going on, do you think that if I show them all of it I am taking for legitimate medicinal reason - by providing RX #'s, bringing in the bottles, giving them the nubsr so they can call my psychiatrist directly - that it would help me?

Or am I over reaction or what? I'm extremely worried because I really like the job overall and I was really hoping they'd keep me on.

Any advice is very much appreciated.

Thanks guys,
SwampFox

 

[angeleyes]

Hi SwampFox, did you try and talk to your manager about any of this?

Did you report your caddie going missing?


Don't stress about this job too badly if you are, there are literally millions of other jobs out there.

 

[Lightning-Nl]

I did not.

Unfortunately, I only found out it was gone when I got home. I know there's other jobs, but I was really starting to get the hang of everything there! I was doing really good! Or at least I think....I now realize I should have let someone know about my meds.

But yeah, I'm so upset because because I REALLY am liking the job! And I was really starting to make some friends there!!! I HAVENT HAD FRIENDS IN TWO YEARS!!! Man I wish this hadn't happened....

I'm planning on calling them immediately as I get up to ask what's up. And if it turns out I'm sacked, I'll go get my last paycheck, and leave....

 

[ad lib]

Anyways, if the drug thing is actuay what's going on, do you think that if I show them all of it I am taking for legitimate medicinal reason - by providing RX #'s, bringing in the bottles, giving them the nubsr so they can call my psychiatrist directly - that it would help me?

Or am I over reaction or what? I'm extremely worried because I really like the job overall and I was really hoping they'd keep me on.

Just for future reference.. if you don't have the pills (especially since they're controlled substances) in the original prescription bottle and you're for some reason searched by the cops, this will be a problem. It happened to my brother. He was prescribed hydrocodone/APAP 5/500 after a wisdom tooth extraction, had 2 pills in his pocket which were from his rx bottle, but didn't have the original scrip with him and he got bagged. The cops really had no reason to search him in the 1st place... but that's a different story.

Just to clarify-- they post your schedule on the web and you have to log in to view it? Perhaps there is a technical reason you're not able to log in? I would suggest contacting your boss about that issue and just drop trying to find out what happened to the pills. Chances are, if someone finds a container full of controlled substances...they're not returning it.

 

[hydroazuanacaine]

you're freaking out. anxiety sucks. no one thinks you are stealing unless you are. or you have theft on your background?

call asap and have just realized the case is missing. don't tell them what pills you lost. just describe the case and ask if anyone has found it. be not sure you lost it at work. if they haven't found it and they ask you what's in it, tylenol and advil. you think. nothing important. you were more looking for the case.

if you are let go over this, it's just the straw that broke the back. and it's reflective of how concerned you employer is with retaining you as an employee. so it goes. if you were in good standing, this would be nothing.

if you want to wear a sweater to work and your manager doesn't hate you, ask him/her what the dress code is. or look it up first. i doubt that security guard has any authority over you. he might just be pointing out an employee code you are unknowingly breaking.

 

[nuttynutskin]

call asap and have just realized the case is missing. don't tell them what pills you lost. just describe the case and ask if anyone has found it. be not sure you lost it at work. if they haven't found it and they ask you what's in it, tylenol and advil. you think. nothing important. you were more looking for the case.

Sorry but that's really horrible advice imo. Don't mention anything to anyone about losing your pills. The most likely is that you lost them and some other employee found them and took them for themselves. Or even more likely is you lost them I no one even knows.

 

[hydroazuanacaine]

i don't know about horrible. i keep ativan in my desk drawer. if it's ever not there, my supervisor will know about the issue in a second.

 

[T. Calderone]

I think you're getting yourself worked up over nothing. So you lost a couple of your pills and you're not even sure that you lost them at work. I would say nothing and perhaps your caddy will turn up, it's not their business, no reason to share. My concern for you is why are you so suspicious of your co-workers watching you? Call your manager and explain you could not get your account online. Then you will know your schedule.

 

[nuttynutskin]

i don't know about horrible. i keep ativan in my desk drawer. if it's ever not there, my supervisor will know about the issue in a second.

Well for one if they did call about it (which isn't going to happen) and you tell them you think it was tylenol or advil in it you're lying and they're probably going to know or have enough suspicion and can you. Moreover I really see no reason why anyone needs to know in the first place. It's none of their business. I don't have a lot of experience with drugs and work other than working a job years ago where I went to work fucked up in one way or another pretty much every single day. Not one person ever said anything. Why your supervisor would know about your ativan missing from your desk is beyond me unless you told them in the first place that you were on it. As long as you're doing a good job a lot of jobs don't really care.

And this...

My concern for you is why are you so suspicious of your co-workers watching you?

This just sounds like classic paranoia and based on the op's other posts I don't think the adderall is helping at all.

 

[Lightning-Nl]

I have said nothing of this incident to anyone at my job. When I went to work the day after I posted this, nothing happened - it was just a normal day.

I'll explain the suspicion thing a bit more though. My dad used to work at a retail store, probably about the size of 5 conventional retail stores put together. It was a huge store. He oversaw all security there and it was his job to stop theft. I was only a small child when he worked there (1991 - 1998) but I've heard plenty of stories from him about it.

He said that 90% of the people he caught stealing were employees, and because of that, he would tell the security guards to not only watch the customers, but to keep special watch over the guys in the warehouse (where most of the things were stolen). Because I have a little bit of background into that, I know how suspicious they're trained to be and that suspicion worries me.

I should mention that I've never stolen something before (actually I stole a bottle of DXM once from a pharmacy like 5 years ago but that's it) and I will never steal something from anywhere, especially the place I work at. First off, it wouldn't even be possible - they watch anything and everything. If you even sneeze! They're suspicious. Second, I would get fired and arrested. I don't want either of those things to happens - especially when I like my job and I have no police record.

Third - I'm not gonna lie. If I saw the chance to steal something and get away with it - I'm only human! I would be tempted. But, that's NOT the kind of person I want to be known as and I believe it's wrong. Sure, I'd be stealing from the company - but is also be stealing from everyone that works there. Theft costs money. The more theft there is, the less money there is to pay people. By contributing to theft, I'd be contributing to wage cuts and that would mean id be indirectly stealing from everyone there.

Having had something very personal and irreplaceable stolen from me in the past - I have a very strong moral conviction against stealing. That's why I'm so worried about them being suspicious of me! Because it puts my moral judgement into question when I really honestly believe I am the last person there who would steal. My fathers stories are probably what makes me look suspicious. I know exactly what the security guards are looking for, and I purposely make sure they can see everything I'm doing so there's no question whether of not I'm stealing.

That probably makes me look suspicious because I'm always purposely looking like I'm trying not to look suspicious which probably raises suspicion.....

 

[hydroazuanacaine]

glad nothing came of anything. sounds like you're good.

and nutty, we're just not communicating well. i'd tell my supervisor because pills going missing at work is an incident deserving of being reported.

 

[nuttynutskin]

glad nothing came of anything. sounds like you're good.

This... As long as you're not doing anything wrong at work which is obvious, don't worry about anything. And you already know how I feel about your med choice so I'll try not to harp on that anymore.

and nutty, we're just not communicating well. i'd tell my supervisor because pills going missing at work is an incident deserving of being reported.

Oh I see what you're saying now. Yeah that'd be the right thing to do, although it would probably not do any good unfortunately. I swear unless caught on camera theft is the easiest thing to get away with because cops don't even want anything to do with it. Would rather bust people smoking pot.