“I loved my boss,” said Marie. “She was respected by everyone. She thought highly of my work. She thought I was smart.

“Then my boss left the area and I was assigned a new boss. This boss is unbelievably difficult to work with. She acts as though I’m stupid and I can’t do anything right. She’s always on my case about something. Not a day goes by when she doesn’t make some snide remark or send me an email that implies I’m an imbecile.”

“I like what I do and I don’t want to quit my job, but my job is very stressful because of this woman. The way I cope -- I try to ignore her rude comments. Sometimes I get very determined and I put in extra hours trying to please her, to show her what a good worker I am. I tell myself, ‘I’m a good person no matter what she thinks.’ Sometimes I call my sister in the evening and complain to her. I count the people on the job who like me, and once in a while I go to lunch with my old boss, who helps me feel good about myself.’’

Check out Doris’ latest books, “The Boy Whose Idea Could Feed the World,” “The Parent Teacher Discussion Guide,“ and “Thin Becomes You” at Doris’ web page: http://www.doriswildhelmering.com.