How to Take a Break From Work on a Mental Health Day
If you have the flu or a sprained ankle, then this is not only expected, but also encouraged. But sometimes mental health problems require a break as well.
Employers may not always treat mental and physical health in the same way, but taking care of yourself should be a priority for both you and your boss. Whether you are in customer service, communications, business, or an educator, the quality of your work depends entirely on your mental state. And while physical work such as restaurant work, modeling, nursing, and farming is more clearly dependent on manual labor, it also requires a lot of mental work.
In short: regardless of work, everyone sometimes needs a day off for mental health. But since employment laws in the United States are not yet true, here’s how to navigate the confusing messages we receive about health and the workplace.
How to Know What You Need for Mental Health Day NOW
Addressing problems and frustrations directly is part of building personal resilience, so a bad day at work doesn’t mean you should take time off for the rest of the week. But you should consider having a mental health day:
- If your mental health is endangering yourself, the people you work with, or your clients or customers. A depressed, absent-minded pilot should not be in control of an airplane, and an overworked childcare worker should not be responsible for young children. I wouldn’t want a burned-out doctor to operate on me, would you? It’s the same with an angry driver driving an 18-wheeled vehicle.
- If you are so nervous, you cannot concentrate. “If the thought of work fills you with fear and when you’re there you can’t concentrate, take some time,” advises Sherri Amatenstein, a Manhattan-based therapist and anthology editor, “ How does this happen? Make You Feel ?: True Confessions From Both Sides of Therapy Couch . She says that if you are going through a major personal crisis – a bad breakup or a death in your family – it may also be time to take a vacation to take care of yourself. “Ask yourself: What causes these strong feelings? Is this something permanent? Or temporarily? Listen to what’s going on inside, says Amatenstein.
- If you dream to quit smoking. Strong emotions can be a warning about a problematic workplace environment. Taking time off helps you put problems in perspective and make a calm and rational decision about whether to start looking for a new job or maybe talk to your boss about problems you have with a coworker. It can be difficult to figure out what is the best thing to do in the middle of a work day when you are upset and angry. Mental Health Day can help you figure it out and not make a hasty decision.
What to tell your boss
Last summer, web developer Madaline Parker made headlines for e-mailing her colleagues to let them know she needed hospital for mental health, and received praise from her boss for it.
But keep in mind that not all workplaces – or bosses – are so understanding. You want to provide yourself with work and protection by following the rules of your workplace.
It all depends on where you work, but communicating why you’re taking a day off can do more harm than good to your career. “Most employers don’t see mental health day as a hospital day,” said Ruth Eisenberg, a Washington-based lawyer and a member of the National Employment Bar Association. She advises using sick days or personal days if you need a mental health day, but does not reveal exactly why you are taking the weekend. These are your days – you deserve them.
Eisenberg says you should always check your employee handbook to know exactly what kind of vacation you are on and how many notifications you need to use it. “Even if you have sick leave or annual personal leave, advance notice may be required. And some employers adhere to this opinion, ”says Eisenberg.
However, there is an exception: “If you have a documented disability, such as depression or anxiety, you may be eligible to spend a mental health day as a reasonable accommodation for that disability,” Eisenberg says. It depends on what your doctor or psychiatrist says: they may ask you to take a break to see a therapist or other care – some may even schedule a break. Some disability rules are federal, but other rules vary by state and the size of your workplace, so if you have a documented disability, check your rights.
How to plan a mental health day
One way to prevent breakdown or burnout is to strategically take your vacation. If you know you have a major project or presentation ahead, plan ahead so that after the work is done, take a break from work. If it helps you think of it as a mental health break, think of it as such – anything that forces you to use all of your vacation time will benefit your overall health.
But you don’t need a specific reason to take your allotted weekend. Amatenstein says you should give yourself extra space on your schedule, and you can even plan it for a year. For example: “I know I want to try to plan a long weekend every few months or so,” she says, so she sets aside this time in her schedule ahead of time. The good thing about this kind of schedule is that on these tough days at work, you can count on weekends, and you won’t surprise your coworkers if you need a day off on short notice. You can also schedule your own weekend work so you don’t have to go back to a pile of tasks that you might find overwhelming.
“Mental health still carries that stigma. But we are gradually moving to the place where it is more customary to talk about it, ”said Amatenstein. Both bosses and employees would like to remember Madaline Parker’s words: she tweeted : “Mental health is health.”