Everyone gets overwhelmed with work from time to time. It might be high time to take a mental health day, though, if you’re dreading another day at work or seriously worried about your long-term, or perhaps even short-term, psychological health by continuing to work at your current pace.
Productivity is Becoming an Issue
Your current mindset might be the antithesis of the creativity that you rely upon to remain productive. Taking some time off could prove the perfect solution to recharging your batteries and coming back even stronger than before.
Running yourself down in the short term is not the way to achieve the most productivity long term. Work is a marathon. In an actual marathon, the runners pace themselves.
Burn Out is Right Around the Corner
Psychologist Alison Ross says that feelings of resentment can build up if people keep pushing themselves past their limits, and this dissatisfaction can eventually intrude on their home life.
When employees start to feel a sense of powerlessness and resentment towards the amount of work that they have to do, then it might be time to call in a mental health day in order to recharge. These issues might hint at larger problems, but even those are best dealt with after a small break to recharge.
You Slept Poorly and Can’t Focus
Insomnia is terrible. Sometimes you can’t fall asleep or remain asleep no matter what you do. If you’ve gotten absolutely no sleep and you don’t have that much work waiting for you back at the office, then seriously consider taking a mental health day. After all, poor sleep has been correlated with lower productivity and cognitive decline in one’s twilight years. The poorer the quality of sleep, the more that work will suffer. Time to take a mental health day and finally recharge.
A Major Life Event
Struggling through a major life event like a breakup or the death of a loved one? Whether someone is going through the grieving process, or they simply need a day to catch up on all of their taxes and paperwork, taking a mental health day to get everything under control can reduce short-term stress and increase long-term productivity. It’s a win-win situation.