Mental health days are here to provide us with a break, to give us the ability to regain our energy and provide us with the opportunity to win back clarity and focus in our lives.
The question is; when do we need one? Many of us can relate to the feeling of being overwhelmed, having difficulty concentrating or staying focused. That feeling when we start to get irritated easily, experience emotional rollercoasters or slowly start to feel resentment for our work. You can certainly push through it, be in warrior mode (“fight or flight“) and deliver, however, this isn’t going to last.
By creating a mental health policy as a standard practice, employers can help create a safe environment where employees can bring their whole selves to work. A place where everyone can refill their batteries and thrive.
The recent COVID-19 circumstances have increased our mental stress level. Every change and new situation affects us differently and leads to a variety of psychological responses; mentally, emotionally and behaviorally. The isolation, being online almost 24/7 coupled with the ongoing challenge to navigate these times of uncertainty.
Some might start to thrive during a crisis situation (as they enter “fight or flight mode”), while others get scared, overwhelmed, or worried, which leaves us feeling powerless and frustrated. Both reactions are completely natural and both are valid. The point is, there comes a time when we need a break, or rather a series of small mental health breaks.
People who are used to leaving their home for work every day, and come back home every evening to relax, find themselves unable to cope. Where they once had breaks from work commuting and a shift of environment to help their minds settle, now they have the same cooped up environment day after day. These natural breaks disappear during a crisis like the COVID-19 and our mind doesn’t benefit from mental health breaks the way it used to before. Now more than ever we need to actively foster mental rest breaks for our own sanity.
Knowing when to take a mental health day is important. You might want to do a self-check-in to see if you have the following symptoms:
All in all, this can look different for each of us. Mental health is a lot about knowing the early signals of your body and truly listening to them.
Never be ashamed of taking time for your mental self-care. Self-care is a skill, so own it! Show everyone how self-aware you are by leading by example. Mental health is energy management, and one of the biggest challenges is to know when you need a break to recharge your batteries. The key is to fill up your own cup.
This query might be harder in workplaces where employers don’t actively provide their staff with mental health days off. Nevertheless, everyone should, and does, have the right to ask for days off for mental and emotional recovery.
It is important to let employees not only know that they can get support such as counseling, coaching, training, or other supportive measures, but also that there is the option to take some time off for themselves. A healthy company culture must create room for mental health, as it‘s one of the most important resources we have.
There is no rule and it strongly depends on the organization’s policy. Employers support employees by giving them the option to take mental health days. However, this is a lot about trust on both sides. The employer needs to trust their employees, know what‘s best for them and their work, and the employee must trust the approach to this personal matter.
It’s all about figuring out how to develop healthy boundaries. We need to learn how to observe the signals early on. It‘s important to acknowledge our thoughts and our emotions, then allow them to be. We should focus on taking regular breaks, such as our vacation or some days off in between. Small breaks do count. By taking small breaks in between our workdays, regularly switching off our devices and notifications, and making time for ourselves.
Mental health is similar to strength training; your muscles grow when you incorporate planned rest days in between each workout. Your mental health is the same. It becomes stronger and healthier as long as you plan some time to rest. It’s important to remember that if someone has different needs and requires other mental health support, they will need more measures to accommodate this. Let your employees know that their management team is here for them. At the end of the day, no one can measure your stress levels but you.
Part of self-care is evaluating when you feel you need a mental health care day. As I mentioned above, when you begin to feel stressed out, irritated, lose passion for your work and become frustrated with daily activities, it may be that you need to take a mental health day. These days off are about recouping and rebooting yourself so you can step back into your workplace to do your best work.
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