Have you ever woken up feeling especially anxious, so much so that it interrupted your ability to function throughout the day? Perhaps a “mental health day” would have been a good option for you to feel rejuvenated on a day like that.

A mental health day is similar to a “sick day”. It’s an option to opt-out from work and other responsibilities in order to take care of your mental well-being. This removal from activity isolates yourself from stressors for the entire day and allows your mind and body to rest. The time off also provides an opportunity for you to pursue leisurely activities that can help you to recover from feeling stressed.

When to take a mental health day depends on your personal situation. And, while there is a growing desire to destigmatize mental health issues in the workplace, some employers still do not support mental health concerns as a reason to miss a day of work. In cases like these, it may be that you can use a regular sick day instead.

Knowing when you need a restoration day and choosing to take time off wisely is key – not every day can be a mental health day because this would be unproductive and add to the stress. However, when you are nearing burnout it’s important to take care of yourself and know that it may be time to take a break.

Too often people reject taking mental health days because they don’t consider the importance of reducing stress and taking care of the mind. An important understanding is that it’s just as important to take care of the mind as it is to take care of the body, and if you don’t take good care of your mental health, your physical health will start to decline. While on a mental health day, treat it as a real surrender where you can heal and restore, and do not continue to do the activities that make you feel anxious because that would defeat its helpfulness.

While various treatments are available for mental health conditions, many people still don’t receive professional help. Taking a mental health day is a step in the right direction for getting the help you need and can be less intimidating than receiving external support because you are initiating and receiving the help on your own terms. Hopefully, the day off will provide you with clarity and relief, and you can return to regular activities tomorrow.

References

  • Gittelman, M. (1978). Child Mental Health: The Need For Alternatives To Modest Proposals. International Journal of Mental Health, 7(1/2), 5–17. http://www.jstor.org/stable/ 41344142
  • The Role of Public Health in Mental Health Promotion. (2005). Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 54(34), 841–842. http://www.jstor.org/stable/ 23316582
  • Rosenthal, S. M. (1998). Market Madness and Mental Illness: The Crisis in Mental Health Care. International Journal of Mental Health, 27(1), 5–32. http://www.jstor.org/stable/ 41344853
  • World Health Organization. (2019). How to promote mental health and prevent mental health conditions. In mhGAP Community Toolkit: Mental Health Gap Action Programme  (mhGAP) (pp. 38–62). World Health Organization. http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep 27898.12

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