5 Signs You Need To Take a Mental Health Day
Already tired on an average Tuesday, spoiling the weakening with anxious thoughts about the upcoming week at work, or having bad dreams about opening your mailbox. Sounds familiar? You’re not alone, 75% of American employees report the negative impact of work-related stress on their health and wellbeing. [1] Business-wise it means a decrease in workers’ engagement and productivity, hence lower profits. But on a personal level, the costs of not addressing work stress could lead to significant mental health deterioration, somatic illnesses, and a strain on social relationships. [4]
There have been many talks and attempts to solve this crisis and hopefully, we’ll see some effective initiatives soon enough. But leaving grand reforms aside, there are already simple tools available for many employees in the US to support one’s mental well-being. We’re talking about signs I need a mental health day, a good way to recharge your energy.
5 Signs You Need a Mental Health Day
While not a magic solution for serious burnout cases, taking a mental health day now and then can help prevent it. If you’re a workaholic or simply love your work dearly, you may rarely take any PTO throughout the year. Then a concept of mental health days can seem silly. But the risks and costs of unmanaged stress really demand careful attention. Let’s look at the most prominent signs your mind and body need a break.
Feeling overwhelmed by daily tasks
This one change happens even to the most organised and disciplined employees. One day you have it all under control, and another, the tasks start snowballing. You still manage well, and rarely someone notices any difference. However, the amount of mental effort required for routine tasks is increasing. In practice, you may work late too often and still never feel that it’s all done. Usually, low mood, sadness and even despair are the emotional signs that something is wrong.
Persistent stress and irritability
Any satisfying and meaningful job is somewhat challenging. A good healthy dose of stress is only expected as it stimulates creativity and boosts energy. Things go south when being stressed becomes a major description of one’s work life. Instead of internal drive, one can feel constantly irritated and exhausted from all the stress.
Research shows that persistent stress has a negative impact on multiple organs and body systems. [2] Our evolutionary fight-or-flight response just wasn’t meant to be constantly on.
Feeling disengaged and unmotivated
The worst part of work-related stress and burnout is that one loses interest in the activities they used to love and enjoy. Stressed-out employees often feel indifferent about work outcomes. Their usual desire to do a decent job, achieve better results for the company, or bring wins for their team is lost. Since the energy reserves get depleted due to constant stress, there are just not enough resources to act on one’s true interests.
Another alarming sign is a lack of motivation to get out of bed or attend meetings. It’s absolutely normal to feel less enthusiastic about your work at times. However, it becomes a problem when an employee is unwilling to engage in any work activities for a week or more. Procrastination on important tasks that seem extremely difficult can cause further challenges.
Difficulty concentrating and declining performance
Emotional exhaustion usually first affects cognitive abilities. Analytical skills, maintaining focus, and creative thinking suffer significantly. It becomes difficult to focus on tasks long enough to complete them. Stressed-out people struggle with new or complex tasks that require more concentration.
The vicious cycle of procrastination, postponing deadlines, and dreadful anxiety about the pile of tasks inevitably leads to a decline in work performance. Even the most organised and high-functioning employees can make mistakes because they are tired and overwhelmed.
Physical symptoms of mental strain
Those with bodily symptoms are probably the most warning signs of extensive work-related stress. Often, persistent stress manifests with changes in sleep patterns. Interestingly, it can be insomnia or quite the opposite, prolonged periods of sleep that never seem to bring recuperation. Persistent stress usually means tension, which can cause headaches, migraines, or higher blood pressure.
Other typical symptoms come from the gastrointestinal tract. Regular problems with digestion, diarrhoea, or irritable bowel syndrome are quite common in stressed-out people. Binge eating or diminished appetite occur regularly too. [3]
Benefits of Taking a Mental Health Day
If you are struggling with any of the symptoms above, these are clear signs you need a mental health day. No matter how much you love your work or how much they need you, taking care of yourself is a win-win approach. Employees get the chance to recharge and rest physically and mentally. Simply leaving your work tasks at work for a day lightens the pressure and allows you to catch up with sleep or abandoned hobbies. Doing something different on a weekday could bring more joy than expected.
On the other hand, businesses benefit from such short breaks too. Occasional days off taken using general PTO or a specifically designated mental health package costs much less than potential losses in case of serious burnout cases or even resignation. Allowing workers to take care of their well-being builds up loyalty and trust in the team.
Tips: How to Take a Mental Health Day?
Expressing your need to take care of your mental health can be challenging. Depending on the work culture and relations with one’s manager, scenarios can range from a simple straightforward request to a stressful and awkward situation. Here are some tips to ask for a self-care day without unnecessary worries:
Assess your readiness to open up. Are you willing to describe directly what bothers you? If the stress you struggle with comes partially from your job specifics or workplace dynamics, you may find it important to share concerns with the company leadership.
Check respective HR policies. Different companies have different regulations about and regulations on personal time off. Some offer a combined package of PTO for vacations, sick leaves and days off to deal with personal issues. Technically, in such cases, you could avoid communicating the goal of your absence completely. In other cases, sick leave days are counted separately. You can take a mental health day on account of sick leave. More rarely do companies offer a mental care programme for employees, including therapy coverage, retreats, and dedicated days off.
Be smart about it. Sometimes, company culture is not vocally supportive of the mental health of their workforce. Individual managers can hold old-fashioned beliefs and treat self-care as a weakness. Your main goal is to have some time off to rest and regain strength. If not willing, you don’t have to pick a fight against the system or prejudice. It’s completely fine to take PTO without disclosing any details on why you need it. It’s ok to support a wider discussion on mental health too.
Taking care of one’s mental well-being is as important as doing it for physical health. Unfortunately, workplace culture could affect it badly even in seemingly safe conditions. Excessive stress, job insecurity, and market situation could make employees more susceptible to the risks of burnout and exhaustion. Preventative actions like mental health days can be an effective tool to recharge and rest without major life or work changes. It’s beneficial both for the employees and companies, since resources are spared both on burnout treatment and staff turnover. Watch out for the signs of persistent stress like sleep disruption and declining productivity and be ready to take a much-needed break.
References:
- Mental Health America, 2024 Mind the Workplace Report https://mhanational.org/news/2024-mind-the-workplace-report
- Mariotti A. (2015). The effects of chronic stress on health: new insights into the molecular mechanisms of brain-body communication. Future science OA, 1(3), FSO23. https://doi.org/10.4155/fso.15.21
- American Psychological Organization. (October 2021). Stress in America: Stress and decision-making during the pandemic.
- The World Health Organization (2022). Mental health in the workplace
