First day back after mat leave and I’m ill

Morning. Sorry that you are poorly.

You've been off 10 months. Another week isn't going to make much difference to the business but it will to you. If you don't rest and recover you will be starting your return to work on the back foot and may pick up every bug going.

I've spent far too many days pushing through at work when I should have been at home. I'm now older and my body is paying the price. Don't do what I did. Honestly.

Tell them you are too ill to work, that you will start again next week.

If you are unwell call in sick. This attitude of you have to bend over backwards for your workplace even when your dying, literally in some case! It doesn't sit right with me. They'd replace you in a day if they needed to. Phone in and get back to bed. Work will still be there tomorrow

I know exactly how you feel as I'd have terrible guilt and a sense of obligation in this situation too. When I started a new job a few years ago (pre wfh being a thing) I was really poorly with a sickness bug- I dragged myself in and tried to hide it but in the end fainted at my desk and created much more of a drama! Given you've worked there for 7 years I would phone them and explain how unwell you are and that you appreciate how bad timing it is. If you're not usually off they'll understand it's genuine and hopefully you can then get some guilt free rest.hope you feel better soon.

Get well soon, Op. Sounds as though you really are far too unwell to work.

OP what rotten luck to feel like this on your first day back. I hope you feel better. Timing wise is crap but can’t be helped. Much better to take the time off sick for a day or two and then go back to work fully better and rested. Don’t listen to everyone telling you to work…and yes I agree WFH is real work whether you’re ill or not. Get well soon and good luck for when you make it back x

I hate to break it you but this is your next 2 years or so. Never been so repetitively ill in my life than the nursery years.

So yes I would log on unless you’re literally vomiting!

I’d say log in and try to do your best. If you feel too ill, you wont have left home and you can always mention it during the day and leave.

if you had a long term illness, would you get sick pay? If you didn’t, would you go in? I’ve experienced this recently, so I know it’s tough to have go in work when you’re ill, but online is considerably easier than many public facing jobs.

So did you take the advice given on the thread and speak to your manager today, rather than springing this on them tomorrow?

I really don't think PTSD or anxiety can cause you to have a fever.

I would contact them now and say you won't be working tomorrow. It's totally fine, just bad timing - better to let them know with notice when possible. On my first day back after mat leave i ended up having to leave at lunchtime because the nursery called to say my son was unwell - just one of those things and nothing bad came of it!

call manager today and explain you’ll log on but meetings need to be postponed as likely you will have no voice

@Candle81 how are you feeling today? Did you make it in, or did you ring in sick? Hope you take the time needed to recover if the latter x

Unless you are so unwell you can't get out of bed I would log in..rest up as much as possible today if it's a bug they usually pass in 24/48 hours so you should be a bit better. Maybe email today though and give them heads up about your voice

Edited as I see it's tomorrow and not today you are due back.

I'd try to speak with my manager today so they knew I was poorly (and potentially not going to be able to log on tomorrow)

WFH certainly means I have taken less sick days in the past 5 years but there have been odd occasions (Noro!) that I could barely manage to log on and tell my manager how ill I was.

I would dose my self up and try to at least have a catch up day working - maybe speak to manager and explain whats going on, see if there are updates, training etc you can be doing

If you have a good reputation at work it won't matter. You are sick. If it was a cold maybe - but fevers etc? Nope. Take a sick day as you are sick!

Suck it up and get through as best you can.

YANBU to take time off sick if you really are sick, but YAB a bit U to be pre-emptively assuming you will be too sick to work in the morning, with a thing that started yesterday. You may very well be significantly better by tomorrow and able to work, so I'd wait and see, before planning to be off sick.

I had to call off on my first day after mat leave as my baby was in hospital with sepsis.
They understood. But for anything else I'd just max out the painkillers and power through.
It will probably be a transition/handover day anyway so you won't have to actually "do" that much?

If you can WFH I'd at least log in and say hi and everything but then say you're really struggling so might have to log off again after a couple of hours