Time off work for stress

[kistanbul]

After a year of serious work issues that have led to 50% of the team needing to take time off due to stress, I'm finally broken by work.

I've been offered a promotion and been signed off work for up to a month. I'd like to get back to work in two weeks, but I want to make sure I'm mentally ready and back to my old resilient self.

What should I spend my time doing while I'm off? Sit around doing nothing? Take an art course? Go on holiday? I know I need a break, but I'm honestly not sure how to do it in a way that will fix my mental health. Any ideas?

I think it might be a symptom of your stress that you're even asking tbh. I mean, you can do whatever you fancy.

For me, it'd be a mix of watching crap TV under a duvet and reading.

What makes you happy?

Two days of nothing followed by getting out. Walks, runs, seeing friends and family, maybe an event or one day course to look forward to in the second week?

The fact that I need to ask is very much a symptom of the stress. I genuinely can't remember how to relax.

Work is causing stress, so I would spend the time off looking for a different job in the mornings.
And lazing around, reading books and eating chocolate in the afternoons.

Good luck with both activities.

I like the idea is a mindfulness course or similar.

Are there week long intensive courses for beginners meditation or yoga or something similar?
Everything I've seen seems geared towards experience people.

MIND run free courses round these parts.

Sounds like you need something to help you zone out a bit.

What about doing a puzzle while listening to music from a past decade?

Or cooking extravagant dishees?

If you like being outside, have you tried geocaching?

What do you miss doing, that you haven't been able to from work stress?

When I was off I just pottered and took each day at a time.

Some days I slept in, didnt get dressed, watched shit tv and ate crap, or I went shopping or spent a day at the local gym/spa, sat in the garden, read....

I was also signed off for a month and my Dr said she worried about how people like me (who had always worked) coped with extended time off.

I set myself a job to do each day, just one thing and could be tiny. Generally, I looked at the house and one area that needed tidying (could just be one shelf!). Could be going for a walk - just something.

Just gave me a focus amongst the doing nothing, and means I have cleared out some areas that needed doing - win/win

For the first week I scrubbed my house from top to bottom. Then I didn't know what to do, I couldn't leave the house for a couple of weeks as it was just too overwhelming. I watched a lot of rubbish tv, read and slept. Thankfully I am out the other side now, but use the time to regroup, and look after yourself.

Jigsaw puzzles!