AIBU to sign myself off work for a week?

[IrnBruAddict]

Ok, I think I'm prepared for potentially tough responses... This is a moan/offload so please feel free to ignore or tell me to grow a pair.

I'm on the verge of having had enough. I've had a sore throat/cough/hoarse voice almost continuously since November - sometimes it's only one or two of those three but it's nearly always at least one.

I'm tired. Not just a bit yawny, but struggling to put one foot in front of the other, can't remember what I did yesterday, type tired.

For the last two weeks I haven't been able to hear very well from my right ear (not total hearing loss but nearly). I got olive oil drops from nurse practitioner but they haven't yet worked.

I'm a bit overwhelmed at work. I'm the only person doing my job and I work alone all day in a basement. The work's increasing, not decreasing but there's no chance of getting any help. In fact, it's more likely they'll cut my hours instead of giving me an assistant.

My brother's not well (alcohol abuse). He lives miles away with my parents and getting any info out of any of them is difficult. He's 35 but don't know how much longer he's got. It's hard to be so far away.

My daughters, 1 and 4, don't seem capable of both sleeping through on any one given night. Not always, but 90% of the time it's me who gets up, not DH. If he gets up it's usually because I've nudged him and asked him to (hence I still wake up).

I have been receiving therapy for various issues in my past which seem to have left deeper scars than I once thought. My therapist has been signed off sick since just before xmas, however, and i don't know when she'll be back. I know what's wrong and really hope she gets well soon. From an incredibly selfish point of view though, I'm really beginning to miss her.

I can't talk to my DH about stuff as he simply doesn't understand. He knows about all of the above stuff but still asked me last night, 'everything ok?' after i'd been snappy with the girls. I just said 'fine' as I didn't quite know where to start.

I'm losing the will, frankly, and wondered if i should sign myself off for a week. I'm not very good at asking for help, and feel like i should just continue to get on with it.

If you've made it to the end, well done. AIBU?

See your GP. You sound run down, overwhelmed and exhausted. I'm not surprised with all that going on.

Take a break now, or you may end up taking more than a week off.

Not too good at the moment Irn as another chest infection has knocked me sideways.

With you on the sleep thing - it's not like normal tiredness that'd be fixed with one night's sleep! I feel like I've just given birth followed by running a marathon :o

Hi, just a quick update. Went to the GP today and told I need my ears syringed - first appt. not until 18 feb tho

He also signed me off for a week and gave me a questionnaire for depression. Did it earlier on and it does indicate I'm quite depressed so we'll see what he decides to do when I see him next week. Not sure how I feel about it all; think I'll find it hard to talk to DH when the girls go to bed.

Fuzzpig - that's rubbish about your chest infection. Hope it clears up soon - is there anything they can give you for it?

glad you are getting gp support, just a word of caution though, its easy to start to relax a bit when the stresses are reduced and then you will have to face the going back which is really really hard make sure you get enough support to make this bearable and don't let it a) drag you down further or b) erode your self confidence so much that going back feels insurmountable.
enjoy the break be kind to yourself and hope you get better soonl

Thank you, Step Away. That's what I'm worried about as I know the workload's not getting any less while I'm away. Just going to try and take it one step at a time and see how it goes. Thank you for replying.

I think you need to go to your GP and be very honest about your symptoms and ensure that there is no serious underlying medical condition re the throat and the exhaustion and get your ears properly syringed. Tell the GP about your exhaustion and stress levels and take the doctor's advice.

Thanks for your reply, Married. I had blood tests done just before Christmas which came back fine so no need for more according to doc today. Really need to get my ears sorted as it's soooo annoying and hoping taking a step back from work might help a wee bit with the tiredness and everything else. We'll see!

Glad you went to the GP, OP. As a line manager, I wouldn't want you to come to work feeling like you're feeling. You're exhausted, and you need a break. I can't stand people who abuse sick leave and would normally agree that leave is the right option if you just want a rest. However, from what you've said, it sounds to me that you're really not well, and I think sick leave is the most appropriate option.

I hope that you get the support that you need, and that you start to feel better soon.

Thanks for your reply, Married. I had blood tests done just before Christmas which came back fine so no need for more according to doc today. Really need to get my ears sorted as it's soooo annoying and hoping taking a step back from work might help a wee bit with the tiredness and everything else. We'll see!

Oops, sorry for second post!

I really do feel awful, and it takes a lot for me to say that. Still don't think those round about me know how bad I feel but I'm glad I managed to convey it to a GP, especially one whom I've never actually seen before.