To hand a sick note in?

[QuestionableMouse]

I'm exhausted. Absolutely wiped out. I had covid last week, my mam has been in ICU since last Friday with complications of Covid. I'm still struggling with the Covid leftovers (exhaustion being the main one!) I'm doing childcare for my sister 7-5 every day this week. I don't think I've slept longer than two hours in a row since Friday.

I literally feel like my cup is empty.

I have two ten hour shifts this weekend on a busy dining area and I could honestly cry when I think about it. The short school run today left me absolutely wiped.

I don't want to let work down but at the same time, it's more disruptive if I go in and have to leave.

Wibu to hand a sick note in?

do it

YANBU to hand a sick note in - but you really shouldn't be looking after your sisters children too - you'll never be able to get better if you're exhausting yourself like this! You need some time just to concentrate on you getting better, rest and relaxation play a huge part. Especially as a few more days looking after them 7-5 you might end up in a worse state by the weekend hope you can get something sorted OP!

If your GP will sign you off then go for it

YANBU. If you need to take some time off, take some time off and don't feel guilty about it

@INeed2P

YANBU to hand a sick note in - but you really shouldn't be looking after your sisters children too - you'll never be able to get better if you're exhausting yourself like this! You need some time just to concentrate on you getting better, rest and relaxation play a huge part. Especially as a few more days looking after them 7-5 you might end up in a worse state by the weekend hope you can get something sorted OP!

I don't have a choice unfortunately. She's just started a new job and so feels like she can't take time off and there's no-one else to mind them.

Of course not. They wouldn't be agonising about dismissing you if it no longer suited them to employ you.

Sorry posted too soon!

Thank you!

I'm also the one who's doing all the communication with the hospital and that's taking it's toll too.

Also - I've never used a sick note. What the heck do I put on it?

So... to enable your sister to have her career, you are becoming too burnt out to work on your own?

Sorry, I realise I sound unsympathetic: and I really arent! It’s just that to get better you need to look after yourself

Exhaustion post covid.

Also, is this a long term plan of your sisters to use you for childcare?

Your sister needs to get paid childcare!

As pp had said, you can’t burn yourself out so that you can’t work in your own career, just to enable her to have one!

Are you planning to carry on doing her childcare while too sick to do your paid job?

You do have a choice. Your sister will need to find someone else. Don't burn yourself out doing her childcare, trying to do everything for your mother and recover from COVID. you are going the right way to giving yourself a longer bout of covid the way you are going.

I’ve just done this exact thing.

Worked through a covid outbreak at work (lived there for two weeks), caught covid, got ONE day off to recover then worked about 90+ hours the following weeks.

I was hanging and had no chance to get over covid.

Am halfway through my two weeks off. Have mostly slept. I am feeling better.

Do it.

@QuestionableMouse - you can get a sick note from your GP. You can discuss what you'd prefer them to put - stress, exhaustion, etc

Sorry but I agree with others - your sister is using you and adding to your stresses, giving you no time to recover from Covid or deal with your mum being in hospital. She needs to sort childcare. How old are they?

You're going to burn yourself out very shortly if you keep doing all these things for everyone else.
Your sister is going to have to find another childcare option, be it paid or unpaid. If you end up in hospital yourself you're not going to be able to look after her kids.
Call in sick to work but also tell your sister that you need to step back from childcare for your own health.

When you say hand in a sick note, and what do you put on it, it sounds like you think it’s like sending a note into school to explain a child’s absence. You get a sick note from a doctor you don’t write it yourself.

Call in sick.. you have had covid and are not recovered. You're not letting them down they are aware staff fall ill sometimes and should have something in place as back up.

You don't need to hand a sick note in just tell them you are still unwell.

YABU for doing 50 hours childcare for someone else while too ill to do your own job.

You can self certify for 7 days legally. After this time you would need a GP to sign you off. They would fill out a form for your employers.

You WBU to put in a sick note and keep looking after your sister's children.

Otherwise YANBU, you sound like you need get fully better.

You can't be a full time childminder to your sister and be well enough for that but too unwell to go to your paid job. If you are sick, you're too sick for both. Your sister needs to sort her own children out.

Your sister is outrageous asking you to look after her kids. Please tell her you can’t. Why is her job more important then yours?

You probably wouldn’t be so knackered working, if you weren’t looking after your sisters child. Her job should not come at the expense of yours. She needs to sort out paid child care.

I know it is hard when it is family but your sister needs to arrange her own Childcare that does not include you. Her job is not more important than yours and more importantly your health.