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Mental health

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Original poster

How long did you take off work to recover from burnout?

28 replies

BurnoutNHS1 · 03/10/2025 19:36

And do you think it was enough to help you reset and stay well?

I'm on week 2 of being off work due to quite severe burnout. The thing that made me finally accept I needed to do something was that I had become so detached from DC and DH and had no joy or motivation in me. Obviously work has been a contributing factor but I think this is a long accumulation of everything. Work, parenting, school moves, house renovations.

I know I need to make changes to improve my wellbeing as I think part of the issue is that I've just stopped doing anything for me as always felt too busy and too tired. At the moment I just feel utterly, utterly exhausted.

I wondered how long is reasonable to take off work? All the advice is that you shouldn't go back too soon because it won't help. I'm NHS and the guilt is already creeping in.

OP posts:

QueenMummyTheFirst · 04/10/2025 21:47

I only took 5 weeks, but went back on a phased return to totally different duties, and ended up leaving a few months later to retrain in a different field. I couldn't have come back when I did to the same role. I slept a huge amount over the first few weeks, and started antidepressants, which I'm still on 18 months later.

Take care of yourself, and do take the time you need. The deadline you have isn't as important as your health, whatever it is xx

Watermelonsugar44 · 08/10/2025 19:17

BurnoutNHS1 · 04/10/2025 19:53

It has been a very gradual thing. It crept up on me rather than a sudden breakdown. Over the last few weeks/months I have been chronically exhausted, no motivation to even do things I would normally enjoy, very irritable and tearful, becoming increasingly distant from DH and children. Also, losing confidence and a lot of self doubt and lots of headaches which I don't normally suffer with. Can't focus on things. Easily overwhelmed by tasks.

My eldest DC started to say she was worried and I didn't seem happy and it made me realise I need to stop ignoring this 😥

This was me, with added severe headaches and really high bp. Bp normal when I was off and no meds needed- purely stress.

Watermelonsugar44 · 08/10/2025 19:21

Pebbles16 · 04/10/2025 20:43

I thought it would be a fortnight... it was three months.
Finally went back and the atmosphere was so toxic that HR wouldn't let my LM talk to me without them (during pandemic so remote working made this easier). Management also refused to give me anything like my old job back and tried to manage me out until it became apparent that I wasn't crap and they didn't have a leg to stand on.
I was paid off to not take them to tribunal (and signed an NDA but - you know - we are anonymous here). It wasn't a huge payout. If I had had the mental strength I could have taken them to tribunal and got £££, but I didn't because they absolutely destroyed my MH.

Before I went off sick I would not have believed your post- that the nhs would try to manage someone out for being sick from a toxic environment, but sadly I have now seen it for myself and this does not surprise me at all, sadly. It’s a shame you didn’t have the strength to take them to tribunal, but I can understand why.

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