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wellbeing<br />
Working until you burn out shouldn’t<br />
be a goal, or something that should<br />
earn anyone praise. Our number one<br />
goal should be to stay healthy<br />
try to keep up, to an extent. If<br />
you live with a chronic illness, a<br />
disability, or both, it can feel like<br />
sick-days come around more than<br />
your colleagues, and guilt could<br />
be a factor in whether you take<br />
that much-needed day off. But<br />
it’s important to remember that<br />
everyone will have a time when<br />
they struggle mentally, physically,<br />
or both. And when that voice of<br />
self-doubt rises up, just consider,<br />
would you judge someone else for<br />
needing a sick-day? Treat yourself<br />
with that same compassion you’d<br />
show your colleagues.<br />
Get past the guilt<br />
Life coach Clare Percival<br />
suggests digging deeper and<br />
asking yourself questions that<br />
shift your focus to help put the<br />
decision to take a day off in a<br />
new, guilt-free light:<br />
• What are the benefits of<br />
taking a sick-day?<br />
• How would I feel if I<br />
passed on an illness to<br />
my work colleagues?<br />
• Why am I not prioritising<br />
my health?<br />
• What is really making me feel<br />
guilty?<br />
• How will my performance<br />
improve at work and home from<br />
taking time off now to recover<br />
compared to keeping going?<br />
• Would my world collapse if I don’t<br />
go in?<br />
• How much better would I feel by<br />
investing in myself and my health?<br />
4. IT’S NOT A SIGN OF WEAKNESS<br />
Most of us have worked with<br />
an ‘office gossip’. They love to<br />
let everyone know how you<br />
were off last week, again. These<br />
words make us feel ashamed,<br />
guilty, and inadequate. But just<br />
because you feel unwell, it doesn’t<br />
make you weak-minded.<br />
“When you’re not feeling 100%,<br />
your inner critic voice kicks<br />
in – the negative self-talk that<br />
feeds off a poorly you, and has<br />
been lying dormant waiting for<br />
a moment to come out and play<br />
in your mind, and tell you those<br />
guilty thoughts,” Clare Percival<br />
explains. Taking time off shows<br />
you value your health and your<br />
colleagues. It’s the responsible<br />
thing to do, especially if<br />
you’re potentially infectious<br />
or your job involves caring for<br />
others. So, remember, listening<br />
to your mind and body when it<br />
needs a breather isn’t just for<br />
your own benefit, it’s the most<br />
selfless thing you can do.<br />
Katie Conibear is a writer who blogs<br />
at stumblingmind.com. Her first<br />
book, ‘Living at the Speed of Light’,<br />
about bipolar disorder, is out now.<br />
Clare Percival is a life and executive<br />
function coach. Find out more at<br />
lifecoach-directory.org.uk<br />
<strong>happiful</strong>.com | September <strong>2021</strong> | 69
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