Personal Leadership for Women: Mental Health Days

Sometimes we all need to take a “mental health day.”  We might not be sick.  There might not be anything physically wrong with us.  But we just do not feel right and we need to take a little time off for ourselves.

This happened to me recently.  I was feeling really irritable, I could not focus, I was not accomplishing anything, and I was getting really frustrated.  Finally about mid-morning I told myself enough was enough and I was taking a mental health day.

I went out, treated myself to a mid-morning snack, ran some errands, and took care of a few things for me.  In the process, I ran into my brother, who was in town to see a client.  We had a nice chat.  I treated myself to a late lunch.  (I like eating out.)

It was one of the first really nice days this season, perfect for putting the top down on the car.  When I got home, I found reasons to go driving again just to enjoy the day.  When I got home again, I spent some time reading.

The next day I felt great!  I was energetic and enthusiastic.  I was so productive that I more than made up for taking the previous day off.  Taking a day off was what I needed.  I needed a mental health day.

Being self-employed does have its advantages.  I realize I can do something like this easier than if I punched a time clock.  If you can, when you know you really need to take a day off even if you are not sick, take a mental health day.