Sometimes in life, we need a break. A break from the monotony of work is an absolute necessity at least once a year for a holiday, even if you love your job. We need a break to just be by ourselves, to reconnect with the person we are outside of family, friends and our careers. Do you know what? That’s okay – needing a break is normal, natural and it’s okay. Except there are some instances in life where we don’t choose to have time out for a break, and it’s thrust upon us whether we want it or not.

Getting ill or injured means that we are forced to take time that we didn’t want to take, at the detriment of our lifestyles and finances. A couple of centuries ago, getting sick was life-threatening, even due to the common cold. Who knew a sniffle could cause death! People used to take time to convalesce and get themselves back to full strength before getting back to work. Now? Now there is no such thing. There’s paid time off work, sure, but that pay is capped at the rate of barely a day’s work. Getting sick happens to us all at some point or another, but it’s so easy to end up stressed with the worry and take longer to recover because illness has taken work away. Employers may not be allowed to fire you for being sick, but they sure can and do try.

Infections and accidents are selfish things to happen and they happen when least expected. When you end up with an injury at work, you can get help from sites like http://tulsapersonalinjuryattorney.pro/ to find out what your rights are and whether you are due any compensation. The trouble is that you need to have a contingency plan in place to be able to support yourself in the meantime. Employer-paid sick pay is pittance compared to your salary, and when you’re forced to take time off work that you haven’t prepared for, it could cost you dearly and even put you in debt. Illness will affect you differently compared to other people, but the best thing that you can do if you end up with an extended period of time of is to ensure that you’re already building an emergency fund to compensate for the time. The normal is around three to six months of expenses that can make a massive difference to you while you go through recovery.

There can be a lot of anxiety surrounding needing to take time off for recovery reasons. Most people worry about their job, and rightly so; your employer could hire someone else to take your place within a week if necessary. The best thing that you can do when it comes to taking time off is to make sure that you are prepared for the unexpected and, where possible, try not to take time off unless sanctioned with annual leave entitlement. While you recover, keep in touch, be reachable and take time to get better. Your job matters, sure, but so do you.