Give Yourself A Break

In these times of political turmoil and pandemic, employee stress levels are off the charts. So I'm here to tell you to give yourself a break.

Most people aren't taking their vacations this year, and I think that's a mistake. Even if it's a staycation, take some rest and relaxation time to chill, work on a hobby or catch up on reading. You don't want  to burn out. Especially now, it's a really bad time to lose your job. Stress leads to mistakes, and mistakes lead to firing.

You can also just stop doing some activities that are not absolutely necessary. That's a break in itself. As you can probably tell if you're a regular reader of this blog, I gave myself a break. I was super-stressed after lockdown for a number of reasons. So I stopped updating my Twitter feed for awhile, and stopped writing this blog for several months. Sometimes you just need to give yourself a little break from the extra stuff you do.

I've also taken one actual vacation this year, by driving instead of flying to North Carolina for two weeks this summer. We're doing it again in a few weeks. Yes, it's stressful to drive, but the change of location was worth it.

So give yourself a break. De-stress. If vacation or punting on unnecessary tasks doesn't do it for you, then you might need help. If you are paralyzed at work, prone to anger, or having thoughts of violence to yourself or others, please get help. There are counseling services offering free or low-cost services during the pandemic.

Not sure if you need help? Take an anxiety test or a depression test to find out. You aren't alone. Many of us are suffering right now. Do what you need to feel better.

Should I Tell My Boss About My Mental Illness? Why You Should Not (And Three Times You Should)

A reader at AOL Jobs recently asked:

I have 7 years tenure with my company with great reviews. My last 6 month review I had met expectations in every area. I am going through a traumatic personal situation. A new manager was hired in October, and she's the one who gave my last review. In January, I disclosed to her I had PTSD. After that she met with me a month later accused me of not working. Took me to regional manager. They said I was making excuses and were disappointed. She recently told me "maybe you can't do this job anymore". She then lied on coaching logs saying I could not do my work. I went out on leave for PTSD. The last day she had me meet her to give me my year review, which stated I was below expectations in every area. When I came back from leave I was put on a performance improvement plan. She continues to lie about my performance. Is there any way to prove discrimination? They put me on an improvement plan for not meeting certain goals, but my counterparts are having the same problems meeting goals. Other counterparts are having even worse issues and are not put on a performance improvement plan. Please advise.

Unfortunately, the stigma associated with any mental illness means most people are afraid to tell their coworkers or boss. When they do, it's all too common to be subjected to sudden criticisms that you never faced before. In this situation, the fact that you had all good reviews before you disclosed your mental illness and were only written up after you disclosed it could be strong evidence of disability discrimination. If you can prove that your performance didn't change, or that your coworkers are failing to meet the same goals as you and aren't being written up, then you should talk to an employment lawyer in your state or EEOC about bringing a disability discrimination claim against your employer.

 In honor of Mental Illness Awareness Week, my latest piece in AOL Jobs covers why you shouldn't disclose a mental illness or disorder to your employer, along with three times you should disclose it. Read more here.