Lessons Learned from Taking a Mental Health Career Break

Hello LinkedIn Friends! It’s been a while since I’ve been actively engaged online. I’m returning from a nearly 18-month hiatus after voluntarily leaving my full-time general manager role at a boutique comms firm last summer. Although I led a fast-growing agency and managed/mentored some of the most dedicated young professionals I have worked with throughout my career, I was miserable. After a difficult leadership team meeting that resulted in a restless night, I (somewhat impulsively) tendered my resignation the next morning. While challenges at work had been mounting, after self-reflecting for over a year, I now realize my job/employer wasn’t the root cause of my endless anxiety and frustration - just the breaking straw. During my “sabbatical” I learned a lot about myself but, most importantly I came to understand and embrace that achieving a healthy work/life balance is simply impossible without taking appropriate time for self-care.?

Taking time off from full-time work to prioritize mental health, especially after experiencing multiple losses and trauma, is an important and courageous step. In our fast-paced society, where productivity is often valued above personal well-being, pausing to focus on healing can feel counterintuitive or even indulgent. However, such decisions can be necessary for long-term stability, growth, and overall wellness.

In the years leading to the COVID-19 pandemic, my family suffered many significant losses including the death of my father, maternal grandmother, and an older cousin who was more like a brother. Early in the pandemic, I was laid off but was able to land a remote contract gig that eventually turned into a full-time position and my most prized role, to date, in my PR career. This fully remote flexibility allowed me to relocate from Chicago, which had been my professional network for 12+ years, to be closer to my (still grieving) family in Charleston, S.C. Shortly after making the move, close relatives in my family continued dying in quick succession. Between 2021 and 2023 we said final goodbyes to many important family members including my paternal grandparents, aunts, and a few cousins my age. I didn’t know it at the time but, these experiences combined with the natural stresses of adjusting to a new city that was very culturally different from what I’d become accustomed to in the Midwest, began to shape my perspective for my future negatively. Since I felt empowered by my ability to control my exposure to COVID - never contracting the virus, and remained financially stable amid record job losses due to shutdowns, I had convinced myself that I was miraculously still wholly intact despite the crumbling world around me. I was not.??

The Impact of Trauma and Loss

Experiencing trauma and multiple losses, whether due to the death of loved ones, significant life changes, or personal crises, can leave deep emotional scars. Despite best efforts to emotionally detach from these events, they often lead to intense feelings of grief, anxiety, depression, and burnout. Without allowing adequate time and space to process such experiences, it's easy to find yourself struggling not only emotionally but also physically, as mental health issues often manifest in physical ailments such as chronic fatigue, insomnia, and other stress-related conditions.

For me, the demands of my full-time job had exacerbated these symptoms. Balancing my job responsibilities while grappling with the unresolved emotions I’d been avoiding made it difficult for me to discern between typical work stressors and emotional abuse/trauma. My constant feelings of persecution, failure, and inadequacy, further compounded my stress and anxiety.

The Decision to Take Time Off

Initially, when I left my full-time position, I did not intend to take almost 18 months off from work. In my mind, I was allowing myself a six-month break and would support my income through consulting projects during this time. However once the six months had passed, the idea of applying for jobs (i.e. beginning the rejection cycle) became overwhelming and I succumbed to depression. I spent many days angry, mad at all the injustices in the world, doomscrolling, and only feeling truly safe in the four walls of my house. My social media algorithms kept feeding me content that confirmed my dark outlook. After coming across engaging mental health TikTok content that spoke directly to what I’d been experiencing, I began receiving more positive messages and feeling less guilt. While sometimes painful, my mental health sabbatical allowed me time for meaningful rest, long overdue introspection, and the courage to seek healing help through therapy.??

Rebuilding and Reintegrating

Taking time off for mental health is not just about stepping away from work; it is about building a foundation for a healthier, more sustainable life in the future. During my break from full-time work, I found room to discover new passions, interests, and hobbies - things I had never prioritized over advancing my career. For too long, I found joy, fulfillment, and a sense of purpose primarily in my professional function/success. But now I’ve relearned how to experience these same satisfactions in new, healthy ways. I’ve begun and advanced quickly in my Pilates practice, developed a green thumb for nurturing indoor plants, and endeavored as many culinary challenges as my ever-hungry heart could dream of!?

Why am I Sharing This??

I realize I’m no unicorn and, very likely, other professionals are experiencing something similar to what I’ve been through the past several months. White-collar office culture is competitive, the demands are endless, and recognition of individual contributions/results is critical to one’s professional growth and viability in the company. These conditions make it easy, almost required, to devalue the importance of maintaining our physical, mental, and emotional health. In corporate environments, employees often feel shame or guilt for requiring or requesting unplanned time off. We’re covertly treated as heroes for prioritizing a company’s business needs (i.e. the bottom line) over our well-being. Too often, I certainly did. But now, I realize my best professional self cannot exist if my inner self is broken. Healing from emotional trauma requires time, effort, and compassion - things only WE can give ourselves.?

Make no mistake: deciding to take time away from your full-time career is difficult. Without my pandemic “stay at home” savings cushion, taking a mental health break would’ve felt like an impossible choice. In complete transparency, repercussions from this life-changing decision remain because now that I’m ready to resume my career, finding a new role is challenging. Nonetheless, the benefits are profound. By prioritizing my mental health, I’ve gained greater emotional resilience, renewed energy, and a clearer sense of purpose. I’m better equipped with new tools and coping skills that offer me a healthier perspective for achieving work/life balance.?

If anyone reading this is struggling like I was, I hope this helps you realize you’re not alone and you’re not a bad professional or a terrible person. Check-in with your inner self and, if you need to take some personal time, have courageous conversations with your employer and family/friends/support systems to evaluate your options for beginning a healing process as soon as possible. I can’t say it enough: YOU ARE NOT ALONE. If you’d like to connect on a peer level to learn more about my experience taking time off and how I’m working to reintegrate into the workforce, I’m happy to connect.?

Be well!

Ebonne??