I have grown up with it taught to me by society that a good work ethic demands that you only take a sick leave day off if you absolutely need to for physical health. It is good that now mental health is included in this, but I grew up in a family that is not big on mental health and even the culture around me tend to be ignorant when it comes to mental health issues like stress, anxiety, etc. Most will just say, “Get over it” and move on.
This has stuck with me and as I am getting older (33), I now am starting to feel the stress and anxieties of society starting to wear me down occasionally. I work for the state of Maryland so I get plenty of leave that I can use and all of my co-workers (including my wonderful boss), encourage me to take the leave if I need to and not end up a workaholic. But it is hard to break this feeling that I am being lazy or abusing the system if I do take a mental day off or a week long vacation.
How can I break this terrible habit of not wanting to take leave without feeling terrible about it?