About 4 weeks ago I had 2 break downs in my office shortly eacht after. I went to my doc and she instantly diagosed a severe burn out, and I am on sick leave since.
Due toe the special sitation I am in, I need to check into work now and then, for keeping things running. My coworkers and my boss are very understanding.
This morning I went to work at 9am, just to give 2 simple plans to the production. I was told that it is neccessary that I need to visit a customer next week for 2 days, for setting up a machine, and I started to panic.
Then I had a phone call with another coworker who works in a different departnement in another town. He preassured me to finish some papers asap - despite he knows about my situation and kept asking me about the deadline. I kept repeating that I cannot give him a deadline, and I felt how all my walls broke, and I was close to having a break down again. Gladly he gave up then.
I went back home and almost fell asleep instantly, and just got up. I have the feeling that all progress I made in the last 4 weeks according to my burn out have gone.
It’s really great that your company let you take 4 weeks of sick leave for burnout! Getting pushed right back into the fire isn’t good for anyone’s health though.
It starts simply and innocently enough. Each person you work with just has a “simple favor” to ask “real quick” while you’re there. Next thing you know, they’ve overloaded you. I hope you can get back to resting.
Maybe in the future you can ask them to go through your manager for assignments. I know working in production, sales and technical people just came up and asked us for “quick favors.” That happened at 2 jobs, and both times my managers said that all work was to go through them so we didn’t get overloaded or pulled off our regular production work. It can be really easy for “quick favors” to eat up all your time.
I am in germany, the company has no right to interfere in sick leave. If your doctor decidedes you are unable to work, your employer cannot do much about it - even fireing is not possible, only if your health progress is drecreasing over a longer period of time.
I am the technical manager, I used to own the company before, but it got sold after I ran into bancrupcy. Gladly the company could be sold into a company group and none of my workers lost their jobs. I was hired as technical manager, as my knowledge is needed for keep things running.
It was shortly after the company transfere I had my break down, the effect of 20 years working without break (often weekends and overtime)
I couldn’t be forced to come to office, I do it to keep things running, despite this isn’t my company any more and there is actually no kind of legal pressure that could force me to.
The first 3 weeks at home I was mainly resting, sleeping, watching TV, watching Twitch streams. I slowly start now to find interests, I went out for walks, didn’t do that the last 2 days though.
Today I feel I am unable to do anything again, not even the dishes, or laundry.