Going back to work after a being off for a couple of weeks

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I don't know if this topic should be here in random discussion or in the Haven but here it is anyway.

I've been off from work for the last two weeks. I go back tomorrow (Monday August 6th). The two weeks have went by really fast, once again. After being off from work for a week or even more I dread and fear going back to it. I don't know what to expect, what has been left on my desk, how many phone messages I have, what has been done or not done while I was gone and just getting back into the routine. Maybe I might of felt a little more secure if I liked my job better but I don't know.

Does anyone here, after being off from work for a week or more (or even more than a day) relate to my feelings?

I absolutely know what you mean. I have been retired for exactly a month now. And I don't know how I managed to stay there for ten years. But when I was working, if I had some time off, even a few days, I would start to feel physically better and not depressed or anxious, and then the day before I was due to go back I would start getting the same old physical symptoms, and depression and anxiety. I worried that I had left something undone and would hear about it when I got back to work, and with short term memory problem, it was hard for me to pick up with a project I had left unfinished and "on my desk" so to speak. And then there was that sick feeling and stomach jumping when I woke up on the day I had to go back and before I was even fully awake I would think, oh no, I've got to go to school. What am I going to wear? Obviously, work and school were one and the same for me. Hell... and I had to be there... on time. Now I can live without a clock and a calendar and without a boss and a bunch of people who think I'm very smart but awfully odd. Good luck to you.

The dread pretty much picks up as the weekend progresses. I flinch when I check my e-mail. One bad note from the boss causes my mood to take a nose dive. At one point, I didn't even take vacations. I'm not much for travel, and I couldn't handle the stress and mess I encountered on my return. But it's better to enjoy some time off in the long term. You may have a more hectic week back, but everyone needs some time off as a mental tune-up.

"Does anyone here, after being off from work for a week or more (or even more than a day) relate to my feelings?"

Yeah, some places I worked at I used to dread walking in through the door. I don't ever recall someone saying "welcome back" and meaning it.

Ed Almos

I can relate to this as well,I got to the stage where I couldn't stop thinking about work and had to try and 'learn' to relax with things like meditation and breathing
exercises.Coincidentally I read an article in my local paper today about stress at
work becoming more of a problem in general.I'm consciencious at work and
when things go wrong I tend to take it personally,even if it's something outwith
anyone's control.It's really up to employers to make sure they're covered for
holidays and avoid putting extra strain on their workers when they come back.

I like your thinking pluto! Thats so dumb u take a vac. and then u come back to a TON of work, im glad ive never had that problem, others have tho.

Im envious, i wish I could have 2 weeks off, thats alot of time off!

Thanks for everyone's replies to this.

I got to work on Monday. Even though there were a number of things to do and put up with, it wasn't that bad. Today wasn't too bad. I'm getting back into grind slowly but surely.