When the Culmination of Life Takes Over...Take a Sabbatical

“It was totally a great idea to isolate yourself from your job and your family to go force yourself to be sad in the mountains.”

Although the main character’s younger sister was totally being facetious and sarcastic here, it actually was a great idea for Kyle to take a sabbatical to the mountains. Although mental health breaks are probably looked down upon by managers at work, mental health practitioners actually encourage sabbaticals to increase overall mental and physical health.

In The Culmination of it Everything, Kyle endured and suffered a great loss. Her husband and only child were killed in a school shooting. What made matters worse was that she was called to assist in the crisis as a trauma surgeon. So, although she was able to help others, she, unfortunately, was unable to help her own loved ones.

This tragic event was undoubtedly devastating, and to deal with the grief, she decided to run to the mountains to find peace. Lucky for her, she found what she was looking for — peace and new beginnings with Ben. Although finding a man wasn’t on her to-do list, he was exactly what she needed.

These days, it’s all about work. How much can you get done in a certain amount of time? How much money can you make the employer? What deliverables can you provide for the company? All of that is great, but what about you?

Jobs, especially high pressure ones, can lead to a feeling of indifference about your job, annoyance or poor mood altogether, the feeling of being stuck, and in severe cases, our jobs can lead us to feelings of depression, which can cause a whole host of physical responses.

So, if you’re feeling those things or if you’ve experienced a trauma, consider taking that mental health leave from work. Research shows a considerable amount of benefits from sabbaticals—for you and your employer. Some of these benefits include:

So, stop killing yourself. Take a break when needed. Who knows, you might find yourself a mans, like Kyle.