Don’t you want to crawl back into bed the minute you wake up and realize you’re out of sorts? Do you? No, neither do I.
Woke up with a bit of sinus pressure. As the day wore on, I realized this may be a full-blown sinus infection. My face hurts. (Reminds me of the bad joke my brother would say when we were kids, “Is your face hurting? No? It’s killing me!”) I want to go to sleep. I can’t. I have a phone interview, an article due, and a house guest I’d forgotten about. That I’m able to work at all is a miracle, what with a house guest, but he’s low-maintenance and it smells as though he’s cooked some lunch. Amen.
While I might be able to get through today, there are times I cannot work. They include:
– Migraines. I’m lucky to live through these. Work is out of the question.
– Stomach flu. Uh, no. If I can’t sit upright for more than 20 minutes at a time, I’m meant to lie down.
– Headaches. If it’s just typing notes or finishing up something rudimentary, I’m good. But if it’s creative work, it’s nearly impossible to concentrate.
When do you hang it up and allow yourself to be sick? And did you ever think you’d deny yourself this benefit when you expected it of an employer?
I’ve worked through some tough sicknesses including a sinus infection (take a hot shower and irrigate your nose), but have stopped my work completely when I’ve had the flu.
If I’m too sick to work, I don’t. I immediately contact everyone to let them know about the delay and either arrange a new deadline or wait until I’m feeling better.
True sick days are a rarity, but when they come I take them without reservation.
It really depends. When I was rushed off to ICU for a possible heart attack – no. When I got home, I lasted only a couple of days without working but then I had to because I just couldn’t do it.
If I have a migraine or anything that might send me to my bed, I take my laptop with me and do the little things that need to be done but don’t require a lot of attention. that way, if I have to stop in the middle to be sick or to sleep, it’s ok, I can just pick up where I left off.
I don’t deny myself, unless I’m already pressed on a deadline.
Even then, if it’s stomach flu, I’ll ask for an extension, explaining why.
I’m not getting as much done as I’d like because of these freaking construction workers, but that’s a whole different ball of wax!
Seriously, though, if I’m sick, I’m sick. I don’t work well when I’m sick. If there’s any way I can give myself the day to get well, knowing I’ll be more productive then, I do it.
Feel better soon, Lori. As for sick days, I have to be just about dying to take an entire day off, but if I’m feeling particularly bad, I’ll ease back on the workload. Really though, that’s not much different from how I did things when I worked for someone else.
D’oh! I always thought the saying was “my face hurts, is it killing you?”
Your way is way funnier
I don’t like to call in sick and I agree on the stomach flu or migraines or of course if the kids are sick.