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@.twist.: I don't have any experience but I just wanted to say *hugs*! Do what you need to do to take care of yourself. That's the most important.

I am in Canada and a few coworker's have taken extended leaves for medical or psychological issues. Your doctor has to write a letter that you are to be off, the reason DOES NOT need to be disclosed. Just that they have assessed that you require xx time off. Usually you can take off a certain number of days at full (sick time) pay, and then you move I to STD/LTD but generally both come at a pay cut (in my industry STD is 2/3 income and LTD about 40%). If you move into EI that is also a big pay cut. I found my coworkers who took a stress leave were more likely to take more sick time or subsequent stress leaves in the long term, and just from observation, I think that unless you spend that time working really hard on yourself it is just a band-aid solution. That being said, if you are feeling desperate - a band-aid must be just the ticket.

@.twist.: so take your vacation, then your 17 weeks, and then the 15 EI. That's 32 weeks+ off work.

I haven't, but I have former colleagues who have. Two spring to mind. They were off a couple of months each and it was very needed for them and absolutely the right decision. Yes, people kind of knew why they were out, but I think everyone was just concerned for them. Hugs, I hope you manage to get the leave and some respite.

I'm an attorney and I've actually known two co-workers who have done that. One was quite secretive about the reason for her leave and just told people she was fine but that it was for "health related reasons." We all suspected stress related issues as it is a high stress job. Another co-worker broke up with a girlfriend and told people that his therapist recommended he take a break to deal with some things. People gossiped a bit about the second co-worker so I definitely think a less is more approach is better. For both of these people, there were no negative repercussions. People generally accepted that they needed a bit of time to work through things and they both returned and appeared to be refreshed.

@.twist.: I'm sorry. That's tough. I had a job once where I would be in tears every Sunday night and filled with such immense dread that I would feel sick. The industry I was working in had tanked so I was "lucky" to have a job but towards the end I had decided that I would be better off with no job than such a toxic job. Luckily, I eventually found something new. I'm sorry you are going through this.

Perhaps it's because my industry (military) has been so proactive in recent years about dealing with mental health issues that there is less stigma associated with it now. I know of several people, both military and civilian, who have taken stress leave (long term and short term) and not had any career repercussions, although one friend received a medical release for mental health due to service and received her full pension plus a medical pension. She has been very open about her experiences, and told me that her doctor (actually mine too) had been really supportive of her when she told him that she'd reached finally her limit. For co-workers on stress leave, while I'll say that we did talk about them (behind their backs) it was not in a disrespectful way, and more glad that they got the help they needed. Unfortunately, it's quite often really obvious when someone is off for stress leave rather than a physical rehabilitation, especially at a small office/company.

I hope your time away from your job, assuming you do decide to take stress leave, is able to put things in perspective for you so that you are in a better state of mind when you go back. Lastly, I wouldn't give a flying F what people think about how lucky I am to have that job. Your mental health is most important, and you have those things like sick leave and EI/disability to ensure that there isn't a financial burden associated with you taking care of you!

@.twist.: I don't have any advice, but I just want to say I'm sorry you or your friend are feeling overwhelmed and having a rough time. I hope you find relief and healing.

@.twist.: thinking of you,girl