The Option Of A Career Break

[All Flows]

Have people taken career breaks? And if so, are you glad you did, or wish you had not?

I have only recently come to realize the implications and complexity of CPTSD. That in itself is presumably takes some adapting to. I am finding things overwhelming.

Work is a double edged sword for me, getting out there doing it keeps me going socially, but getting in there doing the job (teacher) gives me constant stress and further upset, it feels.

I am seeing a counsellor as part of the employment service, and my boss is aware of this. Do you have any recommendations, based on your own experience and observations, in terms of taking a career break given a recent realization CPTSD?

Thanks

 

[420kitty]

I took a break from college. I was studying registered nursing. After I got PTSD I knew that was something I wasn't going to be able to do anymore. My new career is working towards being a chef.

Maybe teaching is not something you have the patience for right now. Taking a break can be a great thing. It gives time one to think and really delve into what you want out of life. Do you still enjoy teaching? If not, maybe a change is needed.

 

[All Flows]

I took a break from college. I was studying registered nursing. After I got PTSD I knew that was somet...

I don't enjoy teaching, not sure I ever did. It's the concern of there not being a job there afterwards. But with the career break there is a safeguard there. Was you said resonates and makes sense. I do need that time to stand back to adjust and reform things.

Hopefully your new career aims are all going to plan. Being a chef is an active physical thing. Physical exertion is always a good thing in a job, I'd say. Plus the skills and creativity that are surely required

It's been such a surprising time I am a bit bewildered. Making such a serious choice isn't easy in this case. But a decision will have to be made.

Thanks

 

[Muted]

If you have that option, I would think that would be extremely worthwhile and helpful.

 

[Swemoor]

I took a break from college, now I am back, I kept going to classes but without the pressure of the grades, it helped me a lot to stabilize a little, now I can work again as I used to do before the PTSD.
Good luck :)

 

[Clancy]

I am in the middle of a break now, and it is the best thing i could be doing. I was overseas for a couple of years, volunteering in Cambodia, and came back to Australia quite sick. Many life stressor's, and trying to cope with a lifetime of CPTSD, had finally brought me to a threshold where I eventually sought and found some very good qualified help from my GP and a Specialist Complex Trauma psychologist. Initially I thought/felt that I would "get over it" relatively quickly and get back to "normal". It took me ages to start to comprehend the complexity and implications of my wounding.

I am now learning many tools and techniques to facilitate my healing and evolution. Tara Bracht, Brene Brown, Kirstin Neff, Jeannie Higgins Russ Harris and ACT, meditation, mindfulness and others are helping me, along with exercise, diet, etc. This path is a major paradigm shift for me and my life, and I need time to learn and practice them, time to process and think and feel the new ways.

I have taken time out to give me some time, and I am only just starting to feel alive, and hope to continue down this path. Initially I felt the pressure to get back to work, but have made the conscious decision to value my own mental health, and to head down a path that will take me towards a full and meaningful life.

I feel that going back to work in the middle of the beginning of this process, would distract me and take me back down the same old path. I want to fully focus my energy and resources at the moment on starting down the healing path and living my life according to my values. This process is complex for me, and giving myself time is a way of saying to myself that I really am worthy and valuable. Maybe in a few months, I will get back into work, but this may be in a new field, which aligns more fully with my values and is far healthier for me. I had to learn that i need to be with nourishing people in a nourishing environment, and that may take some time and effort to find. I wish you well on your path.

 

[Friday]

I get pretty suicidal when I'm not being -and feeling- useful. So any kind of intentional break needs to include something to give my life purpose.