Self-Care Decisions are Not Always the Easiest Decisions

So, I got an infection yesterday that is going to take over my entire life unless I take care of it. I have a couple of decisions that I have to make. Do I take time off from work to take care of this or do I wait until the late afternoon to address the issue?

I've decided to take some time off from work. I seriously agonize about this decision because I really want to avoid taking time off, but I know my doctor's schedule and early morning is usually a better time (and lots less stressful for me) to access treatment. Also, if needed, I have lots of time to get things finished rather than having to try to fit things into a small window of time between my full-time job and my part-time job. I hate being late and feeling rushed. Also, by going to the doctor early, I can get the issue resolved earlier, so less pain and discomfort.

Isn't it interesting how difficult it can be to make decisions about our own health and well-being? Yet, we make decisions about health and well-being for others as a matter of course. I have arranged a decision tree for myself to help me be somewhat objective about my sick time use. This decision tree helps me to objectify my decisions about using my sick time.
musictxandme.blogspot.com; www.musictherapyworks.com
Today's situation is on the left hand side of things. I am not contagious, but the infection that I have is serious (I've had it before) and will get worse if I ignore it, so I am off to the doctor!

This little decision tree helps me justify decisions. I will add more to it as I think of other scenarios that will fit this situation including ideas about needing time away to address burnout and compassion fatigue. Those ideas are missing at this point, but they are there. (There should also be a line moving from the question, "Am I contagious?" to the "Go to the doctor!" icon, but I missed that the first time around. Ah, the beauty of digital files - I can edit!!)

 To sum up...

 I have made a decision about my health. I am going to take some time away from work to address my health situations in order to be able to return to my job rather than expose my clients and co-workers to the vision of me in the throes of the health issue confronting me now. I will take the time that I need to take to solve this issue, then I will get back to work. The time used now will be better for me in the long run.

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