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“I Went to Work Sick Because I Felt Guilty—Until It Nearly Took Me Out”

Why we show up when we should be resting, and how DoctorSickNote.us gave me a second chance

“I Went to Work Sick Because I Felt Guilty—Until It Nearly Took Me Out”

Why we show up when we should be resting, and how DoctorSickNote.us gave me a second chance

It started with a sore throat.
Then chills.
By the time the cough hit, I knew it wasn’t just a cold. I had the flu.

But I still went in to work.

Not because I wanted to.
Not because I was afraid of the workload.
Because I was afraid of what they’d say if I didn’t.

“If You’re Not in the Office, Are You Even Working?”

That’s the kind of culture we’ve built, isn’t it?

I work in a fast-paced digital marketing agency in Chicago. We’re all remote-enabled—laptops, Wi-Fi, Slack, Zoom—but the truth is, if you’re not online and responsive, people start talking. If you dare to call in sick more than once a year, it’s seen as a weakness.

So I put on my bravest face, loaded up on DayQuil, and opened my laptop like nothing was wrong.

By noon, I was sweating.
By 2 PM, I couldn’t keep my eyes open.
By the next morning, I couldn’t breathe.

Still, I pushed through another day.

The Turning Point

It was my teammate Jenna who finally said, “You look awful. Why are you even online?”

And I remember saying something that now feels absurd:
“I don’t want people to think I’m lazy.”

That night, I passed out on the bathroom floor from dehydration.
Two days later, I was in urgent care with pneumonia.

The doctor looked me dead in the eyes and said,
“Had you rested when this started, it wouldn’t have gone this far.”

I was stunned—and ashamed.
All that effort to prove I was a hard worker?
Now I was down for three weeks, and still answering emails from bed.

Why Do We Do This to Ourselves?

I’m not alone. In fact, I’m one of millions.

It’s called presenteeism—showing up to work while sick. And it’s rampant. According to the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development, over 86% of employees have witnessed it. We show up not because we’re strong, but because we’re afraid of looking weak.

• Fear of judgment
• No paid sick leave
• Gig economy pressure
• Mistrust from upper management
• And sometimes? Just guilt

It’s not just physical sickness. When I burned out last year, I didn’t take time off because I couldn’t prove it on paper.

The Day I Found DoctorSickNote.us

A friend finally said, “Why didn’t you just use DoctorSickNote.us?”

I didn’t know it existed.

But I went to the site, and within 5 minutes, I had filled out a form.
No awkward phone calls.
No video consultations.
No judgmental receptionist asking, “Are you really sick?”

I got a professionally written sick note, signed by a real doctor.
I could choose the reason, the number of days, and how much detail to include.
I didn’t need to overshare. I just needed rest.

And DoctorSickNote.us gave me permission to take it.

Why It Matters

In my workplace, it took three people coming down with the same virus before HR finally said, “Maybe we should start encouraging people to stay home if they’re sick.”

But what if it didn’t have to get that far?

What if we normalized saying, “I’m not well, and I need time to recover”—without guilt?

What if you could download that time—in the form of a legitimate doctor’s note, from a trusted, fast, and discreet source?

What I’d Tell Anyone Feeling Like I Did

You don’t have to prove your worth by showing up sick.
You don’t have to wait until it becomes serious.
And you don’t need to risk your job, your health, or your dignity to take a break.

DoctorSickNote.us is more than a website.
It’s a way out of toxic presenteeism.
It’s a lifeline in a world that still tells us to “push through.”

Next time you’re sick, trust your body.
And let DoctorSickNote.us handle the rest.