Has anyone taken a gap for 6 months or more? Where are you from? What age did you take it? Why did you take it? How did it go? How difficult was it to find a job after?

I am 25 from India. Due to stress and neglect, my health has been constantly deteriorating and at this point I am really running out of options. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.

@jespersh Hehe housing market go down brrrr

@Murder Sorry you had to go through it. I am actually impressed that you are still here.

I'm 36/M/UK and taking one right now since August. Mental health related.

I was working in an office by choice until COVID. I always had very little social life in my home town, and trips away, gigs, and after-work events were very important to me. I was the only in-house dev, directly under the COO (small organisation) who was non-techie and was already remote.

I'd raised concerns about bus factor before. The previous outsourcers (who were good!) were canned due to major new plans. The organisation decided to stay fully remote. After months of stewing and wanting everything to stop, I called them on a technicality in my contract that meant they couldn't move my place of work outside of <city>- I never lived in <city> in the first place.

So now I'm thoroughly nope-ing on anything even vaguely job related. No long term plans but various short term ideas. Fortunately I have my family, and enough savings to fuck about for a while. I don't give a fuck what it's doing for my prospects.

@d4ng3r0u5 Thank you for the insight.

I stopped working for a whole year. I was 29, took it because my job was shit and it burned me out. I had a lot of savings and a supportive family back at my parents place. I stopped coding for about a year and a half, really.

It was great and one of the best things I've done. Gave me the time to think about myself, if I was in the path I wanted to take. I moved to another continent, studied some more, and somehow landed a job. It was kinda scary but it has been working out.

25 is very young, you'll be fine. Dunno how things work out in India though.

@ars1 Thanks for the insight. I have enough F You money that can easily last between 6 months to a year but as you mentioned I do not have a supportive family. My fear is that they might make it worse. Hence I am double and triple checking my decision so that I don't end up worse.