In this article, we delve into the meanings of mental health leave among female judicial branch employees in Chile. Using a qualitative and critical approach, we explored the workers' subjective experiences of discomfort in paid work and emphasize the importance of examining this phenomenon from a gender perspective. We argue that sick leave pertains not onlyto protecting physical health, but it is also a socially constructed instance of self-care and a refuge against power asymmetries and gender violence in workplace dynamics. Finally, we propose a critical approach to the conceptualization of biomedical and individual parameters of workplace wellbeing, thus fostering new narratives against depoliticization in a scenario of increasing psychiatrization of society.