A break has a return date. Quitting doesn’t. Know which one you’re taking.

Stopping for a while and stopping for good can feel identical on the day, and the only difference is the plan. A rest with a date attached protects the thing you are resting from. A rest without one slowly becomes the new arrangement, and by the time you notice, returning has turned into starting over. Neither choice is wrong, but drifting between them costs the most.

If you need to step back, name the day you come back and write it somewhere. If you genuinely want to stop, say so plainly and let it go without guilt.