Walking back into the dojo after a month off feels awkward. Most black belts there have taken time off too.

A gap feels like a verdict on how serious you are, and it feels that way mostly to you. Walk back in and you find the room is full of people who have had months off for injuries, exams, jobs and plain fading motivation, and nobody is keeping a ledger. The embarrassment is an internal accounting problem, not a social fact.

Go back on the next ordinary class night, and do not arrive with an explanation. Expect to be worse than you were for two or three sessions and let that be fine. The rust comes off faster than the memory of it suggests.