In New Zealand, we have a culture of being staunch and toughing it out when we are sick. I recall, in my 20s, some of my friends proudly stating that they had never taken a sick day. It wasn't that they had never been sick; it was that they had bought into a culture that said that if you stay home when you're sick, then you're somehow less productive or not as capable. I know that I've turned up to work when sick, partly because of pressure on myself to complete a task or project or not wanting to appear weak. 