I read a Swedish report the other day that stated that one should take 4 weeks of semester with no work in between or the health could be at risk. They wrote that the stress levels we carry around without knowing or knowing about takes time to let go of and that our body can only handle so much stress without an increased risk for a heart attack once you've reached 50+ years. What you do on this time they said didnt really matter as long as it was not work related. You could go out and play as much sport or exercise as you wish.

I am taking 4 weeks this summer. Then again, I live in Europe, Sweden and here most people has at least 5 weeks of semester, many have 6 weeks a year. And oh yeah, forgot to mention, most people get cash (~70-80% of salary) if you are sick too, except for the first day of the period you are sick. Seeing as many of you in this forum live in usa, maybe you should put some pressure on your boss or yourself if you are the boss and ask yourself, if the Swedes can do it, why can't you?