On Tuesday morning, the Danish Minister of Defense and leader of the Venstre party, Jakob Ellemann-Jensen, returned to work, as documented by a photographer from Ritzau.

Ellemann-Jensen had been on sick leave for six months due to stress, during which time Troels Lund Poulsen and Stephanie Lose managed his responsibilities.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday morning, Ellemann-Jensen mentioned that there are many pending issues and decisions waiting for him, including a defense agreement that needs to be executed together with the new negotiation circle. He expressed his eagerness to take on all these tasks in the coming period.

Ellemann-Jensen also revealed that he would be giving interviews to DR and TV 2 later that evening.

The previous day, in a separate Facebook post, he openly discussed his sick leave. He described how during this time, he feared he might never be able to handle work again. Being affected by stress can feel like a death sentence, not just for one's career but for one's entire life. However, he expressed gratitude for having supportive friends, colleagues, and family, which allowed him to get through it and make a strong comeback.

The public became aware of Ellemann-Jensen's situation in February when he suffered a sudden illness and received treatment at the hospital. Although he didn't initially step down, five days later, he had to fully suspend his work due to severe symptoms.

In Monday's Facebook post, he shared that he had expected to be ready after a few weeks, but unfortunately, that was not the case. The timing of his sick leave was critical for Venstre and the Defense, which made him feel like he was letting them down.

Now, six months later, he is back at work and expresses his excitement and a touch of nervousness about returning to his duties. Photo by News Oresund, Wikimedia commons.