The Real Reason Pokimane Is Taking An Extended Break

In the past several years, Imane "Pokimane" Anys has risen to the top of the streaming world. She has gone from streaming part-time to running her own expensive and successful operation that brings in millions of adoring fans. However, Pokimane has recently decided that it's time to step away from all of that — at least for a little while.

Just a few days ago, Pokimane tweeted that she was planning a "staycation." This may have clued some fans in on the fact that she was planning on taking a break, but she has since made that plan very clear. 

In a Twitter post yesterday, Pokimane told her fans that she's grateful for her career and the support from her fans, but that she's planning to take a hiatus from streaming and social media.

Pokimane's post explained that living in quarantine has taken a bit of a toll on her emotional and mental well-being. She hasn't been able to spend time with family, go to conventions, or do any kind of traveling, which has made it much more difficult for her to "find the same joys and motivation for making content."

Pokimane continued on. "This has led to me feeling burnt out for quite some time, and because of that, I've been planning to take a month off," she said. "I haven't taken a month off since I graduated from high school over 6 years ago, and I feel long overdue for some time away from my career and online expectations."

In other words, Pokimane is exhausted by having to keep up with the daily grind, especially since it's currently harder to take time for oneself. While she acknowledged in the letter to her fans that she feels lucky to still be able to work during the pandemic, it seems like it has gotten harder for her to maintain a positive outlook recently. It makes sense that she'd feel the need to step back in any way possible. She explained that this decision wasn't easy, but that it seemed like the right thing to do so she could take care of herself.

Fans shouldn't be too worried, though. According to Pokimane, this break is being taken so that she can come back better than ever. As she explained in the post, "I want to be happy and excited to make content for you all, and I'm looking forward to getting back in that head space. Until then, I hope you use this message as a reminder to take care of yourselves."

The response to Pokimane's announcement has been mostly positive, particularly from other streamers and YouTubers. Twitch streamers Valkyrae and Voyboy were both pleased to see Pokimane make this decision and told her to enjoy the time away. YouTuber Carson King also told Pokimane that he felt this was the right call, especially since he took a break earlier this year and could see the personal benefits.

This isn't an unprecedented move from a content creator like Pokimane. Every now and then, people just need a bit of a breather. Late last year, PewDiePie announced that he would be stepping away from uploading videos on YouTube. Ultimately, it turned out to be the right move for the YouTube star. Not only did he not lose that much money during his time off, but the break also reinvigorated his love for his job.

During a recent video, PewDiePie was asked if he'd ever thought about outright quitting YouTube. He responded, "I think I did more last year, but after my break, it kind of gave me some time to understand which part of it I enjoy and that I just want to focus on that."

In other words, breaks have worked wonders for other creators, so this might be exactly what Pokimane needs. 

Pokimane has had a pretty stressful year, all things considered. Back in June, Pokimane announced that she was moving out of the Offline TV house, which she had called her home for the past three years. At first, she explained that she needed a better balance between her work life and her personal life. Shortly afterwards, it was revealed that she had also left due to tensions between herself and former Offline TV member Frederico Michael "Fedmyster" Gaytan. Fedmyster has since been let go from Offline TV over allegations of sexual misconduct. 

With all of that unpleasantness going on this year, it's honestly less surprising that Pokimane wants a break and a bit more surprising she hasn't tried to take one sooner. In a month's time, hopefully fans will get to see Pokimane return with a renewed sense of excitement for streaming.