Florence Pugh Says She Took Break From Acting to Focus on Self

Florence Pugh's looking out for Number 1 on the call sheet ... saying she decided to take a break from acting after waking up one morning and realizing she's missing out on a ton of life.

The actress talked to British Vogue about trying to re-establish a work/life balance ... saying she took the first break of her career this summer because she's been jumping from project to project with limited time off recently.

Pugh -- who calls herself a "work maniac" -- says she was feeling absolutely exhausted ... and, she's worried she's too focused on work and not enough on really enjoying her life.

FP says she wants to have a long-term career ... but, recognizes that won't happen if she burns herself out -- hence, taking some PTO.

She's back in the spotlight now ... currently on the press tour for the romance-drama "We Live in Time" alongside her costar Andrew Garfield. The movie is set to come out next month.

It's just the latest flick in a packed film schedule that included "Oppenheimer," "Dune: Part 2," and Marvel's "Thunderbolts" -- all big-budget productions that took a while to film. She's got a couple projects in pre-production, too ... including a remake of the James Dean classic "East of Eden."