Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who is increasingly seen secluding herself at home, said on Saturday that she is making greater use of her official residence next to her office in order to maximize efficiency.

Takaichi moved into the official residence in December. The brick-and-stone mansion opened in 1929 and served as the original prime minister's office until the current office building was completed next door in 2002. Many of Japan's recent prime ministers have opted to commute from private homes or lawmakers' dormitories rather than live in the residence, making Takaichi's choice of address itself a break from recent practice.

Writing on X, Takaichi said living in the official residence, or "kotei," is beneficial because its proximity requires no commute and allows her to immediately get down to work in times of emergency. She said she has reinforced office functions at the residence so she can work and hold meetings there remotely or in person with her staff whenever needed, even after office hours. She also takes documents home to read.

"To me, the official residence is also a workplace," she said.

The arrangement has drawn criticism, however. Takaichi's work mantra — and her recent revelation on X that she sleeps zero to three hours a night because of her homemaking burden on top of her heavy workload as prime minister — has prompted accusations that Japan's first female leader is setting the wrong example on work-life balance and gender equality. Those charges carry particular resonance in a country where death from overwork, known as "karoshi," has long been a recognized problem that spurred work-style reform laws capping overtime, and where Japan consistently ranks near the bottom of the Group of Seven economies in the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Index.

Takaichi's approval ratings have dropped rapidly as she pushed unpopular policies, including a revision to the Imperial House Law to reinforce a male-only succession system, while delaying economic measures to address rising prices.

Media reports have said Takaichi has been avoiding parliamentary sessions and has largely holed up at the residence at night and on weekends, with significantly fewer interactions and less communication with other lawmakers and officials than her predecessors. She frequently posts comments and policies on X instead of talking to the media, a pattern that mirrors a broader global shift of political leaders using social platforms to reach the public directly. Her parliamentary attendance has drawn scrutiny ahead of the ordinary Diet session, which by convention convenes in January.

The official residence was the site of two bloody coup attempts in the 1930s — young naval officers assassinated Prime Minister Tsuyoshi Inukai there in the May 15 Incident of 1932, and rebel army troops stormed the building during the failed February 26 coup of 1936 — and legend has it that the building is haunted by ghosts. Takaichi apparently does not mind spending long hours there despite that history.

"I've never seen a ghost, but I have often screamed because of my encounters with cockroaches," she said. "I was shocked when a cockroach ran past my feet."

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com.