I get that, distracting yourself with the work. I’m non-stop running too, I just make sure that some of that running is for things I WANT to do, not just the corporate bullshit I have to do. Even in my burnout I was still working, it was just painful. Took 3 years or more to even start to recover, and even now I’m still struggling. Having a spouse and multiple kids also makes it very difficult to work outside a 9-5, but even one kid can add a lot of stress. Sounds like you went through a lot of the trauma and stuff that causes people to shift earlier than most, but I’m glad you have a balance that works for you. Just please don’t push yourself too hard and I hope you take the time to enjoy some of your life. Otherwise what’s the point of being here?

I totally feel you and many people have no choice but to hustle endlessly, but I worked myself into a mental hospital and almost to death. I couldn’t juggle it all anymore and I broke down. It was a bit more complicated than that, but sleep deprivation and constant stress really damaged my body, and my brain isn’t quite what it was before my break. You can seriously burn yourself out if you burn the candle at both ends for too long and eventually find yourself unable to work effectively. Pure frustration, to have trained at something for years and years and to struggle emotionally to do it at all anymore. The depression was intense.

I know a guy who gave himself diabetes by dealing with his work stress through sugar, and another has chronic health issues- it can seriously damage you physically to push yourself too hard at work. It’s important to sleep and have hobbies outside of work to at least avoid burnout and exhaustion. Breaks and vacations help output in the long run, turns out.

But there’s still no shame in working fucking hard to support your people. This is just the system we live in.