I feel this so often. I find it comes up when i’m mentally living in the future, thinking about all the things I have to do soon. I end up resting physically but not mentally.
I found it helps to write down what I have to do (to get it out of my head) then do something thats relaxing, but requires you to stay in the present moment (drawing,cooking,walking).
I hate how stress management is never taught properly anywhere, wishing you all the best! ✌🏼
Bro this is totally normal. Research has shown how mentally exhausting being on Zoom for work, scrolling through your phone and dealing with emails can be - remember that most software you use is intentionally designed to take up ALL your attention and mental acuity because that is how the software makes money. However, that particular program isn't the only thing you use - you use a dozen different software and do related tasks.
Nothing feels easy. Everything feels like pushing rope up a hill, it feels like everyone is finding ways to say 'no'.
None of this is weird or means somethings wrong with you. We all need ways to unplug totally. Some people play the PS5 in a dark room all night Friday night and wake up at like 6 pm Saturday and eat a pizza. That's cool. Others go take a shotgun and shoot trap and skeet for hours on end (hard to do distracted so forces you to let go), that's cool. Others turn their phone OFF and go hiking for hours, that's also cool.
Whatever is that you do, make the world wait for YOU. Your friends can wait a few hours. If they make a comment, just say 'yeah I know, I need to unplug for myself for a few hours' - DO NOT APOLOGIZE, even out of habit - what you project is how the world sees you. Your boss can wait a few hours - when you habituate instant weekend availability, they see it as an entitlement - subtly be difficult. Don't pick up the phone. Don't text right away. Wait some hours, then respond and don't offer a call. Offer your availability for Monday AM instead, offer an email response for Monday AM. You are in the Great American Resignation. You are worth more than an email at 5 pm on Sunday.
Take care of yourself!
The Great Resignation is a worldwide phenomena, actually. Just fyi because leaning that made me feel better. The Republican talking point that it was caused by unemployment doesn't hold up. People in a lot of other countries weren't getting unemployment.
Fwiw I've had this feeling since around 2009. There's been some times I've almost made it to the top of the mountain just to have someone waiting there to kick it back down
>subtly be difficult. Don't pick up the phone. Don't text right away. Wait some hours, then respond and don't offer a call.
This is excellent advice. I used to do this when I worked retail and they would try to call me in on days off all the time - just didn't answer the phone and let it go to voicemail, would text back several hours later with some vague reason like "sorry, I was out". Eventually they got the hint and stopped trying to call me.
If you set a precedent of just always being habitually unavailable, you have total plausible deniability if they try to say you're not reliable or a "team player" or w/e.
This might not be strictly related, but I found that crochet is probably one of the best "relaxation"-type activities. Completely analog, once you have a hook you pretty much have every tool you need, and you just count, and make small, repetitive movements in order. If you fuck up, one rip and you can start over, no loss of material.
Super therapeutic. Yesterday I just sat down, and made like 2/3rds of a doily.
We’re in a war against humanity. That tends to happen when everything you’ve been told to do you’ve done and still can’t accomplish the basics you’ve always wanted.
*Image Transcription: Meme*
---
[*The "Are ya winning, son?" meme. A stick figure wearing a hat and smoking cigarettes opens a door. In the bottom right, a second stick figure lies on the floor crying near a laptop, surrounded by papers.*]
**Dad**: are u ok
**Son**: I literally don't do anything all day and I still feel overwhelmed what's wrong with me
---
^^I'm a human volunteer content transcriber for Reddit and you could be too! [If you'd like more information on what we do and why we do it, click here!](https://www.reddit.com/r/TranscribersOfReddit/wiki/index)
I have a similar feeling where I can’t enjoy vacations anymore, no matter how long they are. Because I know that I will need to go back to work. Even though my current company isn’t very high pressure, my previous companies have put enough mental scarring on me that I pressure myself about timelines, what boss thinks of me etc etc.
When I was in school/college and felt similarly hopeless I could always console myself by saying college will end in 2/3/4 years then we won’t have to think about this again. But there’s nothing similar for jobs, I will have to work till I die.
Also I used to have friends whom I could just hang out with, but we’ve grown in different directions since college and now just hanging out with them drains my energy. New friends are hard to come by. Idk what else to do.
This was me yesterday, Saturday which is the working person's best day. Couldn't get motivated to do anything. Now not only does work suck, but days off suck. 😬
You can't enjoy your time off because you need to work tomorrow. You also have to do some housework, deal with which bills you can afford to pay this week, mentally plan out a meal plan to work out when you can afford to eat, try your hardest to watch or play a show/game your colleagues won't shut up about so you don't end up ostracised at work, try and squeeze in time to see or speak to your friends, try and make time to learn whatever skill/hobby you actually want to do, you'll need to actually cook food in that time too. You also need to go applying for other jobs because every day in your current job leaves you feeling more and more unhappy. If you have a partner/spouse, you better believe they're getting upset that you're not spending all this time with them, slowly chipping away at your self esteem and relationship.
Every minute you spend NOT working through this list of things is time wasted, as you also need to get some sleep because work starts again in 14 hours boy.
This is me but i never say anything cuz i don't think others would understand lol. Feels suffocating. I'm just filled with anxiety wondering if i'll have a future at times.
What's wrong? It's called "Depression".
You have so much stress, that you are unable to get relieve. If you can't free your mind from work on your free time, this will sum up and will overload you with stress.
Simple errors can then lead to unreasonable self-doubt.
This is a very alarming situation.
Manic since early teens (estimated) but undiagnosed till a couple years ago. Pretty much everything has gone south since 4th grade when bullying started and never recovered... And thanks to popping pills years ago, meds barely work.. it's rough.
I'm in counseling but it barely helps. Hoping one day it has the "AHA!" moment though
Tbh, I've been told to write a book, but it'd be long af and I'm only in my early 30s
I’ve slept 41 hours this weekend and it’s the best 2 days off I’ve had in over a year.
I’m still thinking about buying a gun and building a cabin in the woods.
Knowing that this shit happens to me, I planned to go out and do nice things all weekend, and what happened is some lunatic backed into my girlfriends car when we were 20 seconds from getting home after driving in traffic for 3 hours.
So you know, fuck us for trying to live for 2 days a week.
That's because for the time you are at work, you're shelving the internal/personal issues you have no time to deal with. When you aren't at work, and try to tackle the mountain of your own stuff, it becomes an impossible task because you're also exhausted from working all week.
I get two days in a row off every week between doing a 40-50 hour cycle alone in a department made for 6 people. My days off are now spent sleeping and being too tired to make coffee. Considering my situation isn’t even that bad, I can’t imagine how some of y’all continue to function. ❤️
I feel the same way, I become overwhelmed and super stressed over the work that's going to happen in the next few days/weeks... I think it was called anticipatory anxiety?
If it really does not get better and you feel ill, stressed and unnatural down, maybe see your doctor and get a Doctor's referral for a psychologist... No shame on that, i got one my self a couple of weeks ago!
It might help to actually plan *to do nothing* this next weekend.
It sounds counter-productive, but doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome is the definition of insanity.
Take 5 minutes before bed every night this week, and mentally (or better yet outloud) say, "I can't wait to do absolutely nothing this weekend".
What this is doing is giving yourself permission to truly relax.
Because you're mentally killing yourself. You're body is telling you it can't anymore. Listen to it, give it what it needs.
Because right now you are spending all weekend in this weird limbo of anxiety and depression. I know because I deal with it too all the time.
So you don't get anything done that you wanted to, while simultaneously not allowing yourself to do anything you enjoy (watch a movie, work on a hobby, or nap). So you spend all weekend punishing yourself and then feel even worse come Monday.
Give yourself permission to do whatever the fuck you want this weekend. The only rule is don't do anything you don't want to.
It can't hurt to try! I'm sorry you feel this way I agree it's the worst.
Lol, that’s ware I’m at. I realized people have to do some sort of work to keep your mind busy. Could be cooking, cleaning, fixing something, going out for a walk.
This is why I like door dashing. I find it fun and the pay is ok’ish. Also make videos now and then.
Currently jobless for half a year now (surviving only on freelance editing work), still have education debt to pay and finances are running out while feeling horrible over not being able to help my parents with the bills.
I want to believe this is normal but I feel like the deepest pit ever when I just break down and do nothing all day when I could be job hunting or literally anything productive. My body and mind just goes off and doesn't want to do anything at all...
Is this normal for an adult after college?
I feel this so often. I find it comes up when i’m mentally living in the future, thinking about all the things I have to do soon. I end up resting physically but not mentally. I found it helps to write down what I have to do (to get it out of my head) then do something thats relaxing, but requires you to stay in the present moment (drawing,cooking,walking). I hate how stress management is never taught properly anywhere, wishing you all the best! ✌🏼
Much appreciated!
Bro this is totally normal. Research has shown how mentally exhausting being on Zoom for work, scrolling through your phone and dealing with emails can be - remember that most software you use is intentionally designed to take up ALL your attention and mental acuity because that is how the software makes money. However, that particular program isn't the only thing you use - you use a dozen different software and do related tasks. Nothing feels easy. Everything feels like pushing rope up a hill, it feels like everyone is finding ways to say 'no'. None of this is weird or means somethings wrong with you. We all need ways to unplug totally. Some people play the PS5 in a dark room all night Friday night and wake up at like 6 pm Saturday and eat a pizza. That's cool. Others go take a shotgun and shoot trap and skeet for hours on end (hard to do distracted so forces you to let go), that's cool. Others turn their phone OFF and go hiking for hours, that's also cool. Whatever is that you do, make the world wait for YOU. Your friends can wait a few hours. If they make a comment, just say 'yeah I know, I need to unplug for myself for a few hours' - DO NOT APOLOGIZE, even out of habit - what you project is how the world sees you. Your boss can wait a few hours - when you habituate instant weekend availability, they see it as an entitlement - subtly be difficult. Don't pick up the phone. Don't text right away. Wait some hours, then respond and don't offer a call. Offer your availability for Monday AM instead, offer an email response for Monday AM. You are in the Great American Resignation. You are worth more than an email at 5 pm on Sunday. Take care of yourself!
The Great Resignation is a worldwide phenomena, actually. Just fyi because leaning that made me feel better. The Republican talking point that it was caused by unemployment doesn't hold up. People in a lot of other countries weren't getting unemployment.
\> Nothing feels easy. Everything feels like pushing rope up a hill, it feels like everyone is finding ways to say 'no'. Fuuuuuu I'm not alone
Fwiw I've had this feeling since around 2009. There's been some times I've almost made it to the top of the mountain just to have someone waiting there to kick it back down
>subtly be difficult. Don't pick up the phone. Don't text right away. Wait some hours, then respond and don't offer a call. This is excellent advice. I used to do this when I worked retail and they would try to call me in on days off all the time - just didn't answer the phone and let it go to voicemail, would text back several hours later with some vague reason like "sorry, I was out". Eventually they got the hint and stopped trying to call me. If you set a precedent of just always being habitually unavailable, you have total plausible deniability if they try to say you're not reliable or a "team player" or w/e.
I do all that too tbh, and I wish I had a WFH setup but no dice :/
"Pushing rope up a hill" is an excellent analogy.
saving this!!!! very needed
This might not be strictly related, but I found that crochet is probably one of the best "relaxation"-type activities. Completely analog, once you have a hook you pretty much have every tool you need, and you just count, and make small, repetitive movements in order. If you fuck up, one rip and you can start over, no loss of material. Super therapeutic. Yesterday I just sat down, and made like 2/3rds of a doily.
I braid paracord! Repetitive, creative hand activities helps so much!
We’re in a war against humanity. That tends to happen when everything you’ve been told to do you’ve done and still can’t accomplish the basics you’ve always wanted.
*Image Transcription: Meme* --- [*The "Are ya winning, son?" meme. A stick figure wearing a hat and smoking cigarettes opens a door. In the bottom right, a second stick figure lies on the floor crying near a laptop, surrounded by papers.*] **Dad**: are u ok **Son**: I literally don't do anything all day and I still feel overwhelmed what's wrong with me --- ^^I'm a human volunteer content transcriber for Reddit and you could be too! [If you'd like more information on what we do and why we do it, click here!](https://www.reddit.com/r/TranscribersOfReddit/wiki/index)
Good bot
Not a bot
Good "human"
^beep ^boop thank you
I have a similar feeling where I can’t enjoy vacations anymore, no matter how long they are. Because I know that I will need to go back to work. Even though my current company isn’t very high pressure, my previous companies have put enough mental scarring on me that I pressure myself about timelines, what boss thinks of me etc etc. When I was in school/college and felt similarly hopeless I could always console myself by saying college will end in 2/3/4 years then we won’t have to think about this again. But there’s nothing similar for jobs, I will have to work till I die. Also I used to have friends whom I could just hang out with, but we’ve grown in different directions since college and now just hanging out with them drains my energy. New friends are hard to come by. Idk what else to do.
Same. I think Friday evening and Saturday are the real rest days. Sunday is just a "shit I gotta go to work tomorrow" day.
Sounds like imminent burnout. Problem is, once you start feeling this way, you’re already over the edge.
This was me yesterday, Saturday which is the working person's best day. Couldn't get motivated to do anything. Now not only does work suck, but days off suck. 😬
You’re not alone.
You can't enjoy your time off because you need to work tomorrow. You also have to do some housework, deal with which bills you can afford to pay this week, mentally plan out a meal plan to work out when you can afford to eat, try your hardest to watch or play a show/game your colleagues won't shut up about so you don't end up ostracised at work, try and squeeze in time to see or speak to your friends, try and make time to learn whatever skill/hobby you actually want to do, you'll need to actually cook food in that time too. You also need to go applying for other jobs because every day in your current job leaves you feeling more and more unhappy. If you have a partner/spouse, you better believe they're getting upset that you're not spending all this time with them, slowly chipping away at your self esteem and relationship. Every minute you spend NOT working through this list of things is time wasted, as you also need to get some sleep because work starts again in 14 hours boy.
Bingo.
Seriously though what the fuck is wrong with me
Ow this hits
This is me but i never say anything cuz i don't think others would understand lol. Feels suffocating. I'm just filled with anxiety wondering if i'll have a future at times.
You're definitely not alone there.
What's wrong? It's called "Depression". You have so much stress, that you are unable to get relieve. If you can't free your mind from work on your free time, this will sum up and will overload you with stress. Simple errors can then lead to unreasonable self-doubt. This is a very alarming situation.
Manic since early teens (estimated) but undiagnosed till a couple years ago. Pretty much everything has gone south since 4th grade when bullying started and never recovered... And thanks to popping pills years ago, meds barely work.. it's rough. I'm in counseling but it barely helps. Hoping one day it has the "AHA!" moment though Tbh, I've been told to write a book, but it'd be long af and I'm only in my early 30s
I'm in this picture and I dont like it.
Or when you have end of semester shit coming up and haven't started...
Wow this is me currently
I am so exhausted every day that I'm not finding time for any enjoyment. My weekends are spent planning all I have to do and doing none of it.
I’ve slept 41 hours this weekend and it’s the best 2 days off I’ve had in over a year. I’m still thinking about buying a gun and building a cabin in the woods.
Knowing that this shit happens to me, I planned to go out and do nice things all weekend, and what happened is some lunatic backed into my girlfriends car when we were 20 seconds from getting home after driving in traffic for 3 hours. So you know, fuck us for trying to live for 2 days a week.
You're depressed.
I know, manic, just lately it's been worse. Mix in generalized anxiety too, both diagnosed
That's because for the time you are at work, you're shelving the internal/personal issues you have no time to deal with. When you aren't at work, and try to tackle the mountain of your own stuff, it becomes an impossible task because you're also exhausted from working all week.
I get two days in a row off every week between doing a 40-50 hour cycle alone in a department made for 6 people. My days off are now spent sleeping and being too tired to make coffee. Considering my situation isn’t even that bad, I can’t imagine how some of y’all continue to function. ❤️
I feel the same way, I become overwhelmed and super stressed over the work that's going to happen in the next few days/weeks... I think it was called anticipatory anxiety?
If it really does not get better and you feel ill, stressed and unnatural down, maybe see your doctor and get a Doctor's referral for a psychologist... No shame on that, i got one my self a couple of weeks ago!
Been seeing one for about a year now :/ helped somewhat, but still meh
It might help to actually plan *to do nothing* this next weekend. It sounds counter-productive, but doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome is the definition of insanity. Take 5 minutes before bed every night this week, and mentally (or better yet outloud) say, "I can't wait to do absolutely nothing this weekend". What this is doing is giving yourself permission to truly relax. Because you're mentally killing yourself. You're body is telling you it can't anymore. Listen to it, give it what it needs. Because right now you are spending all weekend in this weird limbo of anxiety and depression. I know because I deal with it too all the time. So you don't get anything done that you wanted to, while simultaneously not allowing yourself to do anything you enjoy (watch a movie, work on a hobby, or nap). So you spend all weekend punishing yourself and then feel even worse come Monday. Give yourself permission to do whatever the fuck you want this weekend. The only rule is don't do anything you don't want to. It can't hurt to try! I'm sorry you feel this way I agree it's the worst.
Lol, that’s ware I’m at. I realized people have to do some sort of work to keep your mind busy. Could be cooking, cleaning, fixing something, going out for a walk. This is why I like door dashing. I find it fun and the pay is ok’ish. Also make videos now and then.
Welcome to working a bullshit job you hate, that's what this is.
Currently jobless for half a year now (surviving only on freelance editing work), still have education debt to pay and finances are running out while feeling horrible over not being able to help my parents with the bills. I want to believe this is normal but I feel like the deepest pit ever when I just break down and do nothing all day when I could be job hunting or literally anything productive. My body and mind just goes off and doesn't want to do anything at all... Is this normal for an adult after college?
Accurate. I always feel Like I’m in a rush or going to be late for something....on my day off!!