Burnout and chasing a promotion - cannot get unstuck
I'm currently experiencing severe burnout.
I started a new job at Meta and I'm chasing a promotion: there wasn't many interesting opportunities for growth in my team so I picked the only one available, a very challenging project that I realized I'm not particularly interested in it, which makes it even harder. On top I'm also involved in many other smaller initiatives, so I'm experiencing high context switch, which is kinda expected at my level (IC5).
Symptoms I'm facing:
1- I don't want to work anymore, not just in this company, but in the industry (although I don't know what I want to do in my life in general)
2- I'm no longer enjoying my free time: I used to do music, sport, going out
3- I feel overwhelmed by every single message I get in chat, because I feel I have no time to think about a new problem, I'm saturated
4- Bad sleep - waking up in the middle of the night ruminating about work
5- Constantly tired and low mood
6- digestion/bowel issues
7- PTO: going on PTO does NOT help. I tried that multiple times, whenever I'm back it's the same old story
I know others have been there and I'm reading through various posts, listening to podcasts, reading articles, other than seeing my therapist. Any advice is welcome, thanks in advance.
#burnout #depression #stress
comments
I do like Meta, I may just not be in a good team/manager chain, but if I ever change I would try another team first, before changing company.
You need to find something that motivates you outside of work. Pick up a hobby or resume an older hobby.
Stop beating yourself up for not "performing". Give yourself permission to do the bare minimum. You may find that your bare minimum is still a lot more than what's expected of you.
Put work aside. Your life is more than your work. Do something for yourself.
Also be honest with your therapist. Therapy doesn't work if you're not being honest with them. They aren't there to judge you. Allow yourself to be vulnerable.
Worst case scenario, you've slipped into a depressive state and may need to meet with a psychologist or psychiatrist to seek medication to help you out of the rut. Don't see this as a failure on your part - it's something that happens to plenty of people and seeking a little help is not a weakness, but a strength.
Good luck. It sucks to be stuck in a burnout state and it takes a lot of self care to get out of it