Having a rough time. Just burnt out. Stressed about hours. Have enough to do but procrastinating doing it. Resting feels lazy but I took the last few days off. Each next day (for past 2 days) I said to self I would do 12 hr day and did not. Now this week I am going to pay for it with 12 hour days. I am so not logical about all this. Any kind and supportive words welcome. Happy Sunday night.

Just commenting to say this felt like I wrote every single word here and paused for a moment saying to myself, did I write this and not remember. Wish I had something helpful but feel the same thing in my bones.

Thousand percent relatable. I’ve always had procrastinating tendencies and that has continued on this job. When I’m busy, I’m forced to just get stuff done but I consistently struggle with pacing out work or planning ahead. Even when I try it goes to shit very quickly due to unexpected fire drills. So compressing everything into 12 hour crazy days somehow makes more sense than spreading out the misery evenly throughout. Agree that doesn’t mean I’m enjoying my slower days, those are wrecked with guilt and anxiety. And this creates a cycle of having really insane hours and then slower days—because I’m tired from the insane hour days. And on and on. The burn out from this volatility is so real. Not sure if I have any concrete advice here other than to say I’m with you. Maybe I’ll say this, I’ve reflected on my pattern and I’ve realized that I procrastinate because I know I can get it done in a shorter period than necessary, and if I need a 12 hr or crazy day, I’m ok with pulling all nighters. But I need to lower my standards and not think something will take such a long time, so I can just start. It also helps me to schedule a preliminary check in with someone else— a senior to double check approach or junior to delegate, so I’m externally accountable at an earlier point

This was me and I had to leave. Now I’m at a slower pace firm (yes, with a pay cut). But am much happier. My advice would be to take a real vacation or go on medical leave if possible, do what you can to rest, come back and start fresh with your hours and try your best to be diligent (better to have 4-6 hr days, then just a few hours on the weekend instead of crazy weekends). But know that your nervous system is not regulated right now and it will take MUCH longer than a vacation to get better. And will take some change. Maybe change of firms/lifestyle ❤️ best of luck!

This is one of several reasons going part-time was a fit for me once I had kids. With a lower hours target, I just work when the work is really there, I don’t have to push myself to chase hours when there isn’t a client deadline driving it.

Like many others, I could have written this message many, many times over the last decade or so. And you do get through it each time (or at least it seems like you do, until you don’t). For me, it worked until nothing I told myself (meanly, kindly or plaintively) could get me to do anything meaningfully productive — and I put my hand up (metaphorically) and asked for help (partly because I was so afraid of making a mistake that couldn’t be fixed, but also because I was worried about the impact on longstanding health conditions). My closest friend, my sister, my counsellor and my GP all told me to take a leave, which I did. I don’t know for sure, but it feels like it saved my life and my career (not to be too melodramatic!)

Please talk about these feelings with at least one person in your life who you trust. You might be surprised to hear what they see in you but you haven’t seen yet. Either way, please know that these feelings are not the table stakes for this profession, and you can and deserve to feel differently about work. Whether the help you choose is leave, accessing professional or health supports like a coach, counsellor or GP, a change in duties/job or even a vacation, I hope you find something that helps you feel like you have a path forward.

Good luck, and hang in there!

This happened to me all of 2024, in a horrible job with all kinds of terrible stressors.

My honest advice: just take real time off. Like take FMLA or mental health break, just do it. Your health is way more important than this job. Right now it feels like you're just not sucking it up but that's not real. It's now almost 1.5 years since I quit my last job and I am still recovering from the burnout. With time and distance, it has become clear to me how much my mental (and frankly physical) health was damaged.

Be smarter than me. Just take the break.

Coincidentally, when I quit because of my burnout, two others of my level (think senior associate-counsel-junior partner), also quit for very similar reasons and it became a huge warning sign for all of our juniors. One of my colleagues who quit had such advanced stage burnout that they started having panic attacks from just seeing the email notification go off.

Just please take real time off and heal.

Thank you all. It is so hard because I took intermittent FMLA last year for another issue and would hate to do it again in any capacity. It still is seen as weakness, which sucks. I am not sure even that would solve my issue. Just feeling … stuck. Knowing others get this way is comforting.

I had a bad breakdown after I lost the pregnancy I had been trying for for 6 years. Even when I came back, I felt like you did. So I leaned out for a while. My priority was taking care of myself until I could be in love with my practice again. It’s been about 6 months of taking half-days when I need time for something outside the office, saying “no” to extracurriculars that would probably help my career (but that I would half heartedly do as I dragged through), leaving on time or even early, saying “I can’t do that” or “I’m busy at that time” (without explaining further!) instead of rearranging my life to accommodate other people’s schedules, and just generally being “greedy” about being first in my life for a change. It’s been about 6 months, and I’m definitely closer to where I was earlier in my career happiness and endurance-wise. Clients also respect the boundaries a lot more than I thought they would.

F