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Even During a Pandemic, a Job Isn’t Worth Your Sanity
We have all been there. Your dream job turns into a nightmare, and you begin to dread the sound of the alarm clock going off in the morning. Whether the company wasn’t a good fit or someone flat-out lied to you, the end result is that you feel trapped in a job you have come to hate.
Over the last six months, I have applied for upwards of 150 jobs and had a total of 1 interview. This is not a good time to be job-hunting. I kept telling myself that I could tough it out for just a little bit longer, just until I found something else. The days dragged on, the hours grew longer, and I applied for anything that I could possibly qualify for and some things that just looked interesting.
Chronic stress takes a toll on your body. You have trouble sleeping, lose your appetite, become irritable and find yourself forgetting things that you should know off by heart. I found myself driving past the house where I’ve lived for four years. People would text me, and I would forget to respond until days later. No amount of sleep ever felt like enough, and when I did sleep, I was often plagued by nightmares, all revolving around work. My overall quality of life was taking a rapid nosedive, and there was no relief in sight. So I quit. The feeling of relief was immediate and palpable. The concept of being unemployed in the midst of a global pandemic…