Posted on 02/12/2023 8:23:29 AM PST by DoodleBob
...There is compelling evidence that some people treat their emotional problems with work as well. This can lead to its own kind of addiction. Many studies have shown a strong association between workaholism and the symptoms of psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety and depression, and it has been common to assume that compulsive work leads to these maladies. But some psychologists have recently argued reverse causation—that people may treat their depression and anxiety with workaholic behavior. As the authors of one widely reported 2016 study in the scientific journal PLOS One wrote, “Workaholism (in some instances) develops as an attempt to reduce uncomfortable feelings of anxiety and depression.”
The 2016 study received significant attention for its quality, and will no doubt stimulate more tests of this hypothesis in the coming years. If the findings hold, which I suspect they will, the causal relationship could partially explain why so many people increased their work hours during the pandemic. For many months during the initial shutdowns, people faced boredom, loneliness, and anxiety; by late May 2020, CDC data showed that nearly a quarter of American adults had reported symptoms of depression. (In 2019, that figure was 6.5 percent.) Perhaps a portion of workers self-treated by doubling down on their jobs in order to feel busy and productive.
...
What’s more, when it comes to work, people reward you for addictive behavior. No one says, “Wow, an entire bottle of gin in one night? You are an outstanding drinker.” But work 16 hours a day, and you’ll probably get a promotion.
Despite the extolled virtues of maximum work, the costs will almost certainly outrun the benefits, as they usually do in self-medicating addictions. The burnout, depression, job stress, and work-life conflict will get worse, not better.
(Excerpt) Read more at theatlantic.com ...
Don’t stop and turn around.
Check
It is a good thing to deal with your issues...no doubt about that. But sometimes your issues are who you are, the life you've got, and the way you're made.
Depression is a lot easier to deal with when you lighten up about it.
I learned when I was a child that those really dark periods only lasted about 3 days and were always followed by a really decent "up" period. And I also noticed that I almost always learned something important during the bleak periods.
As they say, "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
If you enjoy your job, if you enjoy working productively, you are rarely depressed or anxious.
If the business is in trouble or failing, then you might be depressed or anxious, but you never lose your general optimism or your energy.
The talented and hard working women on both sides of our family seem to have the hardest time in totally retiring.
The men often take an early retirement and work a few days a week in jobs they like and often which came to the guys.
Then, when in their late 60’s or early 70’s they quit working for money.
Business travel even non airplane travel soon becomes a no go. For these guys.
The women often go into their own business or become a senior partner and work until their 70’s. We men joke that they don’t want to be home with independent guys in their 60~70’s.
We are seeing that pattern in both sides of our family even with non DNA male relatives.
The pattern seems to be hard working males get into their mid 50’s, and they slow down or limit their work %.
Our women often increase their hours/time with their own business or whatever business they are in. All of them work until they turn 70. A wake up call came last year. When one of our hard working SIL’s in her retirement job developed adult leukemia and died in a few months.
One reason many of the women keep working and plan to keep working is to have health insurance after/when their husbands “retire”.
We feel that within 1-2 years most of the working males in our family and in their mid 50s- to early 60’s will retire and maybe work part time. Their wives will probably continue to work at least part time for a decade. This has happened with one of my wife’s nieces. Their kids are out of college with good jobs. Her husband got a great early out offer.
He retired last year and didn’t work for 6 months. Now he does the upkeep on their rental properties and works for a few old friends or relatives. He is a double engineer and has worked on houses/homes with his Dad, since he was a teen. He is now a role model for a lot of cousins in their 50’s cousins.
We have a few male relatives in their 50’s. If their jobs or bosses become B$, they will pull the plug on full time work.
Then, they will be part of the vast and growing part time job workers for seasoned workers.
Same here multi tasked running my business for 19 years. Now I’ve got the itch to get a cottage business going on our homestead. Fixing Mr.GG2’s computer mishaps just isn’t doing it for me. 😉
Could be worse.
In Japan, lots of OT at the jobs my stepdaughter has worked. And depending on the agency / company - its time and a quarter, not time and a half. That includes a big company like NTT.
Palliative vs. curative treatment of the problem
Palliative is OK as long as it isn’t used to substitute for the curative solution
I found the answer to my depression was:
1) Discarding any trace of condemnation. Jesus has completely forgiven my past, present, and future, Heaven is mine, and there is nor will ever be any condemnation.
2) Consciousness of his love every moment. A factor of depression is seeing a bleak and dark future. But to the Christin, that is a lie. I can declare everyday that my moments and future are bright because I have Jesus’ love presence and blessings every moment of my life now and thoghout eternity.
I am a SAH Farm Wife now; best gig I’ve ever had! :)
I get it. There are a zillion opportunities available to me, too! I need to think on this and narrow it down. We could do one or several:
Sell firewood (from fallen and other not-so-fabulous) trees
Raise chickens for eggs and to sell (Heirloom Varieties are still very much in demand in our area)
Raise a few more steers at a time to offset the price of beef we want for ourselves
Farmers Market - but I think I would do flowers versus food - around here, everyone has a garden on some scale - would sell directly to local florists; I’d grow what they wanted
CSA Farm (Community Supported Agriculture) and people could come here (or some central location) to pick up their box of goodies each week in season. I’d make it ‘unique’ with a bouquet of flowers or some baked goods or a jar of jam. Just small scale; maybe 6-10 customers.
Grow Tobacco, though Beau is against that. Maybe hemp? LOL!
Raise more puppies - which is my favorite thing to do, actually. :)
But I would add that, in most cases, Jesus doesn't remove the depression. But he helps you fight it. And he builds your faith and shapes your character as you struggle through it.
“when in their late 60’s or early 70’s they quit working for money.
Business travel even non airplane travel soon becomes a no go. For these guys.”
That is me. I flew a lot on business when I was working—hated it.
Part of the joy of retirement for me is no more airports, no more rental cars, no more hotels!
My wife wants to travel from time to time.
My answer: “Go for it!”
;-)
You sound like me and now my wife and one of our adult sons.
He resigned this treadmill last December.
He had told his 20 something years work with the same company, no more airplanes, hotels, cabs and rental cars. Then, they said that he had to travel, no zoom or the other people coming to his office. So for a year he just drove in N. California. Covid was supposedly the reason.
Travel by vehicle during both sides of a rush hour+ made a very long and often dangerous day with other drivers like him. His bosses would say it is only 60-90 miles each way.
Yet, the meetings, and his so called work began at 8:30 and didn’t end until 5:30+.
In reality, each 8 hour out of town meeting often took at about 12 hours out of his life besides leaving him exhausted and blahhed out, when he finally pulled into his home driveway.
Then, he would face a similar situation, the next day and the rest of the week.
So, he pulled the plug and is now looking for a local non travel job.
Well, I can can tell you that I basically don’t have a depression problem anymore and it took about 30-40 years for me to get over it.
For me the cure was 1) no condemnation (cured the self-rejection), and 2) the consciousness of his ever-present love every moment in my life (cured the bleak-present/future thinking).
It was a process and I had to learn to wait on the Lord for the answer but it is now behind me and I am grateful.
Working is therapeutic for me. I don’t do well when I have too much free time
I can only imagine what life would be like without the Lord.
Scary.
I don't know if this is just my opinion, but there are some very depressing things about life. The possibility of hell being probably the greatest among them. I still worry about friends and family re: hell, but there's nothing I can do for them but pray (I have tried talking but that doesn't seem to make a dent).
I know heaven is going to wipe away every tear, but I can't imagine how it will wipe away what we know about loved ones who don't make it.
I wouldn't see amnesia as a solution of course.
Puppies works for me. 😊
Couple of things that could help.
1) Remember God’s promise, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, and your house” (Acts 16:31). Your faith opens the door for God to work in your relatives’ lives. Trust Him to do just that.
2) Put everything and everybody into God’s loving and powerful hands. Remember, worry and fear are a sign we are in charge of that area because when we’ve surrendered that area to our loving and powerful Lord and simply trust Him with it, we have great peace. (There’s nothing we can do about it anyway.) If there’s anything the Lord wants us to do, great, but it’s out of faith, not fear. Rest in Him.
God bless.
Thx.
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