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Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, what should I do?

Backstory:

I’m young, I’ve got a great paying job, enough to sustain my family on my income alone - but I’ve become incredibly depressed. The commute to my job is 2 hours each way, I end up working 12-14 hours a day, the office I’m in, the other employees segment me, they don’t talk to me, and they’re constantly rude to me. I’m marginally younger than the rest.

I’m depressed because it feels like I’m living a nightmare going into work, it’s torture to walk into there and know everyone hates me, and the worst part is I don’t know why. I’ve confronted said people, and they won’t even explain, nor acknowledge my existence.

What would you do if you were in my shoes?

( 12 comments | 12 points | on HN )
Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by WheelsAtLarge on Thursday December 13, 2018 @10:36PM (#18678258)
1st admit to yourself that work is work. No matter what type of work you do there are parts that you will dislike and don't want to do. 2nd the commute is painful. Figure out a way to shorten it to 1/2 an hour a day or find a way that you don't have to drive there-- Uber?. 3rd, yup coworkers can be jerks but you have to find a way to work with them. You are the only one that can change in this situation. They won't change for you. I suggest you read a few books on how to make friends. 1 tip, look at the most popular people and analyze why they are in that position. One thing I've noticed is that techies tend to feel superior to others because they feel they are smarter. The reality is that they are not. They might be in one area of life but life is very broad and no one is that smart. 4th don't get a new job, as you might be wishing, until you can figure out the problem with you and your coworkers. The problem will follow you unless you figure out the problem. Confronting co-workers will not get you many results. They will only come up with answers that will make feel better. It's best to talk to them as friends to help you but that won't happen unless they are friends. Lastly seek help, having someone else's perspective will help you a lot.
Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by sethammons on Friday December 14, 2018 @10:14AM (#18681319)
I had a two+ hour commute per day (each way). Did it for _years_. The difference being that I really like my co-workers. A couple of thoughts:

Ask if you can go part time remote. Like two days. That made things so much better. I also was able to commute a large segment by train, and that helped. Eventually I went full remote, and miss my time in the office (bit really like my 30 second commute!).

Strive to get 360 reviews in place. It allows for anonymous feedback on stengths and areas where you can grow. You might get back some places where you can get better professionally and with interpersonal stuff and you might learn what people value about you.

Talk with your manager about your concerns. Y'all should be having regular one on ones.

Leverage the commute. Audiobooks for entertainment or something you want to learn more about. If you can do public transportation, work on something fun.

Realize life requires balance. Have fun. Do things. Be around and interact with people. Work on yourself, take up an exercise regiment involving lifting weights.

Know that a job is a job. Prioritize you and your family.

Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by bilu144 on Thursday December 13, 2018 @11:31PM (#18678490)
Hey, I'm sorry to hear that you're enduring this terrible situation. I was in your shoes a year ago, except that for me I didn't enjoy my personal life (bad relationships, no real friends, away from home, etc.) but was okay with my job (much younger than the rest, good salary). In my case, I ended up leaving my great paying job to return home. Life is much better now, but my current job is paying much less. It's still enough for me, but I can't single-handedly support my family anymore.

In your case, your commute is way too long but there are some ways to spend away the time such as sleep, read books, listen to podcasts, or even call to check on people. In workplace, if you enjoy your job, just ignore other employees and focus on your job. That would be best. Take their presence as a pinch of salt. Only communicate with them if needed. In the end not many co-workers will become your friend, and haters gonna hate.

If you are new to this job, try to cope with this for like a year or two, just to save up some money. For me, after quitting my job, I realized there ain't many companies that are willing to pay good money and also offer so many benefits as my previous employer.

However, if you feel like this workplace situation is killing you, get out asap. In the end having a lot of money is nice but it's not everything in life.

Good luck mate.

Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by croo on Friday December 14, 2018 @08:31AM (#18680636)
If I were in your shoes I would not even accept a job that requires 20 hours per week to commute to even if it was a great job. Thats a 60 hour work week in my book. If you regularly work 12-14 hours then with commute your job takes away 80-90 hour per week from you.

What you describe is a clean and well lighted highway to burnout even if its a good workplace. And it's not.

Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by badpun on Saturday December 15, 2018 @09:01AM (#18688407)
If everybody hates you there, chances are it’s caused by something you do/are. If you can’t figure out what that is by yourself, maybe talking to a therapist would help. If there is something specific in your character or behavior that causes people to dislike you, he’s qualified to find that. Also, unlike friends and family, it’s his job to be brutally honest with you if that’s for your benefit. Plus, like you said, you’re in a difficult moment of your life, so having some outside councel will be helpful anyway.
Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by com2kid on Thursday December 13, 2018 @09:12PM (#18677875)
Is your commute worth the pay?

Calculate how much your time is worth, taking a job closer to home may very well be worth a pay cut.

Figure at least $50 an hour, that is $200 a day in commute, $1000 a week.

Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by p0d on Saturday December 15, 2018 @12:16PM (#18689233)
As you are a family man/woman I would say either get a new job or professional help. I burdened my own partner with unhappiness for a time and wish I had of dealt with things sooner.

There are enough suggestions already as to how you might make progress.

Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by pizza on Saturday December 15, 2018 @10:40AM (#18688731)
Do you think these people seem like they would even spend a second figuring out how they could try to better please you if the situation were flipped around? Make your decision with that in mind. Sounds like a really shitty environment.
Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by hiddensong on Thursday December 13, 2018 @09:25PM (#18677945)
Look for a new job. Get new the new job. Then quit the old job.
Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by icedchai on Thursday December 13, 2018 @09:36PM (#18677997)
Tell them you need to work from home. If they won't do it, quit. 2 hours each way is a terrible commute.
Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by philpem on Sunday December 16, 2018 @01:58PM (#18694497)
This sounds similar to why I left my last job. Ended up at the doctors' with severe depression and they dropped a bombshell on me.

  "There's nothing medical science can do to help. I can prescribe you with SSRIs but that won't fix anything. What you need to do is look for a job that you can at least tolerate, or you'll end up dead before you hit retirement, by stress or by your own hand."
  (yep, direct quote from my notes)
After a week or so of thinking about it, I realised she was right. I started talking to old friends in the industry, did a few after-work meet-and-lunch sessions and found a couple of companies local to me who were hiring. Talked to recruiters too, ended up with a few interviews. This time I wasn't jumping from a sinking ship, I had time to look and I was going to find "the right one" this time.

A few months of searching, I interviewed at my current employer. Took the job on the basis that I'd talked to old university friends and former colleagues who were working for them too, and nobody had anything negative to say. My former line manager a few jobs back was well-known and wrote me a glowing reference (I didn't want to ask my current employer and give away that I was looking).

I got an offer and I took it. It's been like night and day, and I keep having to tell myself "yes, you're being paid for this, no you're not dreaming". My partner told me the other night "I've never seen you so happy."

So my point is, if you really don't like the job (and from reading your post it sounds like that's the case), look elsewhere. Maybe it's not you, maybe you're just not a good fit for the current job's culture and environment. Different people are good at different things.

Polish off your CV. Put some feelers out. Make what you're doing work for long enough that you can find something else on a reasonable timescale. Book a few half-days off and set up some interviews. At the very least, you'll get a better idea what openings are out there.

Once you have a signed offer, politely walk into your boss's office and say "Thank you for the opportunity, sir, but I feel like I need to move on with my career". Never burn bridges unless you have no other option. If you have an exit interview, all you need to say is "I just think it's time for a change of scenery and I had an offer I'd be silly to refuse". Keep it short and polite. In 90% of cases they just want to tick the "did the exit interview" box.

Someone downthread said "if everyone hates you, chances are it's caused by something you do or who you are". Go down the "how can I improve?" line with your line manager in a private 1-to-1, but if you don't get anywhere.. it could well be "who you are", in the sense of "not a good fit for the company". Basically, you won't get on with everyone you meet -- and you can't make people like you because that's their choice. And if it's not working out... sometimes the best thing to do is say "this is not fixable in this way" and move on.

Re:Ask HN: I’ve got a well paying job, but I’m depressed, wh... by m0llusk on Saturday December 15, 2018 @06:51PM (#18690988)
something else