A man has taken to Reddit to seek advice about wanting a fresh start. The man, with Reddit username Mister-Menor, posted a story titled, “Burned out and depressed after reaching financial stability.” In his story, Original Poster (OP) revealed that he started working early and was financially stable but depressed. A Redditor reacted to the man’s story and advised him on what to do. Get more details below.
OP Has Financial Stability but is Depressed
OP began by stating that he wanted a drastic change. He revealed that he started working in retail full-time after high school and combined it with full-time community college attendance. However, OP dropped out due to burnout and financial challenges. He had to support his parents and siblings for some time, too, so he poured himself into his work.
Nevertheless, OP’s family became financially independent shortly before his post. This allowed OP to settle his debts and save $75 thousand. However, after achieving financial stability, he became depressed and burned out again. OP said:
“I do nothing but work and sleep. No games, movies, drinking, or any other leisure activity. I’m single, I have no friends or free time to pursue things that interest me. I feel like I had to drop out of life to take care of my family. I feel like I missed out on a bunch of life experience, and want that to change.”
Mister-Menor thought his job impeded getting the change he wanted. He complained about the long hours and erratic shifts, which prevented him from making plans. He also wanted to quit, but the lack of a degree terrified him since he didn’t know if he could get another job with a different schedule. OP added that he had other interests that could get him lucrative jobs but was afraid to risk his financial stability. He had also considered college but didn’t want any debts. He added:
“Maybe buy some tools and machining equipment to teach me CNC and CAD? But I wouldn’t be making any money right off the bat, and my interest is less in work and more in making a particular finished product. Get a commercial helicopter pilot certification? Definitely interesting, but I worry about blowing all my money only to learn that I only like it as a hobby.
OP concluded by asking:
“Any advice or thoughts? I’m happy to give extra information.”
Other Redditors Share Their Thoughts
A Redditor read OP’s story and shared their thoughts. The Redditor with the username Chumbucketdaddy told OP he could return to community college, which was an affordable option. Chumbucketdaddy told OP he could transfer to a state school after a semester or two if he liked it. The Redditor concluded:
“Seems like you want to go to college and you think it’ll advance your career, just be smart with it financially.”
OP responded to Chumbucketdaddy, thanking him for the advice. He replied that a college degree wasn’t a success marker for him, and he had no idea what major to study. However, OP added that he wanted specialist degrees like nuclear engineering. He further revealed that he attended classes for 16 hours every time he had lectures when he attended college for the first time. This meant that he didn’t have enough time for sleep or anything else, and he didn’t do that for another four years.
#Clique, what do you think about OP’s situation? What advice do you have for him? Let us know in the comments.
