Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

neilthanedar.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

311–320 of 424 posts

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#311

Post by someothherguyy »

godelski wrote: post #228
anyfoo wrote: post #217

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don’t know. Doctors nowadays (especially in the US, it seems to be less prevalent elsewhere) seem very quick at prescribing medication. And while I don’t doubt that there are serious physiological conditions that warrant, even necessitate, medicating, my impression is that the first response to “depression” in general shouldn’t be medication. I’ve been depressed in the past, in my 20s even severely. Clinically, you…

As someone medicated I actually fully agree with you. Depression is also a broad spectrum condition (much like autism). Years ago I watched this lecture by Sapolsky[0] and it really helped. Breaking down the different classifications is really helpful. The SSRIs always made me feel worse, and this (along with a lot of other research) helped make sense of it. A few years back I was diagnosed with ADHD and a psychologi…

you took amphetamine and weren't depressed suddenly? in my experience, that lasts a bit, but give it another decade or so. it tends to bite in other ways.

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#312

Post by Aurornis »

SoftTalker wrote: post #112
bayarearefugee wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Glad you brought up your friend in the 2nd bit there as it seems to have become relatively common for some people to make food delivery services a very regular part of their lifestyle without really paying attention to the staggering amount of saturated fat they are ingesting even from the majority of "healthy" options available on these services (nevermind the even worse fast food options) Of course this has always…

Saturated fat is not the demon we've been lead to believe for the past 30-40 years. Sugar is. And there's a lot of sugar in prepared food too.

Excess sugar and excess saturated fat are both bad.

There’s been a big social media push to turn saturated fat into a good thing, but everything I actually read in the research still points to excess saturated fat being a bad idea.

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#313

Post by johnnyanmac »

nradov wrote: post #299
johnnyanmac wrote: post #253

Earlier quoted context omitted.

1. unemployment rate is low because people unemployed Doordash to make ends meet. This is not "a house is within reach" money. 2. saying "move to a state with less job opportunity" to afford necessities really shows how out of touch people are with the youth. They moving to another state with what money? How are they getting approved without a job in tow? 3. "I understand that failed progressive policies have ruined…

Do you seriously believe that a lot of people in Vermont and Wyoming are working DoorDash? Young people are literally buying houses in those places. Put your prejudices aside and look at the actual economic data. Or keep whining, your choice.

>Do you seriously believe that a lot of people in Vermont and Wyoming are working DoorDash?

Among the youth who cannot get into entry level work, or the displaced who can't find a new job: yes.

>Put your prejudices aside and look at the actual economic data.

https://www.pymnts.com/gig-economy/2025/gen-z-turns-side-gig...

>Side hustles account for 43% of the average hustler’s total income. That share climbs to 57% for Gen Z consumers and a striking 76% for those earning under $50,000 annually — turning what was once a cushion into a core source of liquidity.

Okay, your turn. Where's your economic data instead of "I know a young rocj dude who bought a house". Or is it easier to blame everyone else instead of taking a look at the reality around you.

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#314

Post by lunr »

nubg wrote: post #256
timfsu wrote: post #218

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In my opinion, what you need is a person (or three), not a book :) Someone who relies on you, whatever the context, is some of the greatest motivation out there.

Can you elaborate? Do you mean getting kids? I just got out of a relationship that felt too close for me...

As a widower who just sent his kid off to the grandparents to visit for a few days, and is now missing his person, his kid, who relies on him and feeling the effects of missing purpose...

Sure, it could be kids, a partner, a spouse, or a friend or family. But it could also be the rest of the team on the weekly bowling league, the puppies at the shelter who need playtime each week with a volunteer human, the community one serves as a volunteer firefighter, the homeless shelter where one helps serve the weekly dinner, the neighbor who needs help with yard upkeep, or any other parts of the village where one lives that relies on you, and makes you feel included, involved, and fulfilled inside by having that purpose.

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#315

Post by linehedonist »

nradov wrote: post #244
tehjoker wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is the take all the younger generations complain about. Boomers had it good, laid waste to the world and the international scene and wonder why everyone else is bitter.

The oldest Baby Boomers came of age in the late 1960s. What about the world is worse now than then? I'm not here to defend the Baby Boomers but let's have a sense of perspective.

Certainly the world’s climate is worse. Wealth inequality is worse. I try hard not to be nostalgic, and even so I have to admit lots of things are not as good as they were in the 60s.

It’s not even like the physical infrastructure is all that much better. I live in a house built in the 50s, and clearly the people living in it then led a pretty similar life to mine. It just cost me a lot more money.

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#316

Post by Aurornis »

sdeframond wrote: post #125
Aurornis wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Maybe other people relate more to this post because they more money and no kids. I have kids, but I don’t think having kids or even a lack of money is necessary to experience the type of burnout you’re describing. While everyone and every situation is different, my personal experience is that having kids led to less burnout for me over time. I expected the opposite after reading comments online, but it turns out th…

> the time spent caring for the kids was energizing and purpose-providing. Depends. At 3am it's not.

There’s a lot more to having kids than the relatively short window when they’re very young and waking up a lot in the middle of the night.

Before having kids I read so much about this difficult period and thought it was going to be the defining feature of having kids.

Then you go through it and one month you realize they’re sleeping through the night. Then you have an entire lifetime.

So yeah, it’s not fun. But it’s also such a tiny segment of parenthood that the emphasis on it feels pretty excessive.

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#317

Post by Aurornis »

lnsru wrote: post #54
Aurornis wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know a lot of people who DoorDash, have groceries delivered, have a house cleaner, and call a contractor for every small thing that needs to be done. They’re buying time. It’s never quite as much time as expected, though. Each is a marginal addition of free time that brings its own complications (like my friend who did an alarming amount of DoorDash and is now investing a lot of time into dropping weight and managi…

I am hardware developer and certified electrician as a hobby. I have regularly clients that are buying time while I do really simple things on the property. It’s really cringe to be asked to vacuum their dirt for couple hours. I am paid premium while the clients watch Netflix and later whine about running out of money. I tried politely ask to do rudimentary things by themselves, but it never worked out. I grew in pov…

> I am paid premium while the clients watch Netflix and later whine about running out of money.

This really bothered me when I was in social situations with college students who would alternate between bragging about how much they spent on DoorDash and complaining about how they’re always struggling with money.

It was only a handful of people out of a larger group of mostly rational students, but it drove me crazy.

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#318

Post by miki_oomiri »

adamsb6 wrote: post #305
dyauspitr wrote: post #242

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Medical assistance is not going to help when the thing that is making you depressed is the non negotiable 9-5 you have to do 5 days a week. You’re not in the right field you say? Then you’ll be depressed from the poverty that comes from abysmal wages and the complete lack of job security.

9-5 5 days per week sounds wonderful.

"You don't work that hard, I do".

Don't gatekeep.

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#319

Post by lovich »

isodev wrote: post #174
lovich wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree with you on a factual basis, but you understand that a large amount of people have a deep emotional instinct to not be ok with those options, right?

Indeed, that’s what I mean by raising awareness. It takes time to change such deeply rooted beliefs. I think if humans are to prosper and resolve planet-wide challenges like global warming, we need to be better at managing resources and we need to work together as a species, not separate counties fending for themselves.

Well, I'm not sure I agree with convincing people to not feel this way, but its admirable that you are putting in effort to change the world in a way that fits your morals

Re: You’re not burnt out, you’re existentially starving

#320

Post by selimthegrim »

nradov wrote: post #285
johnnyanmac wrote: post #255

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's very rich when people who are likely 15-20+ years in their career in San Franscisco are telling the modern youth to just "move to Alabama". As if they can just find a cushy tech job in a market that is using RTO's to force layoffs. People this detached really need to spend a few days on linkedIn applying to jobs. Not with their connection, but through those horrible workday portals and thousands of apps turned i…

Perhaps you were unaware but there are good jobs in industries outside technology. And if you want a tech job, well there are quite a few in Alabama. Some of them are centered around the Marshall Space Flight Center.

Could you export a few of those to Louisiana?
Post reply on HN