How stressed were you at your most stressful job?

[Anonymous]

I was so stressed I had a rash on my hands. I also ate a ton: like, I would buy a box of cheez-its and then the box would be empty but I had no memory of eating them.

I found a new job. Lower pay and longer commute, but much happier (and lost a bunch of weight).

[Anonymous]

1) overworked, understaffed. I was prepared to demand help or I would quit, walked into boss's office, and quickly got a raise and authorization to hire a staff person asap. stuck with the job and grew my skills, network and management skills immensely.

2) 15 years later, started a new job where I quickly discerned it was a unachievable pressure cooker. I quit quickly and moved on.
With experience you can tell when to cut your losses early

[Anonymous]

Not enough for my coworkers, who I apparently stressed out by not being panicky enough!

But it isn’t worth it. I moved to move off a job like medical examiner lady, and it doesn’t bother me at all. Find your niche! If you have a knot in your stomach all day, what you are doing isn’t it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not enough for my coworkers, who I apparently stressed out by not being panicky enough!

But it isn’t worth it. I moved to move off a job like medical examiner lady, and it doesn’t bother me at all. Find your niche! If you have a knot in your stomach all day, what you are doing isn’t it.

Should say MORE of

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My most stressful job was waiting tables. Because people are jerks.
Sorry about your experience. I have waited on tables for 25 years. The managers and owners have been much bigger jerks than customers. Drunk owners and the ones about to go bankrupt were the worst.

[Anonymous]

-sleep impacted
-eye twitches, tense muscles
-digestion issues
-increasing substance use
-snippy and on edge with loved ones

I made a lateral move and it has been better — down to occasional sleep impacts and some snippiness/on edge here and there. I will need to change industry or job type and take a material pay cut in order to actually achieve a healthy balance. I think it will be worth it and have started looking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Usually, the workplace only wants "happy" people around, especially if you're a woman. You MUST put on a happy face. You will be terminated.

LOLOL I was fired from a job for not looking Happy! That's all the reason they gave me when HR was around...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:-sleep impacted
-eye twitches, tense muscles
-digestion issues
-increasing substance use
-snippy and on edge with loved ones

I made a lateral move and it has been better — down to occasional sleep impacts and some snippiness/on edge here and there. I will need to change industry or job type and take a material pay cut in order to actually achieve a healthy balance. I think it will be worth it and have started looking.

I Echo this:

wake up at 3pm unable to fall back to sleep;
no appetite to eat anything, stomach has a knotish feeling, but still gained weight;
Started thinking of substances;
Small cold takes 2 month to heal, followed by covid, followed by another cold.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:-sleep impacted
-eye twitches, tense muscles
-digestion issues
-increasing substance use
-snippy and on edge with loved ones

I made a lateral move and it has been better — down to occasional sleep impacts and some snippiness/on edge here and there. I will need to change industry or job type and take a material pay cut in order to actually achieve a healthy balance. I think it will be worth it and have started looking.

I Echo this:

wake up at 3pm unable to fall back to sleep;
no appetite to eat anything, stomach has a knotish feeling, but still gained weight;
Started thinking of substances;
Small cold takes 2 month to heal, followed by covid, followed by another cold.

+1 All of the above, adding in:
- Hair loss (I am a woman)
- Chronic back pain
- Shingles from a depressed immune system (in my30s!)
- Missing out on important events/seeing friends and family due to travel and insane hours. Really impacted relationships.

I left that job and am in a much better position without any of these things.

[Anonymous]

I worked at a horrible elementary school, where the teachers were both inept and unkind; the principal was a bullying incompetent, ineffective micromanager, and the kids were "tough" kids, very much because of the horrible way they were treated, but also some of them did come to our school with many emotional and behavior issues. The whole day was chaotic from beginning to end, and I started developing very bad stomach and digestive issues, Mon-Friday. I had constant loose stools, pains, etc. I went to my doctor and she wanted to prescribe different tests for Crohn's disease, celiac and IBS; but I thought it was just too coincidental that the symptoms only started when I began working at this horrible school, and also that they subsided considerably over the weekend. So I transferred to a better school and my symptoms all were cured.
I still feel horrible about the kids who were forced to attend that school, but as a new teacher I was not in any position to be able to effect any kind of change.

[Anonymous]

Had nightmares
Drank too much
Ate too much


I looked for another job. They fired me before I could quit. I am much happier now.

[Anonymous]

"overworked, understaffed"

That's me now at a nonprofit. I'm looking for a new job actively. Can't wait to get out. I was home crying tonight. It's so stressful. Working on networking emails etc. now.

[Anonymous]

I had a job where my hands started shaking from the pressure. I quit and worked elsewhere. Same line of work and still too stressful. I overeat and developed high blood pressure. I need to change fields but don’t know what I can do that has better hours, less stress and where I can still earn enough money.

[Anonymous]

I had a job at a company that had extremely long hours with clients in many time zones across the world. It was exhausting. I would be answering messages and on calls from the time I woke up till I closed my eyes at night. I spent weeks traveling internationally. I missed many important events. It wasn't worth it.

I gained weight. I didn't have time to work out. I wasn't paid enough for the amount I was working. I look at pictures from back then and I look so bloated and tired.

I eventually made the move to quit and start my own business. I am much happier and feel like I have more balance.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I worked at a horrible elementary school, where the teachers were both inept and unkind; the principal was a bullying incompetent, ineffective micromanager, and the kids were "tough" kids, very much because of the horrible way they were treated, but also some of them did come to our school with many emotional and behavior issues. The whole day was chaotic from beginning to end, and I started developing very bad stomach and digestive issues, Mon-Friday. I had constant loose stools, pains, etc. I went to my doctor and she wanted to prescribe different tests for Crohn's disease, celiac and IBS; but I thought it was just too coincidental that the symptoms only started when I began working at this horrible school, and also that they subsided considerably over the weekend. So I transferred to a better school and my symptoms all were cured.
I still feel horrible about the kids who were forced to attend that school, but as a new teacher I was not in any position to be able to effect any kind of change.

I also taught in a school like this. The administration was abusive. I had class sizes in the 40s. I was given no resources, but I was expected to perform miracles. Each day was emotionally and physically draining. My hair fell out, I lost weight, and I couldn’t sleep.

I transferred schools and things are much better now. I’m still overworked and the hours are too long, but I have support and access to resources.

I also worry about who I left behind. Most teachers have left, but the poor students remain as does that terrible administration.