I think one of my biggest issues was that I worked in academia, not at a company. Universities and colleges are extremely toxic and the no-boundaries approach is essentially baked into the culture. Even if you're not an ivory tower professor (which I was not), it's the same.

To me, it makes sense on some level that being a professor would be all consuming. That job is designed for the super nerds of society who can't stop thinking about their subject. That's who does well and is happy in those jobs. But I was a 9-5 technician. For a little while I was an adjunct, too, which is also a time limited position.

I was not SUPPOSED to have the same job or work style as professors. I was supposed to be allowed to go home at 5 and not think about it anymore. But that didn't exactly happen.

If I had ever worked for a regular company, maybe it would have been easier to draw those lines. I never had that experience because when you work in academia, crossing over into the private sector is incredibly hard. People do it all the time, but I'm not sure I was really competitive enough due to my mental health. It's all a clusterfuck.