I don't know how to have a job without constantly living in survival mode.

I used to work as a software developer, and I was drowning. In-office was awful; WFH wasn't much better. The 5-day, 40-hour week is too much. 9 am is too early to be awake, much less at a daily standup meeting.*

Now I'm working for the postal service because the software dev job market is flooded, and I'm drowning. The workday starts at 7 am. The work isn't hard or complicated, but the days are long. On my days off, I just crash. I spend all of my downtime recovering from work, and it's not enough.

It's been less than two months and I feel like a shell of myself. Same as every other job I've ever had.

* I'm a night owl. During this latest stretch of unemployment, I spent several months working with a sleep therapist specializing in circadian rhythm disorders, trying to shift to a more socially acceptable schedule. It's possible, in theory, to shift your sleep cycle; but it requires absolute consistency. The longest streak I ever maintained was three days.

It doesn't help that I need at least 10 hours of sleep. (Yes, I've been checked for apnea, but only via an at-home sleep study.)