#burnout

Ramin Honary @ramin_hal9001@fe.disroot.org · Aug 07, 2026

LLM fatigue is real My day job basically requires me to use LLMs (or, it is strongly encouraged) on the software that I develop. Now I understand why LLM fatigue and LLM burn-out happens. It is because you constantly have to babysit the LLM to keep it from screwing things up. Babysitting is exhausting work. At one time in my life, as a 20-something-year-old, I was responsible for a group of 30 kids age 5 to 12. Every day I went home so drained that I could barely stay awake long enough to have dinner. I know from experience that school teachers perform some of the most labor-intensive work in the modern world. It is what they call “emotional labor.” When other people are unable (as with kids) or unwilling (as with a lazy roommate) to live or play or work with you as a cooperative peer or team member, you essentially have to spend mental energy keeping an eye on them and making sure they aren’t doing something that is disruptive. That mental energy is a real energy cost, it really does consume calories and make you feel tired. The worst part about it is that the LLM never really “learns.” Kids can learn to work and play with you. Lazy roommates can learn to live with you. But an LLM never really learns, and it keeps making the same mistakes over and over again. People who work with LLMs often end up keeping a directory of scripts they can deploy with a quick copy-paste so they can quickly re-explain something to an LLM. So the fatigue of watching over it and making sure the LLM doesn’t do something wrong is a constant emotional pressure, and it never gets better with age. #tech #AI #LLMs #LLM #VibeCoding #AIFatigue #BurnOut

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fyr @fyr@indieweb.social · Aug 04, 2026

I had a moment of quiet contemplation on a walk today, taking some time for *me*, and stopped to appreciate some nature, in particular some moss. There's pictures, and even a little video! Moss is cool! Work sucks! I'm trying to be better to myself! https://fyr.io/post/moss-and-peace #blaugust #blaugust2026 #nature #phonephotography #moss #Mosstodon #blogging #worklifebalance #burnout #selfimprovement (Higher res photo in the blog post)

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Dr. Or M. Bialik @ombialik@mastodon.world · Jul 31, 2026

Burnout is far from being one thing, and there is no cure-all for it. It's something we really need to talk more about; normalize as an issue people could be dealing with, and that modern work environment (notably for research and creative work) might be inducing. (I'm fine so far. Work and life are taxing, but I'm handling and keeping an eye on my mental health. The same could not be said for some people around me) #MentalHealth #Burnout

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Lisa Lorenzin KR4LFE (she/her) @llorenzin@infosec.exchange · May 29, 2026

"When the people who built and operated your cloud would rather knead dough than touch a terminal again, that’s not a career pivot. That’s a trauma response." https://www.seuros.com/blog/aws-fired-the-human-who-made-the-difference/ The enshittification escalates... I walked away from tech almost four years ago with a case of burnout you could see from space. The intervening three years have only made me more grateful that I left when I did. (I wish all my friends and colleagues still chained to the oars had my opportunity.) #aws #layoffs #burnout #ai

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Mr. Crab - Sysadmin from Heck @CrabbyIT@infosec.exchange · Jul 27, 2026

I spent the better part of a week on a #boat enjoying the sun and the surf. Port engine left the chat with electrical problems and I came in on one engine. It took me until dinner Saturday to *start* to feel grounded. Heading home on Sunday the chest pain and stress knot returned before I even got on the highway. #mentalhealth #burnout #rum #beach

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Jote / Ellie 🏳️‍🌈 @myceliatrix@social.augustini.wtf · Jul 24, 2026

I accidentally wrote the emotional finale to my little “stop optimizing the joy out of everything” trilogy. It contains burnout, Stockholm, outsourced identity, grindset brainworms, a wood chipper with OKRs, a future electric farm truck and, naturally, a goat named Ralf. Anyway, please enjoy my carefully formatted psychological damage: https://augustini.wtf/fieldnotes/i-was-grinding-myself-down/ #Burnout #MentalHealth #Writing #Tech #SoftwareEngineering #Career #Queer #Trans #PersonalBlog #FieldNotes

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Laura Cooper @laura@vebinet.com · Jul 22, 2026

There’s a quiet epidemic running through C-suites worldwide, and most boards won’t admit it exists. It shows up in the third consecutive all-nighter before the quarterly earnings call. In the executive who hasn’t taken a real weekend off since the merger announcement. In the senior leader whose children can barely remember their parent’s face without a phone screen in between. We tend to dress it up as “commitment” or “dedication.” Sometimes we call it “high performance.” But beneath the corporate euphemisms lies something simpler and harder to swallow: leaders are running on fumes, and everyone pays the price. Why this isn’t just a wellness problem Let me be blunt: framing executive wellbeing as a mental-health initiative misses the point entirely. This isn’t about meditation apps or wellness stipends. Those are band-aids on a bullet wound. When you’re making decisions that affect thousands of jobs, millions in revenue, and an entire organization’s trajectory, cognitive clarity isn’t a luxury. It’s a competitive requirement. And stress, fatigue, and chronic exhaustion don’t just make people feel terrible—they actively degrade the neural machinery required for sound judgment. Harvard Business Review covered this ground extensively. So did McKinsey. The research keeps landing on the same uncomfortable finding: sleep-deprived executives make measurably worse decisions. They become reactive instead of reflective. They default to familiar patterns when they should be innovating. They overestimate risks and underestimate opportunities. None of this registers on a balance sheet until months later, when a missed acquisition target or failed transformation reveals what should have been obvious at the start. But here’s what the reports rarely say out loud: the culture of leadership rewards the opposite behavior. There’s still a weird prestige attached to looking perpetually drained. As if burnout is a badge of honor rather than a warning sign. What actually works Okay, so we know the problem. Now what? Because this isn’t solved with nice intentions or another DEI statement on wellbeing. It requires structural change—the kind that makes some boards nervous because it means admitting that the current model isn’t sustainable. Here’s what I’ve seen work, across organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies to growing startups: Stop glorifying the grind. Sounds simple. It’s not. When the CEO sends emails at 3 AM, that signal ripples down faster than any policy memo ever could. Some companies have started enforcing actual boundaries—no weekend messages, mandatory offline periods during leave, meeting-free blocks that executives can’t override with their own back-to-back schedules. It feels radical. That’s probably why it works. Give leaders somewhere safe to talk. The isolation at the top is brutal. Few peers understand the weight of having final accountability. Even fewer are willing to admit vulnerability. External peer groups help. Executive coaches with real clinical training help more. But it takes courage to build these channels without making usage somehow visible to HR or compensation committees. Trust is everything here. Treat recovery as infrastructure. Travel, sleep, exercise, nutrition—these aren’t personal choices for senior leaders. They’re operational requirements. A fatigued CFO doesn’t make better decisions. An exhausted COO doesn’t run a tighter operation. Companies that recognize this embed recovery time into travel policies, provide comprehensive health monitoring as standard benefit rather than perk, and design meeting structures that don’t assume humans can function optimally after six hours of back-to-back calls. Let the board ask hard questions. Compensation committees should be asking more than “did you hit your numbers?” They should ask: how sustainable is that performance? Are you building resilience or burning bridges? The language might feel unfamiliar, but so did ESG five years ago. What seems soft today becomes standard tomorrow. The bottom line Here’s the thing: the next generation of leaders isn’t buying the old playbook. They’re reading the data on burnout. They’re watching their predecessors crack under pressure. They’re choosing differently—and companies need to figure out how to meet them there. Organizations that get ahead of this shift won’t just retain better talent. They’ll make better decisions, move faster on critical initiatives, and navigate crisis with actual clarity rather than performative calm. The wellbeing dividend is real. It just requires acknowledging that human beings aren’t machines, no matter what the org chart suggests. The question isn’t whether companies can afford to invest in their leaders’ health. It’s whether they can afford not to. And for anyone reading this who’s currently working through lunch again—take a breath. Your board needs you sharp, not spent. #wellbeing #MentalHealth #burnout #ExecutiveBurnout #business #OrganizationalCulture #organization #health

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Media Scope Group @mediascopegroup@vebinet.com · Jul 22, 2026

There’s a quiet epidemic running through C-suites worldwide, and most boards won’t admit it exists, writes Laura Cooper (@laura@vebinet.com). Read the full article: https://mediascope.group/the-uncomfortable-truth-about-executive-burnout/ #burnout #MentalHealth #ExecutiveBurnout #leadership #business #wellbeing #people #management #corporate #company #organization #sustainability #workplace

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Fast Company @fast_company@robot.villas · Jul 21, 2026

The coming burnout from managing AI agents https://www.fastcompany.com/91574416/the-coming-burnout-from-managing-ai-agents-technology-ai-agents-burnout #AI #FutureOfWork #Burnout

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Troelle @Trollhaus@mastodon.online · Jul 20, 2026

Wo kommt eigentlich plötzlich die Debatte über das Ladenschlussgesetz her? Ein wenig verstörend, wie viele Leute Errungenschaften der Vergangenheit über Bord werfen u. sich in Kommentaren lauter selbstoptimierte Freaks melden, die gern bis zum Umfallen arbeiten. Dabei geflissentlich übersehen, dass es Menschen mit einem Leben gibt. #Burnout #Arbeit #Kapitalismus

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heise online @heiseonline@social.heise.de · Jul 16, 2026

Über die Hälfte postet weniger. Eine aktuelle Studie von Incogni zeigt: Der Rest überlegt noch, ob das Instagram-würdig ist. Zum Artikel: https://heise.de/-11363968?wt_mc=sm.red.ho.mastodon.mastodon.md_beitraege.md_beitraege&utm_source=mastodon #socialmedia #digitaldetox #mentalhealth #socialnetworks #burnout

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DGB Niedersachsen @DGBNiedersachsen@norden.social · Jul 13, 2026

#Überstunden und hoher Arbeitsdruck sind heute bereits in vielen Jobs verbreitet. Umso wichtiger ist es, dass der #8hTag bleibt: Er setzt Grenzen und schützt die Beschäftigten dadurch vor Überlastung und #Burnout. Mehr dazu: https://niedersachsen-bremen-sachsenanhalt.dgb.de/aktuelles/news/arbeitszeitdebatte-8-stunden-sind-genug/ Und hier: https://niedersachsen-bremen-sachsenanhalt.dgb.de/aktuelles/news/abkehr-vom-8-stunden-tag-ein-baerendienst-an-der-vereinbarkeit/ #DGB #Gewerkschaft #StoppKahlschlag #Arbeitszeit #Arbeitszeitgesetz #Gesundheit #Vereinbarkeit #Bundesregierung #CDU #CSU #SPD

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Aurin (ki, ki, kis) @Aurin_the_classtraitor@climatejustice.social · Jul 13, 2026

Boosted by

Trending Bot @trending@homestead.social

currently thinking a lot about how much less disabled I'd probably be if the general attitude in society to people – INCLUDING CHILDREN!!!! CHILDREN ARE PEOPLE!!!! – struggling or being slow or avoiding tasks would be to accomodate them and be patient, rather than to be annoyed or punish them. My earliest memories are of constantly getting chided for being slow. Sometimes it was good-naturedly, sometimes sternly, sometimes I was actually punished (slow at eating? not getting to eat my fill). At no single point did anyone wonder if I just needed more time than others and if this human variance, this diversity, might be tolerable. No, I had to be made to fit into the box, into the schedule. For no reason. Just 'cause. Was I already disabled or chronically ill as a kindergarten-aged child? Was that why I was slower than others, despite trying? It's possible. I don't know how I'd ever find out. But even without pathologising the way I have always been. I needed accommodations. And not getting them trained me to dissociate, to push myself past my limits on a daily basis as the default way to interact with anyone. It was fucking exhausting and everyone told me it wasn't. So I lost touch with my body's signals, distrusted them, actively faught them. A couple decades later my body is breaking down and no longer able to accommodate my rushing and pushing myself. I could compensate as a child, as a teenager. I stopped being able to in my 20s. I could still be part of society by living off benefits instead of having to work. Now, a few days before my 40s birthday, I can't take proper care of myself and can't even dream of participating in society beyond mastodon (and even then it's spotty). I deteriorated in a way that felt imperceptibly slow until it suddenly wasn't. And in hindsight, there was a steady progression. At no point did anyone (except Dion) consider encouraging me to slow down. To listen to my body and its limits. No. They all just assumed I needed to try harder, or that I'd always be miserable and pityable. It's not true though. I have turned the boat around, slowly. I am recovering now and am getting better. Slowly at first, I hope I will look back in a few decades and see as steady an incline from now on, as I had a decline before. Sure, I can't expect to be as spry as a 20yo when I'm 60, 70, 80. But I can be spry for my age. And I will get there by no longer trying so hard. By doing the actually hard work of allowing myself rest. #disability #DisabilityPrideMonth #ChronicIllness #ableism #AbuseCulture #adultism #AutisticBurnout #burnout

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Jack 🇨🇵 💖💜💙 @jack@friends.gayfr.social · Jul 13, 2026

« J'avais peur d'ouvrir une boîte de Pandore. » C'est ce que je croyais avant de pousser la porte du cabinet. En réalité, la boîte était déjà ouverte. Elle ne parlait simplement pas avec des mots. Mon nouvel article explore cette frontière invisible entre la peur et le besoin de parler. blogs.gayfr.social/libres-ebat… Vos retours m'intéressent. Partage apprécié. #masculinités #SantéMentale #Thérapie #LibresEbats #Dépression #psychologie #BurnOut #Bienetre #Vulnérabilité #Dialogue #Parole #Silence #Hommes #témoignage #homme RE: blogs.gayfr.social/api/posts/l…

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hoppla @hoppla@mas.to · Jul 03, 2026

As a GP in Germany, I struggle with the claim that “people don’t want to work.” In daily practice, I see the opposite: many patients push themselves to keep working, even when they should rest. They worry about burdening colleagues, unfinished tasks, or upcoming deadlines. If we want to understand rising sick leave, we need to look at real factors: increasing workload, constant pressure, lack of recovery time, social isolation, and overall exhaustion. Reducing this to a question of “motivation” ignores both evidence and lived experience. In my experience, people who genuinely try to avoid work are a tiny minority. Framing the issue this way feels similar to old narratives about unemployment—oversimplified, misleading, and disconnected from reality. #MedMastodon #GeneralPractice #PrimaryCare #WorkStress #MentalHealth #SickLeave #HealthPolicy #Germany #Arbeitswelt #Burnout #PublicHealth #Reform #AU #Arbeitsunfähigkeit #Gesundheitsreform #gesundheitspolitik #gesundheitssystem

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Daniël Klabbers @luceos@fosstodon.org · Jul 02, 2026

Are you a #developer and are you in a or afraid of #Burnout? I'm building https://elated.dev to help people understand, prevent and cope with burnout. Right now it's just a community, but I'm planning to code tooling at specific target audiences to support my goals. Help me help other people, answer some of the questions raised in the community: https://elated.dev/t/questions It would be a huge help 🙏 #health #code #opensource #community

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Dima @dima@dol.social · Jun 26, 2026

Not long ago, I left a role I had every reason to think would be a dream fit.

On the way out, I got an unexpectedly kind gesture (pictured). I'm taking the high road, so no story-time about the job - just what I'm keeping from it:

What burnout actually is, not the buzzword version.
What autistic burnout actually does - not "tired", but losing skills you've had for years.
How loud unmanaged micromanagement gets, until it's the only voice left in your head.
That a body keeps its own record, even when you stop checking in on it.
What it's like to need real pharmaceutical support - and watch it stop being enough on its own.
How good "before" really was.

None of this makes me bitter. It makes me determined.

Recovery starts now, and it's going to take a while - I've made peace with that part.

#Burnout #AutisticBurnout #Neurodivergent #MentalHealth #Recovery #NewBeginnings #Work #Blog #Health #Jobs #Job

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mr. foostang 🇨🇦 @mrfoostang@foostang.xyz · Jul 01, 2026

The thing about working at the level of tech I'm at is that you need full big brain every day. There's no instruction manual for what I do. There's no safety net. There's nobody else that knows more about the subject matter. It's very stressful and sick days are actually the right thing to do when I'm not fully on because the stakes are too high for fuck ups. #Infosec #Cybersec #Burnout

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PaulaToThePeople 😷 @PaulaToThePeople@climatejustice.social · Jun 27, 2026

Sometimes hope really is a pain. The last two years I had a PAIS (post-accute infection syndrome like Post COVID or ME/CFS) all summer long. The rest of the year (usually my least favorite 7-9 months) I only had other health issues. Instead of using those 7-9 months of having some energy to get a proper diagnosis and treatment, I spent all my money on supplements and hoped it wouldn't come back again. Now this summer I have my PAIS plus burnout and I have to try to finally get a diagnosis at hellish temperatures. While there still is no place to go to get a PAIS diagnosed, because nobody learns about them while studying medicine. Wish me a miracle. #PAIS #PostCOVID #MECFS #burnout

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Joy @joyousjoyness@mastodon.social · Jun 26, 2026

Behind the scenes, the last year and a half has been a lesson in crisis management. I used art to cope, but once the survival mode wore off, deep burnout set in. Next week’s newsletter (dropping 7/1) is a special edition on burnout, boundary-setting, and carving out tiny pockets of peace. If you need a reminder to be gentle with yourself right now, I’d love to share it with you! Sign up via the pop-up form at www.joyousjoyness.com before it drops next week. #art #burnout #newsletter #RealTalk

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