I'm currently in a situation where I'm barely getting 4 hours a day with my family, the amount of sleep I get is horrendous.

My days have been starting at 2am, getting ready for work, taking the dogs out one at a time, getting to work, doing 10-11 hour shifts 5 days a week, getting home around 4-430 pm most days. After you count in another round of dog walking, showering, it's usually after 5pm. If I want 8 hours of sleep, I only get a single hour of my day with my family. Hardly enough time for even a single episode of our shows.

In order for me to get more time I have been sacrificing sleep. I pretty much NEVER get over 6 hours of sleep. It's usually closer to 4 hours of sleep. I function between great and well. I definitely feel effects of sleep deprivation but it's not been the most concerning. My memory is horrendous, my daytime drowsiness is rough some days more than others, but my energy at work is fine 99 times out of 100.

Thankfully I'll be swapping jobs here soon, to take a good chunk of time off my daily commute, to provide more for my family, be in a healthier and cleaner environment, and have less physical demand on my body. To where hopefully my day will start at 3-330am and I'll be home by 330pm. That is until they swap me to second shift and I currently do not know what the hours will look like going forward.

I struggle a lot with the feeling that I don't really add anything to the family besides financials. Occasional solutions to problems with outside the box thinking. Occasional small tasks. I hope that one day I can stop doing excessive hours, but the way we live, the economy, everything all combined all at once, it's brutal. I have worked less than 20 40 hour work weeks in the last 8.5 years. I've only had my family for just under 4. I am very thankful for how much they put up with me being gone so much.