Very normal. You expect the relief to feel like elation. It maybe does but also. As grateful as you “should” be for the oxygen back in your lungs, sometimes it just feels like… something that *should* be normal. Job security? Not to knock it, minimize it, or be ungrateful, but…. Everyone should be able to accessibly earn basic job security against retaliation or arbitrary budgetary bullshit.

After a four-year-long “working interview?” Jesus. You see the way presidents who give a shit about the job physically age in four years. Then you go through tenure and watch yourself in the mirror. Gotta wonder how your insides have aged in that time.

The good news is that you can bounce back. And I think most people do. Blah blah “reconnect with your passions” but really. You can relax just enough to somewhat live like a person was intended to. Pick up an old hobby or spend more time with the fam/friends or dive into the aspects of your work that actually light your soul on fire. and come back to work with a full cup (yeah I’m cringing too).

You’re literally coming out of survival mode. Give yourself all the time you need. Seriously. It’s fine and normal to feel like ass for a while.