Blogging Burnout
I can relate to this story.
The New York Times’ Matt Richtel writes about the struggles, or rather the stress of the growing national obsession: blogging, which can lead to noticeable weight gain (or loss), sleep disorders, and at least in two reported cases: death.
I’m not a professional blogger, so I can’t put myself in the same league as the other 24/7 bloggers mentioned in the Times story. But I can tell you that as soon as I'm off the clock at work, I race home to blog. It's fun, but stressful. And I haven't earned a dime.
It has taken its toll. I've put on tons of weight, to the point I’m too embarrassed to look in the mirror anymore.
I’ve moved my mattress out of my bedroom and into my living room and sleep next to my computer, for fear I'll miss an email; or a breaking story.
Blogging is more than a hobby; it’s my life. I go to bed with my mind racing, wondering if anyone will bother reading my last post. I wake up thinking of my next post and what would work best, and hope it hasn’t been worked to death by other bloggers. Then I take one last peek at my page views before heading off to work.
Blogging has kept me away from the movie theaters (which used to be a big part of my life); I rarely flip on the telly anymore (especially since the Sopranos faded to black); it has effected my love of baseball (though I still try to keep up as best I can); and it obviously hasn’t done much for my social life, but with my weight gain, who would socialize with me anyway. Besides, I have an aversion to social settings.
I have this reoccurring dream (a nightmare really) that I wake up and discover I had a million page views on my blog, but before I’m able to tell anyone—I drop dead.
-Bill Lucey
billlucey@bellsouth.net
The New York Times’ Matt Richtel writes about the struggles, or rather the stress of the growing national obsession: blogging, which can lead to noticeable weight gain (or loss), sleep disorders, and at least in two reported cases: death.
I’m not a professional blogger, so I can’t put myself in the same league as the other 24/7 bloggers mentioned in the Times story. But I can tell you that as soon as I'm off the clock at work, I race home to blog. It's fun, but stressful. And I haven't earned a dime.
It has taken its toll. I've put on tons of weight, to the point I’m too embarrassed to look in the mirror anymore.
I’ve moved my mattress out of my bedroom and into my living room and sleep next to my computer, for fear I'll miss an email; or a breaking story.
Blogging is more than a hobby; it’s my life. I go to bed with my mind racing, wondering if anyone will bother reading my last post. I wake up thinking of my next post and what would work best, and hope it hasn’t been worked to death by other bloggers. Then I take one last peek at my page views before heading off to work.
Blogging has kept me away from the movie theaters (which used to be a big part of my life); I rarely flip on the telly anymore (especially since the Sopranos faded to black); it has effected my love of baseball (though I still try to keep up as best I can); and it obviously hasn’t done much for my social life, but with my weight gain, who would socialize with me anyway. Besides, I have an aversion to social settings.
I have this reoccurring dream (a nightmare really) that I wake up and discover I had a million page views on my blog, but before I’m able to tell anyone—I drop dead.
-Bill Lucey
billlucey@bellsouth.net
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