When both of my parents died, I ran from grief by burying myself in work. I had to learn work-life balance all over again.

"After the day of meetings, dinner, socializing, and after-dinner drinks, I found myself in the hotel room. On the surface, the day had been a nice departure from the stress of the prior weeks. But it was quiet, I was alone, exhausted, and felt numb. I stepped into the shower and, without warning, the floodgates of emotion burst forth, and I cried harder than I had cried in the weeks and months prior."

"In the weeks that followed, it didn't take me long to realize that my perspective on work had changed entirely. It started as apathy. I wanted to care about the things I was doing, but I didn't have anything in the emotional tank left to give. But at the same time, I overcommitted to projects and travel assignments. I took on anything that would distract me from the hurt I was feeling deep inside."

My life changed in December 2018 when my mother died from a fast-moving cancer during the week of Christmas. I felt guilt about notifying my team and returned to work for a two-day trip to Chicago that unexpectedly unlocked buried emotions; after meetings and socializing I cried intensely in the hotel shower. I then buried myself in work to avoid grief, experiencing apathy alongside compulsive overcommitment to projects and travel. In 2019 I spent about 150 nights in hotels and took over 100 flights. Five years later my father's death caused a collapse requiring a leave of absence and prompted a search for a healthier work-life balance.

Read at Business Insider