Not doing great at work, feel like I'm always exhausted with the kids, my marriage feels distant. I know logically that I'm doing okay but I keep this voice in my head telling me I'm screwing it all up. Getting harder to ignore. My doctor mentioned antidepressants but I'm nervous about it. Just wanted to put this out there I guess.
Man, I get this feeling all the time. The thing is, you're showing up at work AND you're present enough with your kids to notice the distance with your wife. That's not failing, that's just being stretched thin. Worth talking to her about how you're feeling.
That exhaustion is real and it messes with your head more than you'd think. I've been there telling myself everything's fine while feeling like I'm drowning. Maybe start with one small thing you can actually control this week.
Hey man, I hear you. That exhausted feeling where everything just feels heavy is real. I'm up at 5am most mornings just to get some quiet time before the chaos starts. Even then it doesn't feel like enough. Have you talked to your wife about the distance thing? Sometimes just naming it helps.
Real talk - exhaustion makes everything look worse than it is. I'd bet you're doing better than you think. Marriage stuff especially gets harder when you're running on empty. Even 15 minutes of actual conversation with your wife without phones makes a difference.
You're not failing. I felt exactly like this when my first kid was born and work was kicking my ass. Turns out I was just trying to do everything perfectly instead of just... doing it. Talk to someone if you can. Therapy or just a friend. Don't carry this alone.
Three kids here and I've been in that exact headspace. The work stress bleeds into everything else and suddenly you feel like you're drowning everywhere at once. One thing that helped me was just accepting that some weeks are survival mode weeks. You're not failing, you're just in hard mode right now.
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Three kids here and I hit this wall too. Logically knowing you're doing okay doesn't stop your brain from spinning the failure story. Have you talked to your wife about feeling this way? Sometimes just saying it out loud helps.