Burnout from always holding it together
When being the reliable one, the calm one, or the capable one leaves you depleted behind the scenes.
If you are the person others count on, you may receive less permission to fall apart, including from yourself.
Holding it together can mean anticipating everyone else’s needs, minimizing your own, and saving your collapse for private moments.
Over time, the gap between how you appear and how you feel becomes its own source of exhaustion.
Therapy helps you examine roles you did not consciously choose and practice support that does not require performing stability.