I am functioning so well inside depletion that I think people have stopped seeing there is a problem at all

Dear Delyara, The work gets done. The meals happen. The forms are signed. The children get held. The shopping gets bought. The texts get answered. My face still looks like a woman coping. And because of that, nobody really has to ask what competence is costing me. Inside, joy is thinner. Patience is more expensive. Ordinary tasks feel heavier. The sense of self feels flatter by evening. I am less alive inside the same life that still appears externally organised. I think burnout can wear competence beautifully. That is what makes it so difficult to interrupt in time. I am afraid I am living that version right now.