'It seems like I’m losing all of my sanity': Indian techie based in US talks about mental distress—viral post

An Indian techie working on an H-1B visa recently shared how working in a toxic environment and staying alone in the US is taking a toll on his mental health.

Indian techie working in US opens up about mental health issues

The techie posted on Reddit that he works in data engineering, writing complex SQL statements for business logic. He disclosed that even though he does not mind the grind of the work, his mental health has been suffering of late. The techie mentioned missing his parents and not having any friends. 

"I live alone with my cat, i make decent money so i can afford a car. In my job, i have no respect from anybody. Nor do i have any say on what i work on, i am constantly micromanaged and in meetings always interjected by my PM. Work frustration aside, i really miss staying close to my parents. I have no friends here or honestly not many friends in india," the user wrote in his post. 

The US-based techie said that back home, he lives in a very polluted area of Mumbai.

"In india, my house is always extremely loud due to traffic and i live in a very polluted area of mumbai. There are no parks or activities for me except maybe the gym. It seems like i am losing all of my sanity. I do want to progress but something within me is terrified of moving forward," the user commented. 

3 years of job, planning of returning to india because of mental health
byu/ryanhiga2019 inreturnToIndia

Netizens react

The post went viral on Reddit, with netizens sharing their takes.

"Are you married or not? If you don’t have dependents, then living in the US alone is not rewarding," a user commented. 

"Living in the US is a foolish thing as of now. Trump is not going to let you get the green card. Canada is not easy either. I moved to the US in 1999, which is the biggest mistake in my life, and I regret till now. Look into India, Philippines, New Zealand and Australia, maybe a good option," a second user shared. 

"If you do not have any financial commitments (credit card payments, education loan etc.) then happily return back to India. I understand your concerns of infrastructure back home, but the Privilege of having family besides is more than anything else in this world," another user reasoned. 

"Prioritize your health. You can work in India for 1-2 year and come back later on H1b or L1 visa. Being around parents helps a lot," another Redditor said. 

"Switch jobs! Not an easy option but worth the effort. India is no better. And you earn way less back home. Micromanagement seems to a national pastime among bosses!!! Weigh your options, pick the lesser evil. My 2 cents," someone else shared.

Also read: ‘AI coding tools cut down work time from 3, 4 days to literally 1 hour,' says Perplexity CEO (startuppedia.in)