#insomnibrarian

A huge life event happened: I became a library branch manager last year. I will wholeheartedly admit that this is the most stressful library job I have ever taken on, but also very rewarding in the way I have been able to help a community who expressed previously feeling under-served. I never had interest in management but several people from my library system recommended me for the position ...and a lot of pressure was involved.

A small life event: It turns out my chronic insomnia is a comorbidity of narcolepsy! I'm falling asleep and being awake at inappropriate times because my brain's circuits are misfiring. It also explains why I've been self-medicating with caffeine since adolescence...

Another life event: I got to meet Mychal Threets! The Illinois Library Association Annual Conference was in my city last year and I got to hear him speak and take a photo with him.

I'm trying to remain resilient through all of the hurdles life has been throwing at me (and it's been a lot), and fight through burnout. But as I view this image of Mychal Threets, I remember that he quit his library job due to burnout. We have to protect our mental health!

I say all that to say: I don't know what exactly the future holds for me. I will definitely still be working in libraries, but I may not be a manager for much longer. I will extrapolate more on that at a later time.