I’m the "fixer" for everyone else, but I’m drowning. How do I survive the next 6 months?

Serious

I’m turning to Reddit because I don't know who else to ask. I’m usually the guy people come to for help. I’m a project lead, I solve problems for a living, and I have a habit of over-functioning, over-helping colleagues (even ones who left the company) and taking on work that isn't mine. I never asked for anything in return.

But this quarter, I got hit by a bus. Actually, 4 buses. I’m 32, and in the span of a few months i faced:

  • Workplace Violence: A director physically grabbed me by the neck in the office. I froze. I didn't fight back. My ego is crushed, and a girl I like saw it happen. It happened last week, and I'll have to go through reporting it and dealing with it this Monday.

  • Financial loss: I lost all the gains i made on my portoflio this year. I'm basically down to what my portfolio was in 2024.

  • Legal/Passport Limbo: My embassy is refusing to renew my passport due to a bureaucratic technicality (birth region), i have to travel to my birthplace and fo through screening. I know it's strange, but it's a common thing in some parts of asia.

  • Career Trap: I quit my job, but I’m stuck in a 6-month notice period where they will probably try to drain every ounce of blood I have left.

I feel numb. I feel like I’m in "survival mode" 24/7. Today I snapped at my dad over something stupid (car tires) because I literally have no emotional battery left.

Here is my struggle: I know logically that these are "rare events," but emotionally I feel like I’m failing. I don't know how to switch from "Helping Everyone Else" to "Ruthless Self-Preservation." I feel guilty when I say no, but I’m dying when I say yes.

I'm also somehow not panicking, or having dangerous thoughts about them. I genuinely think that I'm delt with some bad events, but nothing lasts and I'll eventually get out of them. Just like i was dealt eith good events and i enjoyed them I'll have to endure the bad.

What I need from you: I need a framework or a perspective shift. I don't have anyone to talk to about this, i don't know how to let people help me. I know how to help them though. I also want to hear your opinions on:

  • How do I carry myself at work for the next 6 months knowing I’m leaving, while recovering from the humiliation of the assault?

  • How do I stop feeling guilty for not helping others when I can barely help myself?

  • Has anyone survived a "cluster" of bad luck like this? Does it actually end?

I want to look back at this in 6 months and say I handled it with dignity, and with care for myself. Right now, I just feel like I’m holding my breath, trying to walk through it all.

Posted Dec 13, 2025, 10:48 AM UTC

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