“If you feel stressed and dissatisfied by family life, for instance, then work can be used as a wonderful excuse for never being home. If your work gives you pleasure and you get positive feedback from colleagues, if you feel in control when you are there, if you have power and status and feel productive and creative, it is easy to immerse yourself in work. In can be intoxicating and addicting, just like alcohol. And it provides a socially acceptable alibi for not being available for the family since there is always more work than you can possibly get done. Some people drown themselves in their job. Most do it unconsciously, with all the best intentions in the world, because deep down they are reluctant to face other aspects of their lives and the need to strike a healthy balance.”
Jon Kabat-Zin “Full Catastrophe Living” Bantam Books