High Salary Worker Quit Her Job To Avoid Public Speaking — 'I Valued My Life And Sanity'

Many people see public speaking as an annoying yet unavoidable aspect of climbing up the corporate ladder. The more senior of a position you hold and the more people you oversee, the more frequent speeches and presentations inevitably become.

Yet, fear of public speaking is actually the most common phobia.

One woman on Reddit who has such a fear explained that her recent promotion, which she neither “wanted nor asked for,” required a great deal of public speaking. After trying everything she could to decrease her fears, the stress got to be too much and she quit the job to protect her peace.

A high-salary worker quit her job to avoid public speaking.

The woman explained that her new role "required regular meetings of 10+ with frequent presentations plus many ad-hoc larger presentations to 75+ people on a regular basis.

"Throughout my life and career, I have always despised public speaking but tried my best to get through it," she added.

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The woman tried everything she could to decrease her fear. Still, her mental health was suffering. 

She emphasized in her post that her fear of public speaking wasn’t simply a rush of nervousness before presentations or feeling sweaty during meetings; it was a deep-rooted anxiety that provoked an unsustainable amount of stress. 

Even before receiving the promotion, she tried everything possible to overcome her fear. 

"I [went] to Toastmasters to try and help my anxiety. I also do therapy with a psychologist who specializes in public speaking anxiety. She [tried] hypnosis and EMDR. I also [learned] meditation, box breathing, reframing," she admitted. "None of it helped me. I actually think it made it worse since I kept having severe panic despite all of the efforts being thrown at it."

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She also tried medications, which helped a little but not enough.

Within the first month in her new role, the woman's mental and physical health suffered drastically. “I lost 20 pounds and my hair was falling out in clumps due to [the] stress,” she shared. “I had multiple panic attacks a day and I was becoming suicidal. This reaction stemmed from a deep-seated phobia of public speaking."

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With the support of her family, husband, and boss, she quit her job to protect her peace.

"I valued my life and sanity over accomplishing public speaking," she admitted. "Would it be great to conquer this fear? Sure. Am I willing to ruin my sanity and become suicidal to go through it? NO."

Once she decided to find a job better suited to her personality and skills, her entire life changed for the better.

"People just need to respect that what works for one isn’t necessarily going to work for someone else. Everyone has their own personal limits, and we should respect that instead of condemning people or telling them that 'they shouldn’t quit,'" she insisted. "Sometimes people’s lives and sanity are on the line."

Luckily, everything seems to have worked out for the woman, as she shared in a comment that she has since found a new job that "celebrates [her] other skills and doesn’t force public speaking on [her]."

"I also told my bosses about my anxiety and they have made every action to accommodate me," she happily added. "I feel blessed and I will honestly remember these people for the rest of my life because of their kindness and empathy towards me."

It is possible to decrease fear of public speaking; however, it's also valid to choose not to. 

While there are ways to tackle fears of public speaking for a job — many of which this Reddit woman attempted — she was well within her right to find a new, more suitable position that didn't require her to sacrifice her personal peace and mental stability.

Yet, it's important to note, that not everyone has the luxury to do so. Many rely so heavily on their income that they can't risk quitting. However, that doesn't mean you must resign yourself to a life of unending anxiety and stress. Therapy, medication, and preparation techniques can help.

Still, at the end of the day, your job is just a job, and it's not worth destroying your health. If you’re not feeling safe, comfortable, and happy — you can choose to leave.

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Zayda Slabbekoorn is a News & Entertainment Writer at YourTango who focuses on health & wellness, social policy, and human interest stories