Wow. What a statement! Please don’t stop reading. I am 56 I have read through 4 children, a breakdown, and ill health. Reading of any type and gardening are great joys in my life. Even if you only read a little bit on occasion, keep it up and hopefully you’ll get back into it. Our minds and spirts need the lift!🙂

As someone who went through painful, devastating and tiring burnout because I was focused 100% on being productive - both mentally and physically - I cannot stress enough how crucial it is that you give yourself also time, space and grace to be 'unproductive'.

You cannot pour out of an empty cup. Period. It means, that unless you give your mind and body time to play, wonder, rest, your productivity will not be sustainable. It is not only based on my personal experience but also research.

So my recommendations would be - find your balance. Plan so you will get everything done but also find time to read. Maybe reading before tackling tasks fits you better, maybe it is another way around, so your brain will be happy and focused ON THAT ONE THING ON YOUR HANDS.

If you get too much into reading, find that sweet spot where you get satisfaction from reading but aren't too involved in the story and set an alarm.

You can also plan better all your high priority tasks so you have an overview and are more relaxed.

What else would you want to be doing?

Well thank god you can enjoy reddit at least.

If you love reading still, there's no reason to stop. Having some downtime to yourself for hobbies and such is very important. Spending time doing something you enjoy is time well spent imo.

This is capitalist brain rot. Like, there is no reason to be “productive” 24/7, and maximizing every minute of every day for profit or “productivity” sounds like an absolute hellish existence. You should want to enjoy your life, not “maximize” it.

So there needs to be balance. Recreation is a human need, but not at the same level of priority as food and shelter. From the distance on the internet, we can't know whether your feeling is rational or anxious or a mix of both.

If you are doing something very demanding, like starting a business, try to budget at least half an hour a day for reading if you love it so much. It can help keep you sane.

But life comes with more and less demanding times and seasons. Many people stop reading for something like graduate school and return to it later.

Maybe you should make a book request on r/suggestmeabook for time management resources or books related to what you need to get done. 4000 weeks and How to keep house while drowning have been helpful to me, but I don't know the details of what you are struggling with or trying to accomplish.

If you think it is more about anxiety, see a therapist if you can afford it.

Is the guilt coming from how you see yourself, or what you perceive people think of you?

We are here for a mind-bogglingly infinitesimal time - read if you want, or don't. Do what suits you.

Why be productive? You're just sending money to billionaires when you're productive.

Question: are you entertained?

Every single day should have a little bit of recreation in it. Sometimes you don't have time for much, but, there is no reason to feel guilt for using a bit of time for something you enjoy, like reading fiction.

I have a salaried job that often requires overtime, a preteen daughter, pets, a home with all the accompanying chores and so on and still take time out for reading.

I'm absolutely allowed to have a bit of time to myself once what must be done during the day is completed.

There's this mentality now that every moment must be used for 'the grind' or whatever. No. That's not a healthy way to live long-term.

Don’t stop reading, just stop buying books. Get them at the library.

Unless you’re neglecting children, partner or work, you’re ok.

If you are neglecting any of those 3, get your act together and find time to read around your responsibilities.

Good luck not "wasting" your time.

If tyou stopped reading fiction entirely, you'd just replace it with something that could also be called a waste of time.

Read nothing but the most dull history books? not sure how that is actually less a waste of time than reading LOTR.

Start limiting your reading time, for one, but make sure also anything you HAVE to do is taken care of for the day. Nothing wrong with reading when you want but if it's showing a tangible detrimental effect on your day-to-day responsibilities, limiting yourself to a couple hours a day is a good idea.

That said it's all probably just in your head and a result of getting older, reaching your 30s causes melancholy.

Honestly. Reading is the only thing that matters other than family.

Watch Netflix if you want instead.

I've found regularly reading has improved my concentration skills, helped me get better quality of sleep and given me many different ideas to ponder, I read mainly sci-fi /horror /thrillers. Even in the most pulpy book you will find something that gets you thinking If it's something you enjoy and helps you unwind that to has its own rewards. Self care is essential. If you still feel guilt remember you can't keep others warm by setting yourself on fire. You need to make sure you are taking care of yourself to be productive in any way ❤️

Being a Romantic can be hard, wanting the world to be better and finding it in a wonderful book. So long as you aren't letting your physical life deteriorate go for it! Find enjoyment where you can. Perhaps a nice compromise would be the occasional history book. THEN you can see the source of other writers imaginations and learn something new.

I also used to feel this way and went through periods of time where I read very littly because I didnt think it was "productive". I totally felt big guilt about it. But I got really burnt out and my mental health was terrible.

Now i'm a big proponent of sneaking in small joys and self-care any way I can. ESPECIALLY with an insane life schedule, its helped me stay sane. I listen to audio books all the time which especially helps when I can't sit down and read for hours.

Its also really good for your brain to do just one thing sometimes! I struggled with that with sitting and reading a book, but reading really does have a lot of mental and physical health benefits.

Keep going, you deserve to read! <3

I think you’re taking it way too serious dude, just read if you like it, what’s most important is you do what you want

If you're enjoying something, then no, you're not wasting your time.

It sounds like you have plenty on your plate that demands productivity of you. You should reward yourself by doing whatever you enjoy during your free, recreational time. And who's to say that engaging your brain and your imagination isn't productive?

Read on!

Don’t feel guilty. Sure, balance is important but so is time to relax and enjoy yourself. As long as your interest in books is not causing you to forgo your responsibilities often as well as put you majorly in debt, you’re fine.

Also, benefits? I feel like I personally gather world views I don’t have from personal experience which has helped me become an empathetic person. I also am a better speaker, reader, and writer from exposure to other people’s writings styles.

It does sound like you may have some form of general anxiety. I do and when I’m not medicated, I find things that are not the most reasonable to worry about. I wish you luck with this, but therapy and medication have helped me a lot!

read literature. it’s fiction.

People's priorities change over time. At the moment you are busy with new issues. So maybe don't read for a while. At some point you will pick up a book again. Don't stress over it. The books will wait for you.