My experience : Intellectually my post-doc was amazing because I finally felt I was a world-leader in my field. I was attending the right conferences, mentored

My experience : Intellectually my post-doc was amazing because I finally felt I was a world-leader in my field. I was attending the right conferences, mentored by the right people, and showing that I could hold my own with heavy weights. Psychologically it was taxing. I was very strict about keeping work/life separate which was good. However, my research itself was very isolating and I found my self drinking far more than I should to cope with the scientific and economic stress of the job. Health-wise it was challenging. Drinking problem aside, my hair went grey, my hypertension spiked, and I gained 50 pounds. The work schedule and accommodations of the university made exercising just too hard to fit into a normal schedule. During grad school I worked out 3-6 times per week, during my post-doc I could barely fit in once per week. Economically it was near disastrous. Quite frankly, if I didn't have outside support I wouldn't have been able to make rent. Even with that, I ran up about 10K in credit card debt and was forced to each rice/beans, and dollar menu lunches just to keep my head above water. I was the highest paid post-doc in the building and I was one mishap away from bankruptcy. In the end, I jumped ship. I had a very good shot a landing a faculty position (multiple top tier first author papers), but it just wasn't worth it. The stress, moving, and lost income was just too much of a burden. So instead I took a job at a quasi-academic institute and tripled my income. I regret nothing.