[Udo]

It's hard to disagree with the general sentiment, but trading a life for a computing project is not really what happened here. Software development does not cause mental illness. In some cases, stressful jobs contribute to a person's mental degradation - but it's not like there was ever an option of trading in this guys passion for technology in exchange for a healthy brain.

[flexd]

I feel the real message of the article/letter is to take better care of yourself. No project is worth ending up in a situation where you feel life is not worth living, and while software and other computer things are cool and for most of us probably both work and a hobby, it's important to take a break from things.

I know I would go absolutely crazy if I could not go outside to do things like ride a mountain bike, eat some ice cream or simply just not sit in front of a monitor every day.

If you are feeling stressed, take a break. :)

Edit:

I know it can be hard, and I know people who suffer from depressions can seem perfectly fine.

A girl I went to school with recently killed herself, much to my surprise, as through my very limited contact with her these past years she seemed very happy in a relationship and about to finish school. The next thing I know she had ended her life. Depression is not something to be taken lightly.

I wish I had known, and I wish there was something I could have done or said.

[cynicalkane]

That's a false dichotomy. The author of the article is suggesting you can trade obsession with technology for a healthier brain, and that this trade may have cost a life in this instance. Also, passion need not be obsession.

[marketer]

Programming all day isn't what our bodies are genetically designed to do. Programming involves countless hours of ruminative thoughts, and limiting human contact, and stress, all of which are ingredients for mental illness.

[dspillett]

> Software development does not cause mental illness.

Correct, no job/task does.

But burnout can, and any task/job/what-ever can cause that if you let yourself get into an unhealthy cycle while performing it. Development seems to be a task that is more prone to this though, I think because with many other tasks (that are more physical) other parts of your body tend to give out first and you have to take a break (if only to sleep or (eventually) pass out if you don't sleep voluntarily) before the point where your brain jumps track.

[sidcool]

That's not what's mentioned in the email. It's clearly said that mental illness is almost like an offshoot of intelligence, not software development. The phrase 'trading life for a computing project' was a metaphor. I knew before starting to read the comments that there will be people scrutinizing the email literally and giving their opinions. Jeff clearly mentions that obsessing over one thing is not worth it. Life's much more beautiful than that. This is not just for coding, but any profession requiring such heavy use of intelligence.

[rhizome]

Do you know of a stressful job that improves a person's mental state rather than degrades it? That is, what proportion of cases is "[i]n some cases?"