Feeling like I started my career too early at 18

I started working for a tech company two years ago. I have quite a lot of responsibility in my role and generally have worked on interesting things. But now I feel more tired than usual. I spend a lot of time at a screen every day.

I have always worked from home, communicating with colleagues around the world. Quite a few of my colleagues are in a timezone greatly offset from me so working hours can be hectic.

I sometimes feel that I started all of this too early. I have learned a lot but am now struggling to get out there and meet new people. Because I work from home, I find it all too easy just to keep going with the status quo. As a result, most of the people I know are internet friends rather than those I have met. COVID deters me from travelling so I have only been one place to make new friends in the last few months and nothing really stuck.

I'm in a rut and I wish I had more friends. Although starting on that front isn't easy as I don't know many people near to me (and those that I did know are mostly away to uni).

Even in my free time, I feel like I have to be working on something tangible (which seems to be an occupational hazard if you write code!).