I thought remote work was perfect for me, then one thing started messing with my head

When I first went remote I honestly felt like I won the lottery. No commute, no random office small talk, I could wear whatever, eat when I wanted, take quick breaks without feeling watched. I set up a small desk in my bedroom, got a decent chair, even bought a cheap lamp so it felt more “official.” For the first few months my productivity actually went up, I was calmer and way less drained by the end of the day. I kept telling friends this is how work is supposed to feel, like why would anyone ever want to go back.

The thing I wasn’t ready for was how fast my brain stopped separating work and life. It started small, checking Slack on my phone while making coffee, answering one email after dinner because “it’ll only take a minute.” Then my laptop started living on the couch with me, and I’d open it again at like 9pm just to “get ahead.” No one was asking me to do this either, which is the scary part. It was just this low level feeling that I could always do a bit more since I’m already home anyway. I didn’t even notice it happening until I realized I hadn’t fully shut off in weeks, even weekends felt kinda guilty.

Now I’m in this weird spot where remote work is still better in a lot of ways, but it quietly trained me to be always available and I hate that. I miss the hard line of leaving an office and knowing the day is done, even if the office itself sucked. I’m trying to reset things now, no work apps on my phone, laptop stays at the desk, actual lunch breaks, but it’s harder then I expected because the temptation is literaly right there. Did anyone else hit this after the honeymoon phase, and what actually helped?