<prompt> Human: Long time lurker, first time poster. I hope this is in the right spot.To hit the bullet points quickly, heres my current situation.Only debt is in a car payment 350mo minimum payment, currently laying out 500mo and a mortgage 2,500mo. I use credit cards for the points, but pay them in full every month.Have an emergency fund built up to 5 months, 47k in savings and try to keep around 10k in the checking account.401k is maxed out. Its a new account, and only has about 8k in it. My wife is the primary breadwinner in the family, pulling in close to 90k. We just had a baby a month ago. Ive been in the same job for the past decade or so, with the same company. Its the only company Ive ever worked with - having never changed jobs before. I climbed through some ranks to get where I am, but I have hit the top of the ladder and there is no where else to go. I make roughly 55k, and do whatever freelance work I can on the side to supplement. We also rent out a separate entry living space for 1,000month.Now the fun stuff... My job is an hour with no traffic from home. We moved 4 years ago, but I kept the job. I put in 70 hoursweek, 6 days a week, usually out of the house at 6am and home at 8 or 9pm for 10 months out of the year. I figure my commuting costs gas, tolls, regular car maintenance costs me close to 9,000 embellished on the low side. Im often depressed and exhausted, and I am having a hard time deciding if its worth it or not.I recently received two job offers... One has a strikingly similar schedule, with a 35k salary on top of commissions. 6 days a week, 10 hoursday, 12 month position. No vacation or sick time, no paid leave at all, no 401k, no healthdentalvision. Its 15 minutes from home with no bridgestollshighways.Other offer is 31k, 4 minutes from home, health, dental, vision, 2 weeks paid vacation, unlimited use it but dont abuse it sick time, 5 day work week, 9-5. 31k does not include holiday bonuses, performance based bonuses every 6 months, and overtime, which is available. No 401k. Its a very small, but reasonably stable company. Been around for 15 years, and has doubled its economic growth each of the past 4 years.Im struggling a lot with the decision, because I know that financially, staying in my current position will be the most lucrative, also the most detrimental to my mental health. As a college dropout, Ive found it very difficult to get interviews. Every summer, like clockwork, I go through a stage of depression because Im never home, I never see my wife, and it feels like all I have time to do is work and sleep, often skipping meals and losing an unhealthy amount of weight.My wife is a lovely woman who wants me happy, and also wants me around to witness the milestones of our newborn son. She thinks I should take the local job with weekends off, and never mind the pay cut. Wed have to tighten the budget a bit until we get acclimated, but ultimately, she wants the happy me, even if the happy me makes less money.PersonalFinance... is mental health a factor in making a job decision? All of my math says that financially, well be ok. My gut says one thing, but my upbringing and social conditioning are telling me that I should just take the highest paying job, regardless of the downsides. This little voice in my head is screaming life is hard... youll just have to deal with it!TLDR: Should I take a significant pay cut just because it may make me happier? Or should I tough it out at with the highest paying offer that grinds me down?Thanks in advance for your thoughts on the matter.Edit: Guys and gals, I just want to sincerely thank you for your valuable thoughts and input. My gut has been in a knot as I have tried to sort this all out, and you have quite honestly made the decision much easier for me. As a first time poster, I have been inspired by all of you and your thoughtful generosity, in offering your time and knowledge to help a complete stranger. Assistant: To answer your question: YES! Mental Health is a huge factor in making a job decision. JO2 seems like a no brainer to me. Practically no commute is huge. If you say you get depressed when you cant see your wife due to the commutehours just think how depressed you might get when you wont be able to see your wife and son? Plus, if you are working that much and have a long commute then putting ALL added responsibility of taking care of your son on your wife just isnt fair. Id want to be there to help bathe him, to help rock him to sleep, to be around when hes a little older to coach his sports teams etc.JO2 seems like a no brainer. PLUS it should give you time to pick up more freelance work which you dont seem to be factoring in.Human: Only reason I dont factor in freelancing is that its no guarantee. I may have all the time in the world, but if business is slow, business is slow. Thank you for thoughts. To me it just feels a bit selfish... but the more of these comments I read, and the more I talk about it with people, Im finding that maybe its ok to be a little selfish when it comes to these decisions.  <response>: JO2 is the clear choice. Who are you being selfish to? Your wife? Your child? They would be much better off having more time with you, and you being happier, than a little extra money. 