In the fast-paced cryptocurrency industry, overworking and long hours are the norm, but decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol AAVE founder, Stani Kulechov, learned the hard way that sacrificing your health is never worth it.

“My normal working hours have been a minimum of 12 hours and often more for years,” he explained while revealing that he underwent surgery to remove one of his organs on July 27, as per a recent blog post.

“I want to share my story about what happened, hoping it might be helpful for everyone, especially for founders and builders who are tirelessly working on their startups, to appreciate their health,” he stated, explaining that he first felt the pain while assisting a friend move a drum kit many years ago.

“While helping to move the drums, I started to feel radiating pain in my back, which I thought was muscle pain or from sitting too much. The pain got so bad that I could not stay put that night. It was gone the next day, and I thought it was over,” he said, only for it to return years later.

“I didn’t go to the doctor as I had a full schedule that week and some upcoming events the week after,” Kulechov added.

Kulechov ignored advice to get MRI scan

However, in 2019, persistent pain led to a midnight ambulance call, but no diagnosis was made.

He was advised to get an MRI scan, which he admits he neglected due to work priorities. As the pain only got worse, his partner insisted he get the MRI, leading to Kulechov discovering the root cause of the pain.

“I went for an MRI and discovered there was a large enough gallstone in the gallbladder that could not pass or could get stuck after passing from the gallbladder,” he explained.

Even then, Kulechov’s heavy workload led him to postpone the surgery. However, after experiencing “the biggest attack and almost fainting” on July 22, he was compelled to schedule the surgery within the same week.

"I was lucky to have the surgery done as we discovered that my gallbladder was completely wrecked," he explained.

Kulechov warns fellow crypto founders

Kulechov now warns other crypto founders that sacrificing their health for productivity will not lead to better results.

“I hope this can be a reminder to everyone that success is measured in the longevity of constant output, and to have longevity, you need health. There is no other way around,” he said.

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“I also don’t believe anymore after my experience that founders and builders can achieve the best outcomes if they are not fully healthy,” he added while noting that the crypto industry isn't a typical 9 to 5 job.

“It feels to me that crypto works around the clock, and since messaging moved more to instant messaging combined with all the time zones, it easily feels like work never ends,” he said.

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