Nobody tells you how much it costs to care this much. Elton was just another cold-stunned turtle on a Massachusetts beach, and I was just another tired scientist, staring at numbers that never felt like enough. We patched him up, we cheered when he swam again, but I kept thinking about the ones we didn’t save. Everyone says every rescue matters. But after the applause, it’s just me, fluorescent lights, and the echo of my own doubt. For every Elton, there are a dozen silent failures—species slipping away, protocols that don’t work, nights I can’t sleep because I know the ocean is still warming. I used to think I was saving the world. Now I just hope I’m not losing myself in the process. #Science #ScienceFatigue #ConservationBurnout