I think the toughest part is realising that Life can be absolutely fucking brutal for no reason and out of nowhere. I think many of us were raised to believe that if we did things a certain way or achieved certain things that we’d have a level of protection against the worst life can throw. Like, working hard or getting a decent job or finding a good partner. And the next thing you know, boom, you’re in an accident and bed ridden for months. Or boom, someone you love gets a terrible addiction. Or boom, miscarriage. Boom, fire. And the older I get the more I see it happen to others too - no one is exempt.
Stop thinking about productivity and start thinking about accomplishment.
Productivity is a liar; if you go down that hole deep enough, eventually you'll start feeling guilty for sleeping, or taking a minute longer in the shower than necessary. There is no way for a functioning human being to be 100% productive. But if you're a perfectionist (and you absolutely are), you'll never stop trying.
What accomplishment does is a) focuses your mind on things that are actually important, and b) emphasizes success (rewards) rather than the never-ending sludge of time-utilization. If your goal is perfect time-utilization (100% productivity), an accomplishment stops being a reward and becomes a speed bump. That's no way to live.
Understand that you have been spending all your time fighting not to lose rather than fighting to win. So what really matters to you? What do you consider an accomplishment?
But accomplishments don't have to be big things like degrees, at least not exclusively. If a clean kitchen is important to you, getting the dishes done at night is an accomplishment. If you like the outdoors, or want to exercise, going for a walk is an accomplishment.
Sitting down each morning and asking, "What do I want to accomplish today?" is so much more invigorating than, "How can I optimize my time today?" Accomplishments anticipate success and pride; optimization anticipates endurance and tedium. Accomplishment is an offensive charge towards victory, while optimization is a defensive war of attrition.
(Sidenote: All those people who talk about "dedicating your life to one thing" have fallen deep into the productivity trap. If you can't do something with 100% efficiency, 100% of the time, it's not worth doing at all. It's bullshit.
Analysis paralysis is a form of procrastination. You're analyzing your options endlessly so you never actually have to get anything done. I spent a few years procrastinating like this, too.
Getting over it requires a mindset modification. As you've discovered, "I want my every waking move to be perfect" is an unrealistic and debilitating goal. Yes, the desire to make good decisions is good. But the desire to make perfect decisions, although well-intentioned, is misguided and will ultimately drive you crazy and ensure you never make a move toward anything.
The key is to shift away from this idea that you will jump straight to perfection every time you do something. Instead, spend a little time coming to a decision that's good enough, then resolve to spend the rest of your time learning as much as you can from the outcome.
"BUT WHAT IF I CHOOSE THE LESS-THAN-BEST OPTION?! I MIGHT AS WELL KILL MYSELF, RIGHT?" See, this is a toxic idea. Wrong, wrong, wrong. You know what happens if, after a good honest effort to make a decent decision, you end up choosing something less-than-stellar? You use what you learn from that to make a slightly better decision next time. And then you use the outcome of that to make a better decision the next time. You make iterative moves toward what you think you want, and you grow as your story unravels.
You have to humble yourself to the reality that the outcomes you're looking for don't necessarily happen instantaneously. Sometimes you'll make a choice you really liked. Other times, it's a process of a couple tries before you make it to something you consider optimal.