Took someone's job but they haven't left

[goldenfluffster]

I took a new job 1.5 years ago. Didn't realise when I accepted that I was effectively taking someone else's job. And to make it worse that person didn't leave they were "re-positioned". They are still close to my boss. They see my boss much more than I do (I live in a different country). They try to find out what I am doing - they talk to people I am working with, ask if certain things were my idea etc. the subtext is always negative. This isn't a normal work environment - there is no HR and my boss is not someone I can discuss this with. I am contemplating leaving but might stay. If I stay, does anyone have any advice for me as to how I can minimise the negative impact? I need to be my own cheerleader each day and it is exhausting and some days I just want to crawl under my duvet and not come out. I find I am numb in the evenings and can't interact properly with DH. I am good at working under pressure but I can't cope with this constant feeling that someone is watching and trying to find ways I am falling short.

This happened to me many years ago, the person I was replacing never left, I ended up being pushed around by the company from job to job most of them were awful and I knew that they were trying to get rid of me by making me fed up.
It didn't end well and I was sacked on very spurious grounds but fortunately I already had another job to go to and was just on the verge of resigning anyway.
(the woman I was supposed to be replacing was having an affair with the man who appointed me, she left her DH and kept her job instead of staying with her H and leaving her job!)
My advice to you is if the job/work situation is making you uncomfortable, is that you should look for something else, there could be something going on that you are not aware of. I'm not suggesting that your situation is in any way like mine was, but if things don't feel quite right they probably are not right.
It sounds to me that there could be something going on behind the scenes that you are not aware of.

That sounds like a nightmare...I think you are right and my gut feeling is that something isn't right. I am speaking to some people about new jobs but that won't take off properly until the new year (firms are worried about the economic climate and want to give it a few more months before they commit to recruitment). I feel completely defeated and deflated today and I can't tell the difference between paranoia and genuine justified concern anymore