Yes the money is real. And yes, I can personally tell you, steemit, in a day, can pay you enough to be a real job. As the price goes up, it can be a good one. I can also say it is very draining and frustrating to work your ass off on something and not get rewarded for it, especially when you see a post on the trending list you feel is not as good as yours. I understand all of that. But this site is not a job, you have zero responsibilities here and on the other side of things, you should not get mad at anyone for their success. It is a tool, a useful one to get your content out there and you can use it however you like. Post 10 times a day or once a week. Do not let other people frustrate you and please do not give people shit if they are doing well. We do need proper criticism to help drive this site in the right direction but we can do it in a civil way.
If, for some reason, this site is casing you stress. Walk away. Post less. Take two weeks off and post then. Post something different like your photography if you do articles. Try commenting only. There are no responsibilities here and it is not worth getting frustrated over. When money is involved people can get nasty, do not let it get to you. Do your thing and be happy with your success.
This post came from someone who is leaving the site who seemed like a cool person. I do not want to call them out just to say, to anyone, try not to take things personally, especially online. If you like making content and want a place to share it, this is a great site. If news users come in and become trolly, do not let that change your experience. And if you really want to walk away, I wish you all the best, but keep the site in mind and maybe come back in a few months. Your account, and a lot of us, are not going anywhere.
*my upvotes/rep disclaimer: @whatageek/my-steemit-account-where-i-stand-on-bots-self-votes-and-multiple-account