It feels like there is something pressing against me when I give a damn. I mean, the result is appreciated, but I feel like the culture around me hates me for being willing to make the sacrifice necessary to get there.
You absorb the energy of the people around you. And if the people around you fail to give a damn about the things you care about, you run the risk of losing own energy for it, too.
I don't, in the end, know the best solution for your case. But whatever you do, protect that spark that makes everyone look at you like an ear is growing out of your forehead.