Genuine feedback on campaign experience and length

I played about 1000h of PoE1, and the campaign there is just a breeze and feels well-paced, and more often than not I like playing the campaign more than maps, as I feel progress and character development far better because more power is tied to inherent growth with passives and skill gem levels, and gear is only part of the power curve. Thus it's more often than not a perfectly balanced experience to play through the 10 acts.

First off, for a first-time PoE2 player with nothing to do or goals to reach but to play the campaign, it is absolutely stunning. It delivers a massive experience and allows for constant progression and motivation to play each map and experience the story. The maps feel like real locations and immersion is there. Overall, great design for a first-time experience and not much endgame.
But for the second, third, or fourth time, and as a "normal" player, I fail to grasp how to steam through it without getting hung up all the time. It took me like 5 hours to reach the end of Act 2 now, and that's not even halfway through the campaign, and I already feel exhausted. The minute-to-minute gameplay is fantastic on paper and in reality, but it just drags me in the background, draining concentration and energy, so after a session of 4 hours I don't feel like I had fun, I feel like I need to lay down.

I did not have these issues in the past with PoE1. I could breeze through the campaign in 8 hours in two sessions and reach maps and had enough energy and motivation to keep going.
But here I don't even want to progress the campaign anymore. It's just not nearly possible for me to just sprint through and survive while not getting outpaced because I did not find the correct gear and skill gems on the way. I don't want to sprint through 4 levels only to realize I'm heavily outleveled and the struggle then only becomes real.

As you guys heavily practice on: "hear the problems, ignore the solutions". I forget my good manners of constructive feedback, so I just whine here and let you guys figure out why the campaign works for the first time but not for the second, third, or, God forbid, fourth time.
It's just too long, too draining, and too demotivating for me.

I mean, I will try to reach the endgame to see what amazing systems you built, but I won't promise I make it. Overall, it makes me depressed there is such an odd barrier of design here that prevents me from seeing the new stuff.