Life’s hard right now – and I know I’m not the only one to feel this way. Things that haven’t bothered me, in some cases years, are rearing their ugly heads and I’m finding it harder and harder to cope. Not to mention the ongoing work stress (thankfully I have the support of my Supervisor’s Supervisors and they have intervened in my favor!!!) and the fact of heading into winter and the long cold months ahead… things are challenging!
The song “Numb Little Bird” by Em Beihold really nails it:
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“Do you ever get a little bit tired of life?
Like you’re not really happy, but you don’t wanna die
Like you’re hanging by a thread, but you gotta survive
‘Cause you gotta survive
Like your body’s in the room, but you’re not really there
Like you have empathy inside, but you don’t really care
Like you’re fresh out of love, but it’s been in the air
Am I past repair?
A little bit tired of trying to care when I don’t
A little bit tired of quick repairs to cope
A little bit tired of sinking, there’s water in my boat
I’m barely breathing, trying to stay afloat
So, I’ve got these quick repairs to cope
Guess I’m just broken and broke”
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I have never felt a song describes how I’m feeling so perfectly until this one. Even when I was going through my mental health issues last year, every med tech and doctor I saw asked me if I felt like hurting myself.
No – absolutely not! Because I know these hard times won’t last – they never do! Just like the good times never last. But I believe that you need to go through the bad days to really appreciate the good days. And the good times don’t encourage growth – bad times do.
So what is “mental fatigue”?
Mental fatigue is when your brain feels exhausted – that you’re mentally and emotionally drained. It can be brought on by a variety of factors including a challenging life event, demanding job, or procrastination. It’s usually the result of prolonged stress and can leave you feeling overwhelmed, irritable, and detached. Tasks, no matter how simple, now feel cumbersome.
4 Emotional signs of Mental Fatigue:
🔹️Anxiety
🔹️Languishing – emptiness and stagnation
🔹️Low resilience
🔹️Depression
4 Physical signs of Mental Fatigue:
🔹️Physical fatigue
🔹️Sleep Issues
🔹️Increase in illness
🔹️Poor eating habits
6 Tips for Coping with Mental Fatigue
🔹️Create a Self-Care plan – do something that brings you genuine joy
🔹️Engaging in regular exercise – exercise actually increases energy and helps alleviate stress
🔹️Eat a nutritious diet – what you eat directly impacts your mental and emotional state
🔹️Fix your circadian rhythm – set a sleep schedule and stick to it – sleep helps alleviate anxiety and stress
🔹️Stay organized – clean your space as clutter causes stress
🔹️Strengthen mental fitness – meditating, being present, or expressing gratitude
Also don’t be afraid to talk to your doctor and see about getting bloodwork done to determine whether you’re deficient in any vitamins or minerals such as Vit D, B12, or iron. If you are on any current medication, double check the side effects. You may also have an undiagnosed medical condition that may be the culprit – or suffering from a mental health issue.
If you can identify what is causing your mental fatigue, see if accommodations can be made – for me, it’s work. The work itself isn’t hard – just the volume can get a little much sometimes. But a lot of it is my Supervisor. For the past however long, I’ve been working from home on Wednesdays – earlier in the spring, the Commanding Officer (CO) advised that they would support WFH once or twice a week as a “mental health break” from the office. However, due to inconsistencies with my Supervisor, she threatened to take that day away. I brought it up with her Supervisor, and he assured me that both he and the CO support me continuing to work from home
But the stress from work, then the stress from the dental work over the last week (twice in 5 days) which was extremely stressful and painful. We also had to tell our parents we weren’t coming home for Christmas. Plus everything health wise I’ve been dealing with over the past year… the weather is cold and it’s dark all the time.
Mental Fatigue is hard to deal with! But as someone reminded me, you’ve survived 100% of the hard days you’ve gone through up to now!
You can do this!