10 Signs You're Mentally Exhausted
We so often get stuck in such a groundhog’s day routine that we don’t take time to pause and evaluate how we’re feeling or check in with ourselves. We’re always too busy making sure everything and everyone else is okay. As noble as that is in part, it always ends up biting us in the ass. Because if you’re not okay, you won’t be of use to anyone else. In order to help others, we must first help ourselves. If that sounds wrong to you or like some self-care propaganda junk, then just think about the instructions the flight attendants give us before the plane takes off. When it comes to the oxygen mask part of the talk, they always instruct the adults and caregivers to put on their oxygen masks first, BEFORE they put them on their children. Again, this is because if YOU are not okay, then you won’t be able to make sure anyone else is okay.
ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS take care of you. It’s one of the very best and most loving acts you can do to ensure that you’re able to take care of the ones you love.
Okay, so let’s see if you’re showing signs of mental exhaustion. Let’s see if today is your wake up call to take better care of yourself and to carve out some time to do just that.
10 Signs You're Mentally Exhausted
1. You Are Easily Irritated
Irritation is a normal human emotion, but when it starts popping up frequently or in unwarranted situations, maybe take a deeper look.
You find the smallest things make you angry and irritated. Often you’ll become very escalated in a very short time when normally it would take much longer for you to get so upset.
You start to become irritated about something that hasn’t even happened yet (an upcoming event) or about something that may not even happen at all (a perceived issue you fear happening).
You might find yourself having little to no patience with people. People will notice you being short with them and may even mention it to you.
2. You Cry Easily
There is absolutely nothing wrong with crying and can actually be very healing and cathartic but if it’s happening over and over again, it’s time we ask ourselves why.
You find yourself crying over things that do not warrant that reaction, like perhaps you dropped a plate, burnt a pizza, or forgot to mail something out.
You find yourself crying when you have even the smallest disagreement or less than great interaction with someone.
You find yourself crying or tearing up when you feel frustrated.
3. You Have No Motivation
We all have ebbs and flows and sometimes we are more motivated than other times but when no motivation becomes our constant state, we need to look further.
You have no mental energy to do even the simplest things. Everything seems to overwhelm you, even small things that never bothered you before.
You find yourself wanting to be alone a lot more. Being with others or even having conversations with others is something you don’t want to do.
You find yourself dreading just about everything on your calendar.
You have let the house and other regular chores go. You just have no motivation to keep up on things anymore.
4. You Are Absentminded
A little absentmindedness is normal and we all experience it here and there depending what’s on our minds and how busy we are in the moment but if it becomes a regular issue, we need to recognize it and address it.
You are constantly forgetting things: where you put something, appointments, conversations, important dates, etc.
You find yourself constantly lost in thought and unaware of what is going on around you. You feel ‘out of it’ a lot.
You cannot focus on a task and/or have trouble concentrating.
You find yourself making a lot more simple mistakes.
5. You Are Pessimistic
It’s impossible to be positive and sunshine-y at all times but if we find ourselves being pessimistic all the time, there’s a reason for that kind of a shift.
You find yourself thinking negative thoughts about most things even though you were never a negative thinker before.
People may have mentioned to you that you were negative or calling you out as a Debbie Downer type recently.
You find yourself thinking worst-case scenario in a lot of situations.
You expect everything to go wrong and believe nothing good will happen to you.
6. You Are Anxious
Anxiety is a normal emotion that we will all undoubtedly feel depending on what’s going on in our lives but if we start feeling anxious regularly or daily, this is something we need to address.
You find yourself having anxiety in situations that would have never made you anxious before.
You find yourself feeling anxious before being around people or having to perform a task when normally you would not.
You often feel a heaviness in your chest for most of the day.
7. You Are Having Stomach Problems
Medical scientists have proved that there is a powerful connection between our brains and our guts (The Gut-Brain Connection). Outside of our brains, our digestive tracks house our bodies’ largest amount of nerves. Anxiety has a direct effect on our stomachs and entire digestive tract.
Your stomach will start hurting as soon as you start stressing or worrying about something.
You are having regular stomach aches for no particular reason.
You are having an increase in gastrointestinal or GERD issues: diarrhea, nausea, constipation, acid reflux, etc.
8. You Are Having Headaches
Almost everybody develops a tension headache from time to time. It’s when you start developing headaches or migraines quite regularly that you might want to look into why. Very often it has to do with an increase in stress or anxiety.
You find yourself having headaches on a regular basis whereas before they were infrequent.
You develop a headache when you start to stress or worry.
9. You Are Fatigued
We can’t all be Energizer bunnies constantly but when we find ourselves constantly fatigued, it’s important to look into it a little further. When our emotional or mental health is suffering, it is very common to feel physically fatigued, whether we are getting the proper sleep or not.
You find yourself having difficulty sleeping when that wasn’t an issue before: trouble falling asleep, staying asleep, lots of tossing and turning, etc.
You are getting the proper amount of sleep, but you are still feeling very fatigued and physically tired.
You find yourself sleeping more than you ever have before or needing to take naps to get through the whole day.
10. You Are Using Alcohol Or Drugs To Relieve Emotional Stress
It’s human nature to not want to feel pain, whether it be physical or emotional pain. Escaping by using serotonin-releasing substances or activities that give us immediate gratification is a common coping mechanism. Unfortunately these same coping mechanisms are very effective in the moment, which is why we’re drawn to them and they can easily become an unhealthy regularity in our lives.
You find yourself drinking, taking pills, or using drugs in order to escape.
You find yourself using other addictive activities to escape your feelings and to feel better: gambling, excessive shopping, excessive sex/masturbation, binge eating or purging, excessive exercise/running, etc.
Okay, I’m Emotionally Exhausted… Now What?
Mental and Emotional Exhaustion almost always develops from chronic neglect of one’s own needs. It is a result of years of not only putting others’ needs before your own, but also ignoring red flags and signs that you are burying your emotions and distracting yourself by keeping busy.
1. Slow Down
Take your calendar out and start slashing through anything that you don’t absolutely have to do. Keep the fun stuff, keep the obligatory stuff, and cancel the rest. Keeping yourself insanely busy is a trauma response to internal conflict. It is a subconscious way to distract yourself from the real problems and to get out of the work it will take to fix them. Slow down and be still. If you allow yourself time in a quiet space and to reflect, the answers will come to you. The real problems in your life will show up in your thought bubbles. For once, don’t pop them and jump right into volunteering as tribute for someone else’s junk to keep busy and avoid your own stuff. Stay put and listen.
2. Find Joy
If you know what brings you joy, immediately start scheduling more of it in your life. You know that calendar I had you take out? Well take some of those filled slots you crossed out and put something in there that brings you joy and peace. You like walking at the nearby nature park? PUT IT IN YOUR CALENDAR! I’m dead ass serious. Don’t just tell yourself you’re going to find more time to do fun stuff or stuff that brings you relaxation and peace… schedule it in!
And if you don’t know what brings you joy? Start trying shit. Search high and low for hobbies and activities that you will cherish. Start right now. When you’re done reading this article, do a google search on things to do to relax or find peace.
3. Practice Self-Care
Carve out time in your daily schedule to take care of yourself. In other words, Be more kind to yourself! We are very good at caring for others, but we are not very good at caring for ourselves. Unfortunately, self-care activities are the very first activities we cut out when life gets hectic or when we have pressing tasks on our minds.
Need Some Self-Care Ideas?
Check Out My Self-Care Highlight on IG!
Simply click the image below to go there!
For a FREE Self-Care Calendar (no strings attached), go here.
4. Try Acupuncture, Reiki, or Reflexology
Eastern treatment modalities are often overlooked in our pharma-accentuated world. Not that medications aren’t helpful for many people, because they are! But eastern practices work too and they have been around for thousands and thousands of years. Remember, modern medicine (or medicine as we know it today) has only been around for a little over 200 years. Also, sometimes the combination of both modern medicine AND eastern treatments is the most effective.
5. Try Therapy
Being a licensed therapist myself, I may sound biased suggesting therapy, but please know that… Therapy works for so many people! It is so very helpful to be able to talk to someone who is objective and can clearly pinpoint problematic areas. Friends and family can be well intentioned and truly want to help you, but sometimes their involvement in your life and subjective point of views can unwittingly do more harm than good when they start dishing out advice depending on the topic and severity of the issue. Sometimes the people in our lives unknowingly suggest solutions that aren’t the best for you, but maybe the best for them instead. Professional and licensed therapists see things more clearly for what they actually are because emotions and familial and social ties do not exist between you and them.
6. Talk To Your Doctor
If you are experiencing more than minor symptoms of mental exhaustion, it might be time to talk to your doctor about treatment options. Don’t ever feel ashamed or embarrassed to talk about this with them. Firstly, that’s their job, to make you feel better! Secondly, everybody and I mean everybody experiences hard times, times where we just can’t seem to figure stuff out on our own.
~
Use The Crisis Texting Hotline
FREE 24/7 SUPPORT
Text HOME or SHARE to 741741 from anywhere in the United States and Canada, anytime. Crisis Text Line is for any crisis. A live, trained Crisis Counselor receives your text and responds to you from a secure online platform.
For UK: text 85258
For Ireland: text 50808
Learn more at https://www.crisistextline.org
~
Do you need help with meal prepping?
TRY MY
4 Week KETO Meal Plan & Meal Prepping Guide
~
*The information on this site is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical or mental health advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content in this article is for general information purposes only. I am not a doctor, nor am I a dietitian. Talk to your physician before making any changes in your diet or exercise regimen. The information found in this article is from various sources which include, but are not limited to, the sites listed above. I encourage you to do your own research and talk with your physician before making any changes in diet or exercise. What has worked for me may not work for you. This information in this article or on this website should never replace or serve as medical or mental health advice.
NEVER DISREGARD PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE OR DELAY SEEKING MEDICAL TREATMENT BECAUSE OF SOMETHING YOU HAVE READ ON OR HAVE ACCESSED THROUGH THIS WEB SITE.
