Adult life is tiring. Everybody knows that. No matter what you do, you are bound to feel tired – between working, family life, maintaining your home and finding time to exercise and take care of yourself, there isn’t much room for anything else. Tiredness can get the better of us, and this is normal; what is vital, though, is that we listen to our bodies.
The line between feeling a regular tiredness level in response to your daily routine, and being chronically fatigued, can be pretty blurry. You may not realise the change is happening, so it is important to pay attention to your feelings.
Here are some reasons you could be feeling more tired than usual – and how to help yourself feel better.
Your Daily Nutrients
If you are feeling extremely tired a lot of the time, you should pay attention to your diet. This is not about restricting certain foods or dieting, but rather making sure you are eating a variety of foods in your diet which give you enough energy for your life. Nutrients like protein, found in meat, dairy, nuts and some vegetables, are essential to giving your body the energy it needs to grow, repair, and complete your routine. If you aren’t getting enough of a varied, balanced diet, your tiredness could be a result of this.
What’s the solution? If you feel you already eat a healthy balanced diet, perhaps supplement this with healthy vitamins and supplements. Supplements for leaky gut, for example, help your body absorb and retain nutrients from your food a little better.
Your Mental Health
Although we are all aware that mental health issues exist, many people still struggle to talk about them. If you have ever suffered with poor mental health, you will know just how debilitating this can be. Mental illnesses like depression not only cause you to feel sad and unmotivated, but they can also cause lesser known symptoms like memory loss and, crucially, extreme fatigue.
If you are struggling with your mental health or feel you are overwhelmed, you should speak with a professional therapist or doctor and find solutions that work for you.
Emotional or Physical Stress
Your body reacts to its environment, whether you realize it or not. If you have undergone emotional stress in recent months, such as a breakup, the death of a loved one, or a shift in your life such as a grown up child leaving home, these could all contribute to the exhaustion you are feeling. This is normal. Sometimes emotional or mental circumstances affect your physical wellbeing – this is well documented.
Similarly, if you have recently been ill, even in a small or non serious way, your body’s tiredness could be a way of saying, ‘I need to heal.’ Your response should be to allow this healing to take place by slowing down your routine and giving yourself the time to recover.
Your Routine
If there is anything the year of 2020 has taught us, it is that we all needed to take a deep breath and slow right down. The quarantine rules brought on by COVID-19 meant that every individual, company and family had to retreat indoors and reduce their activities. While this was stressful for some, this year also proved to many people that the break was long overdue. In our busy lives, we often take on far too many things at once, trying to prove that we can do everything. Working moms are particularly susceptible to this, because we feel like we have to try and keep up with others who don’t have as many responsibilities as we do.
If you can relate to this feeling of biting off more than you can chew, this might be making you feel chronically exhausted. Nobody can be a perfect employee, a perfect mother, a perfect home-maker and a sane individual all at the same time. You are just you – imperfectly perfect. Try reducing the number of activities you push yourself into for the sake of keeping up. Life is not a race; take your time and enjoy each day as it comes.
Your Sleep Schedule
Of course, one simple solution for tiredness is to sleep more. But many people have disturbed or unpredictable sleep patterns which can make them feel tired all the time. Make sure you establish a calm, tranquil space in your bedroom and take your sleep time as seriously as your job, your family or anything else. Your wellbeing is essential, and sleep is a huge part of that!
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