Mentally Drained? Read This Before You Crash

 

Personal pressure both mentally and emotionally can become exhausting in ways that people cannot always see. Sometimes the pressure may not be physical as you still go about your normal business; still wake up every morning, go to work attend to your normal duties, smile at people, while silently feeling tired inside. This kind of exhaustion is real, and many more people are experiencing it than ever before.

One does not experience mental exhaustion suddenly; it builds up slowly over time. As stress piles up and responsibilities increase expectations nevertheless become heavier. The mind so to speak becomes the battle field to process all of these and before you realize it, your mind feels overloaded and your energy begins to fade. Thus, simple tasks can start to feel difficult as you may struggle to focus, lose motivation, or feel expressively disconnected from the things you once enjoyed doing. These are all warning signs many people because they believe they must stay strong all the time. Unfortunately, we live in a society that praises people who work nonstop, people who sacrifice and keep pushing no matter how tired they feel. The sad news is that constantly ignoring your mental health can eventually lead to burnout, emotional breakdown and depression. The good news is that your mind needs rest just as much as your body does.

Anne Lamott an American author said, “Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes, including you.” This quote resonates with the message about rest and mental health.Top of FormBottom of Form One of the biggest mistakes people make is waiting until they totally crash before taking care of themselves. They continue carrying emotional pressure until they finally reach a burnout and by then, recovery becomes much tougher. So, your mental health deserves to be taken care of before things get out of hand.

Mental tiredness sometimes creeps in a very quiet way. You may notice that there is that feeling of irritation over small things over small things, loss of excitement, spending hours overthinking at night even while your body is tired and requires sleep. You might also feel lonely in the midst of people; these are all signs that should not be ignored. We are living in an era of social media which has also helped in compounding mental exhaustion. Social media is constantly exposing people to fake life, endless comparisons and fake news which put people under pressure especially the gullible ones who wants to succeed quickly like others who may appear happy online, look perfect and all of that.  This nevertheless creates emotional stress that slowly drains mental energy. Many people suffer silently because they are afraid of being judged and tagged weaklings for asking for help. But, in reality, recognizing that you are mentally drained is a sign of self-awareness, not weakness. And at that point taking care of your mental becomes very important, it is actually a form of self respect. You need to slow down, slowing down is not laziness or does not mean you are failing, you just need to pause from constant pressure and noise.

There are simple ways to begin protecting your mental health. William James an American philosopher and psychologist said that “The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.” This in essence means that although we cannot always control difficult situations, we can control how we respond to them mentally. Creating time for yourself, quiet moment, moments away from distraction to help calm the mind is one of the ways to respond.  During this moment you can listen to music, pray, meditate, take a walk or sit quietly with your thoughts. All these may seem simple but there are powerful in its own little way and are capable of restoring emotional balance.

Sleep is also another important factor for mental health recovery. According to Matthew P. Walker a British neuroscientist, sleep researcher, “Sleep is the single most effective thing we can do to reset our brain and body health each day.” According to his research, sleep is that time when the brain and body quietly carry out important repair work that cannot be done properly while we are awake. The brain organizes memories, repairs damaged tissues, restores emotional stability and restores energy needed for the next day. So, sleep in essence is not a luxury, but a genetic necessity that helps both the mind and body mend and function correctly.

Another important step is learning how to open up, bottling up emotions can make mental exhaustion worse; talking to someone you trust can help relieve emotional pressure. Fred Rogers an American television host and writer said, “Anything that’s human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable can be more manageable.” He explains that hurtful emotions often become heavier when people choose to bear it alone. So, he asserts that when feelings such as fear, sadness, anxiety, or loneliness are discussed openly, the become easier to understand and handle by talking to someone trustworthy.  This in itself creates comfort, connection, and emotional relief.  It is also important to speak to yourself with kindness, encourage yourself the same way you would encourage someone you care about going through pain. Healing becomes easier when you stop attacking yourself mentally every day.

Another important thing to note is that healing takes time. There is no quick solution for mental exhaustion. This is because some days will feel better than others, the most important thing is progress which counts and small steps toward self-care. Recovery therefore is not about becoming perfect, it is about learning how to care for yourself in healthier ways. There is this misconception by some people to always appear strong and that for them is true strength but in the actual sense of it strong people are the ones who recognize their pain and choose to keep going in healthy ways.

On a final note, no matter how overwhelmed you feel right now, things can actually get better. Your current phase is not your permanent future, it remains a phase, difficult season in the cause of your journey of life that will pass.  All you need if you are at this point is rest, support, patience, and self-care, your mind will definitely recover. At the end of the day, success means very little if you lose your peace in the process, protecting your mental health is not feebleness but wisdom. The world may continually demand more from you, but your well-being should never be put at risk just to keep up with fake life. So, if you have been feeling mentally drained lately, listen to what your mind is trying to tell you, rest before burnout arrives. Always choose yourself first, take care before exhaustion takes everything from you.