This article is part ofSELFs second annualRest Week,an editorial package dedicated to doing less.
(And were taking our own advice: The SELF staff will be OOO during this time!)
Everything feels exhausting lately.
Amrita Marino
Maybe it always has; lately is, of course, a subset of always.
How are we regular slobs (no offense, reader) supposed to keep up?
Plenty of foods promise jolts of energy too.
We all know about coffee; thats 101 stuff.
Now mushrooms have come into fashion as an additive to your morning cup o something.
The problem is, no matter what you do, youre going to get sleepy.
There is no amount of rest that exempts you from that biological fact.
Even people who manage to do everything right require several hours of unconsciousness in any given 24-hour span.
That person gets tired too.
This, like many other sources of feeling physically depleted, just kind of happens sometimes.
And theres only so much you’re free to do about it.
(But, if possible, you should do it!
Too often we end the day not only depleted, but defeated.
Good tired is not a medical term, but we can probably all identify it.
Big Little Tennis.)
Thats notalwayspossible, sure, but its a worthy aspiration.
Maybe youre not in a position to quit your boring job or leave your boring family (kidding!
), but youve probably got alittleroom to improve things around the margins.
Instead of spending your few spare moments on some life hack, use that time to live your life.
Im not saying toneverdo the other stuff that will supposedly give you energy if that genuinely improves your day.
By all means, learn what the heck a sleep number is.
Throw your phone into the sea at 5 p.m. and do an hour of light cardio before dinner.
You deserve your best chance at feeling as healthy and energetic as possible.
But if youve done those things and you still feel a little sleepy, youre not broken.
And life is tiring.
We cant be at our best all the time.
Its (simply) better than all the rest.
Theres no way to outrun exhaustion forever.
Running, in itself, is exhausting.
The best we can hope to do on many days is embrace the tiredness on our own terms.
