Mental Fatigue
Hi, my name is Mukti Santos; a wife to my handsome hubby for the past 19 years; we have two beautiful kids, a boy, and a girl, who are 9 and 6, respectively. After much self-study, research on the wellness field, and doing the practices myself and sharing with my community. I have recently launched my business. I am a wellness coach who loves to support mums to thrive in their life's instead of surviving; however not limited to just mums. I am passionate about helping others reach their goals and have a life that brings them bliss!
I will be blogging once a week, every Sunday! If this resonates with you, please see my website below (at the end), and you can sign up for a FREE subscription, and you will get the blogs weekly in your inbox. Thank you!
Did you know that our brain needs to make up to 35,000 decisions daily? WOW! Poor brain!!!
How much is your time wasted due to mental fatigue?
Our body and mind require energy to work optimally. We need to know how to care for ourselves. Mental fatigue occurs because of long-term stress. Tiredness sets in when your brain’s energy levels are deficient.
Several factors, including:
· Lack of sleep,
· Poor nutrition
· Hormonal imbalances
You are asking your brain to do too much. This is because there has not been adequate rest; your brain runs 100km an hour! Therefore, many people are suffering from mental fatigue these days. Are you or someone you know one of them?
“The energy of the mind is the essence of life.” Aristotle.
Happiness is a lifestyle, not a goal.
Your body and mind need time to repair each day so they can function optimally; below are ten ways this can occur; please don’t think you need to do all of these to get some results; start with just one and see what happens:
- Make sure you get enough quality sleep daily.
How many hours of sleep are you getting on average each night?
I invite you to check your sleep schedule. Are you getting enough sleep daily? We should aim to get 7-9 hours of sleep daily; if you are not getting the minimum here, what is a tiny little step you could try now so you could either go to bed earlier or get up later? Of course, every person is different; we are all unique and require different amounts of sleep. However, as a rule of thumb, aim to get the least of the minimum amount and can work towards getting more if needed or would like to.
Limit your screen time for the last 30 minutes before bed, as this will affect the quality of your sleep. The amount of sleep is essential; however, the quality is even more critical.
Did you know that when your body is resting, at sleep time, your brain works and sorts and stores information for the day? This process is very vital in creating long-term memories. Therefore, not getting enough sleep can reduce your ability to learn by 40%; also, the female population generally needs an extra 20 minutes more sleep than men. In addition, those still having menstruation require extra sleep when they are in their cycle; plan your day around this so you get the optimal sleep necessary for your body and the cycle time.
Please also make a bedtime routine for yourself, whatever serves you best. For example, I find it helpful in the evening, before bed, to journal, reflect on my day and read at least ten pages of my current book. But, again, you need to find out what benefits you best and see what to incorporate for you, this could vary daily.
2. Move your body daily.
Are you moving your body daily?
It does not need a full-hour gym class or a highly intense workout. It can be a home practice Yoga- my favourite, some weight training at home for 15 minutes, going for a walk for 30 minutes in your lunchtime or the afternoon/evening. When you exercise, your body releases chemicals such as endorphins and dopamine in your brain that make you happy, eliminating the chemicals that make you feel stressed.
3. Eating clean
How well do you think you eat currently?
Many believe that serotonin, a happy hormone, is created in the brain. The truth is that 90% of this is made in the gut and then transmitted to the brain. So, this means it has a lot to do with what we put in our mouths, hygiene and what we consume.
Oral hygiene is vital, meaning brushing your teeth twice a day, using floss and a tongue cleaner and not using mouthwash, as this can remove the good bacteria from your mouth. If you don’t own a tongue cleaner, I recommend a steel one, not plastic; you can always use a teaspoon from your kitchen and keep that with your brush to use daily, if you like, ideally twice a day.
Your digestive first starts at your mouth, so you want this to be a clean environment for the beginning of the journey to be the best it can be.
How about you take a small step to eat cleaner, start with one deal a day, and then go from there? This will affect your mood and support your sleep and energy level. It is a win-win.
Clean food allows our body to absorb vitamins, minerals, quality protein, and healthy fat. Allowing your heart and brain to function optimally can also assist with weight management, whether you want to lose, maintain, or gain weight. This will also build a more robust immune system and increase your energy level.
When you weigh yourself on the scale, don’t forget that muscle weighs more than fat, the best way to see results is through measurements and how the clothes fit you.
Eating healthy food fills your body with energy and nutrients. Imagine your cells smiling back at you and saying: ‘Thank you”. Karen Salmansohn
If you like sweet treats, like me? Try this hack, blushing your teether at home when you feel tempted and see if you still want that sweet treat. Most likely not.
See if you can incorporate a cleaner eating plan to make you feel better and clear away that brain fog.
4. Avoid your phone for the first 30 minutes in the morning.
Are you someone who checks their phone first thing in the morning?
I invite you to check your phone only after 30 minutes of waking. If 30 minutes is too long, what about 10 minutes? If time permits, could you go for a walk, do some stretching, do some meditation, plan your day, have a nurturing breakfast or anything else that would serve you best that day? I understand we all have a different amount of time to allocate for a morning routine; something is better than nothing; if you can only spare 10 minutes, that is fine; just you the time wisely. Do something that will make you smile.
Would you like your brain to go into the theta and alpha stages of the brain wave? This is the dream-like stage. Then, put away that phone in the morning!
You want this brain wave to allow a sense of calmness and leave the feeling of stress – start your day right every day; this happens with a good morning. The morning is an excellent determinator of how your day will pan out!
5. Being present as much as often.
Are you present in your relationships? Or are you on your social media/phone when you are chatting with your kids, partner, or friends?
Think about the relationships in your life and see if there is room for you to be more present; this will be an ongoing process. We are all distracted; our world has many more distractions. Don’t blame yourself; try to be present, and if you slip, all good; observe, then return to being present again. This will be a work in progress.
The greatest gift you can give someone is your time, your attention, your love your concern. Joel Osteen
6. You are allowing plenty of breaks throughout the day! You don’t need to go on holiday all the time- take little breaks as frequently as possible.
When do you take mini breaks throughout the day? Or is sleep the only break you get?
Allowing yourself downtime can be as little as 60 seconds throughout the day or an hour. This will allow your brain to replenish, making you more focused and creative.
Suppose you have an opportunity to have time to allow your mind to just wonder, no technology. In that case, you could do this on a walk- my favourite is barefoot on the grass or sand, catching public transport to or from work or errands, or just sitting in your backyard and enjoying some sunshine and daydreaming. This could improve creative problem-solving and clear your mind if you feel scatted.
7. Focus on the task at hand- only do one thing at a time!
How focused are you? Are you a multitasker?
Imagine you woke up in the morning, made your bed first, then had a shower, then your morning routine, which may be from anywhere 20-30 minutes in the morning. Then organise breakfast for your family, drop the kids at the bus stop to catch their bus or drop them to school, and start work, if you are working from home. There is no or at least minimal phone checking, plus fewer distractions in the morning.
Instead, you create one task, finish one job, and then the next. For those that have toddlers, this will not be possible. My mornings do not go smooth sailing often; someone is screaming, and parents are telling the kids to get ready on time to catch the bus or drop them to school. My kids are 9 and 6; however, we take each day as it comes. The key here is fewer distractions.
There is never enough time to do everything, but there is always enough time to do the most important thing. Brian Tracy
Focusing on one task at a time results in higher productivity, lower stress and makes us happier. If you can have breakfast with your family in the morning, do so, it may not be blissful always, as little/older kids may be arguing. However, enjoy those treasured moments as kids do grow up quickly.
8. Be ruthless about how you spend your time. Then, when you have free time- do the things that bring you joy.
Do you engage in daily activities that bring you joy?
Stop trying to please everyone and start pleasing yourself a little. Create some time for ‘me’ time daily; these activities do not need to be the same daily. However, they can be if you like. Once you start doing specific actions, you will see within a week whether their activities serve you or drain you. This item can be for 10 minutes or up to 60 minutes, see what works best for your schedule and see how these little changes impact you and your wellness. You may be surprised if your partner or child comments on how calm you are instead of stressed out in the morning or evening.
This is very similar to point number 2 regarding moving your body. When you are in a state of happiness and serving yourself, you will release high levels of dopamine, the chemical in your body that signals you are getting a reward, and your mind and body will thank you for this. This will also make you happier with your loved ones, as you will feel so glad that you did what you wanted to do instead of doing the things you must do.
9. Take 10 minutes each evening to ensure your home is nice and neat; taking out the rubbish each evening would be great. This has been advised for people who follow feng shui, removing the negative energy daily.
How is your home when you wake up some morning?
When you wake up in the morning, and your home is tidy and organised, this affects your brain, which can overload your brain negatively if there is a mess. Your living space and your office can either energise you or drain you, see how you feel in that environment and then if you require, make changes.
This will only take out 600 seconds of your day. Could you try this?
10. Please take out your clothes today for the next day; when you get home or change into your PJ, put the clothes away or put them in the laundry basket straight away!
Are you doing the above already?
If not all good, you can slowly introduce this into your day if that resonate with you. The reason to choose the outfit- whether you are working in the office or at home, or not working, your brain makes many daily decisions, so why give it another one? If the weather changes, you may need to choose another outfit; however, this will only occur sometimes. This will allow for a smoother day the following morning.
To Conclude
The goal here is to reduce mental fatigue; I hope these ideas can assist you and support you in getting back control. We have just started 2023, so why not start the year with what you like to see in your future?
For anyone interested, is there one item from the list that you could work on this week and see if that makes a difference to your mental overload? Then, once you feel you are established on one of the points, you can add another to your mix. The reason to do this is not to make life more difficult but more manageable and happier.
Don’t be tempted to do all 10, as that is too much, which could make you feel mentally overloaded. I know this would happen if I tried 10 different things in one week. So instead, how can you make life a little easier for yourself? Are you up for a bit of change?
I have shared many different things; see what works for you and then go from there.
Found the following that may be valuable references points for anyone that would like to learn a little more about this topic:
I love the blinkist app; you sign up for a 7-day FREE trial below if that interests you. This app summarises books in 15-20 minutes; you can choose to listen to them or read them.
Click below:
A useful blinkist for this topic is:
The power of unwavering focus
By Dandapani
20 minutes duration.
Audible is also a great app; if you join up, you will get one FREE book. Also, they have other monthly free books; you need to see what they have available each month. If you plan to cancel your subscription in the future with them; the books you have purchased are all yours.
The link below:
This book I listen to on Audible is impressive:
Rest by Alex Soojun-Kim Pang (this one is also on blinkist if interested, 13 minutes duration)
Seven hours duration Full book.
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Until next week, stay happy and healthy!
Have a fab week!
😊 Mukti Santos
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