Are You Tired of Being Tired?

How to conquer weariness.

Do you want to stop feeling tired? You’ve heard all the clichés: go to bed early, reduce stress, exercise more, and so on. The list grows longer every day And these are all really smart things to do to stop being tired. But maybe it’s something a little simpler, and harder at the same time!

As is almost always the case, I’m writing about this because it is something I want to change in my own life. I am tired of being tired! My husband and I lead a pretty busy life. I’m sure you do too! But I can’t deny that I am so much more tired than I used to be. Do you ever just keep going for several days in a row and, then, you just stop. Life catches up with you, and you are exhausted. The hamster wheel just keeps spinning and there’s no end in sight.

Whoever said “Life slows down when you become an empty nester” might be wrong!

We still have jobs and lots of commitments that take our time. Plus, now we are traveling to see our grown children. Planning weddings and baby showers have also entered the picture.

Hang tight. There is one thing that will really help you stop feeling tired. The best part is that it’s free, and might even save you money. Let’s get on the road to more energy, shall we?

The Answer Is to Stop Multitasking

We have just lived through a pandemic. Many people are even dealing with pandemic fatigue. You may have heard that life slowed down to a snail’s pace during Covid, but I don’t think it did. Not for our brains anyway. In fact, I think our minds had to work a lot harder to consume all the information we needed to know. We also had to learn new things.

Does any of this sound familiar?

• Jobs became more stressful as we learned to be on screens: talking, sharing, muting, and putting perfect filters behind us.
• If you were a small business owner like me, the supply chain issues created a lot of stress as we struggled to complete orders for customers. This is still a big stress on many businesses.
• Online shopping reached levels it had never seen and took up a lot of our time. There were so many options that it became stressful just trying to decide what to buy.
• Raising our kids and grandkids meant virtual school that took a ton of mental effort, especially when combined with working from home.
• Social media and news outlets consumed our lives even more as we relied on them for communicating, learning, shopping, entertainment, and just plain scrolling.

Talk about a lot of MULTITAKSING!!! But just because you are good at it doesn’t mean it’s good for you. Studies show you actually get less done if you multitask. And one thing is for sure, you will be more tired at the end of a multitasking day. Here is one more reason to stop doing it.

Multitasking seems like a great way to get a lot done at once, but research has shown that our brains are not nearly as good at handling multiple tasks as we like to think they are. In fact, some research suggests that multitasking can actually hamper your productivity by reducing your comprehension, attention, and overall performance

-VeryWellMind.com

Unfortunately, I don’t think the pandemic drawing to a close is slowing down our multitasking habits. Even as I am writing this blog post, my phone is pinging in the background, and it’s tempting to pick it up.

The average American in 2022 picks up their phone 344 times a day. That’s once every four minutes. Yikes! In November of 2019, the number was 96 times a day! I’m sure you see where this is going…and just thinking about it can make you tired.

Take a minute and consider where you would rate yourself as a multitasker. Check your screen time on your phone and it might give an idea. But multitasking doesn’t just involve our phone. Your continuous partial attention is stealing your energy and time.

Stop Multitasking=Stop Being Tired

Have I got your attention? I sure hope so. Our time is precious and we want to make the most of it. But we also need to rest and enjoy life. We are missing so much in our multi-tasking lifestyle.

Because I don’t want to ask anyone to do anything I’m not willing to do, I am going to make a commitment to try and change my habits for the next 30 days. I will check back in with you in May and let you know how it went. I would love to hear back from you too.

As we try to make changes, here are some ideas to get you moving in the right direction. Some are hard to do. Some will make you laugh. They all will help you slow down and focus on where you currently are instead of where you are headed.

Stop Multitasking Tips

• Take a walk every day, even if it’s only 10 minutes. For extra points, leave your phone and earbuds in your pocket.
• Leave your phone in your purse when you meet a friend for coffee or dinner.
• When you work on your computer, turn off other noise and take out your earbuds.
• Leave your phone in your purse while driving, unless you need it for directions.
• Take a Screen Sabbatical. Here’s my post to help you get started.
• Turn off whatever you are listening to while you cook dinner: TV, radio, podcast, audiobook. If you can’t stand the silence, maybe go for commercial-free music.
• Take time to stop and drink some water. This will help you feel less tired and keep you hydrated.
• Try taking out your earbuds at the gym. This could be really hard! And somebody might talk to you!
• When you talk on the phone, stop doing whatever else you are doing. This might be hard if you are working and need to be typing, etc. But what about when your mom calls and you are walking around the house picking up things and listening distractedly. I am definitely guilty of this.
• Turn off the TV and put phones away while you eat dinner-even if you are by yourself. Enjoy your food!!!
• For your prayer time, read your Bible instead of an app. You won’t be interrupted by email and texts coming in.

This list may seem daunting. You don’t have to do them all, but I truly think the more you make an effort to stop multitasking, you will feel more energetic, be less distracted, and it will be a blessing to you.

You are precious in His sight,

-Stacy