Mental Fatigue Isn’t Just Being Tired (And Why Rest Doesn’t Fix It)
There’s a kind of tired that still makes sense. You know where it comes from, and you know what to do about it. You’ve been busy, you’ve been pushing, maybe you haven’t slept well, so you rest, and at some point, your body catches up again. It’s not complicated. Then there’s a different kind of tired that doesn’t follow that pattern. You wake up, and nothing is obviously wrong. You slept. You didn’t overdo anything the day before. You’re not physically exhausted in a way that should affect you this much. And yet something feels slightly off from the moment you start your day. It’s not dramatic. It doesn’t stop you from functioning. You can still work, still reply to messages, still move through your routine. But everything takes a bit more effort than it should, and there’s a quiet sense that your mind is not as clear or as responsive as it usually is. You read something and realize you didn’t absorb it the first time. You sit in front of a task longer than necessary before...
