Jammu, Dec 03, TEN Network | Opinion BY Dr Mehvish Renzu
ARE YOU MENTALLY DRAINED?
BY DR. MAHVISH RENZU
We all feel tired, drained out and sometimes too exhausted.A sleepless night, a stressful day at work or excessive physical exertion makes us feel wearyand all we need is a good sleep and some rest to get pumped up. In certain cases, the exhaustion is not just physicalbut mentalas well. Just like our bodies, our brainsget exhausted as well.
Often people think of tiredness and fatigue as a physical symptom like the feeling after a long tiring workout, however fatigue can have effect on mentalstate as well and can occur even when the body is rested and energetic.
The feeling of constant weariness, lingering tiredness, and inability to concentrate or focus is called as ‘Mental Fatigue.’
Mental Fatigue can be caused by the continuous mental effort and attention on a particular task as well as high level of stress or emotion. Basically any mental work that goes into overload can result in wearing off of your cognitive functions and making it hard to complete a task and leaving you jaded.
How does Mental Fatigue make you feel?
Mental exhaustion can happen to anyone but affects mostly adults. It makes everything seem difficult and makes you feel overwhelmed .The more mentally tired we become, the less capable we are of keeping up with the demands of the dayand incapable to regulate our emotions. Over time, mental exhaustion can lead to full-blown burnout. It becomes harder to make decisions, stay focused on tasks or remain calm. Mental exhaustion can have both short term and long term effects.
Behavioural symptoms:Many studies have found that mental exhaustion can result in severe impairment of concentration and increase in the frequency of making simple mistakes in the task. It can lead to more stress, irritation and may give one a feeling of lagging behind as it becomes hard to keep up. Some also end up having depression. There may occur changes in behavior as well, and one might become cynical or cranky. It affects memory as well. Social withdrawal and decreased performance at work are some repercussions one might have to face.
Emotional symptoms:A person becomes very negative, self critical and indecisive.
The sense of self-doubt and failure may encompass the majority of one’s thoughts throughout the day. There may be feelings of dread, detachment, cynicism and anger.
Physical symptoms: These include body aches, headache, changes in appetite, upset stomach, and insomnia.
What could be causing it?
Multiple reasons why mental exhaustion occurs but the most common ones are
- Overwork: Overburdening yourself, over committing and doing overwhelming stressful jobs that sets your brain into overdrive, long working hours or spending too much time on focusing on difficult problems.
According to one research study, mental fatigue results from the accumulation of a brain chemical called as “Adenosine”. Sustained cognitive activity burns up glucose particularly in certain regions of the brain and due to shortage of fuel there occurs rise in the levels of adenosine which blocks the action of dopamine, effects our perception, decreases our ability to concentrate and leads to decrease in motivation.
At nearly 20 percent, employees between the ages of 25 and 35 are most affected by work-related mental fatigue. Among the self-employed, this applied to 35 to 44-year-olds in particular with a share of just under 11 percent Symptoms of mental fatigue were reported based on five specifically work-related questions.
There is also some evidence to suggest prevalence of burnout may be increasing in Physicians . An American study observed “Burnout and satisfaction with work-life balance in US physicians worsened from 2011 to 2014. More than half of the physicians are now experiencing professional burnout”
- Stress: Perhaps one of the most common causes. Our body naturally responds to stress by switching on or off the adrenal/ cortical hormone cycle which becomes normal once the stress abates but if stress is persistent our body sends out signals to increase the hormonal levels constantly which makes us feel wired and draggy and affects our productivity.
- Lack of sleep: Our brain requires sleep to recuperate and if we don’t get enough of it, our brain functioning messes up and shows symptoms of mental blockage. People who have sleep disorders like insomnia, sleep apnea or any other disorderoften get affected and wake up with a brain fog.At least 7-8 hours of undisturbed sleep is required everyday to keep our brain juiced up.
- Hormonal changes:Hormonal imbalance can trigger mental fatigue, for example a woman experiencing menopause or a pregnant woman, or patients having thyroid hormone imbalance, liver disease, or patients on steroids can have mental health issues.
- Drugs and medications: Some anti-depressants, anti-hypertensives, steroids, sedatives, and anti-anxiety drugs can cause fatigue. Changes in doses or stopping medications can also be a cause.
- Depression: Depression has the potential to make a person feel mentally and physically drained for a prolonged period .Mental fog is a common symptom of depression. One study found that 80-90% of those with depression had these symptoms. And 39 to44 % of those in remission from depression continued to have them.
- Chronic pain: Patients with chronic pain often wake up frequently throughout the night. They typically wake up tired and poorly rested, unable to get good quality sleep. The combination of pain and lack of sleep can cause persistent tiredness and fatigue.
- Some Medical conditions: Medical conditions associated with inflammation, fatigue or changes in blood glucose level can cause mental fatigue. For example, brain fog is a symptom of chronic fatigue syndrome which involves persistent fatigue for longer than 6 months .
- Avoidance and procrastination: Something that I have experienced myself, procrastination consumes more energy than working on the task you’ve been avoiding. When we procrastinate or avoid, our anxiety about whatever we’re avoiding tends to increase, which depletes our mental energy.
Things you can do to stop it:
1.Take some time off: I can’t stressenough on how important it is to take regular breaks from your daily work, whether it’s work in your office or at home. Giving yourself some time doesn’t mean you are running away from your responsibilities. Resting and recharging your mind and body is a must. It is important to clear your brain timely. Morning walks or daily exercise, meditation, simple breathing exercises or evena small trip away with friends can make a difference. Also while doing a long tiring job or studying for exams, try to take intermittent breaks. This helps in increasing your stamina and you won’t end up getting exhausted. Give yourself time each day to this reduces therisk of becoming too stressed to function.
2.Put on your sports shoes and get yourself moving: Studies have shown thatexercise makes your brain more resistant to fatigue. Exercise can increase blood flow to brain which gives it more energy and elevates mood. Everyday workout in any form, beit running, yoga, swimming or even dancing can do wonders. Giving yourself time from your daily schedule is very important. Although exercise is the last thing anyone would want to dowhen they are exhausted but it surely helps in eliminating the fatigue. Exercise results in release of endorphins which are chemicals that make us feel good and more energized.
3.Sleep:A deep uninterrupted sleep can resolve stress and mental exhaustion as your body needs sleep even morethan usual when you have a lot going on. Cutting back on sleep may seem like a good way to get more things done, but the more likely outcome is that you’ll feel exhausted and take longer to get things done. The amount of sleep each person needs can vary, but aim for 7 to 8 hoursof quality sleepeach night.
- Do not overdo: Instead of doing multiple things all together, over-committing, and mindlessly moving from one task to the other, try to focus on what is more important and get that done first instead of have your brain and thoughts scattered.
- Decrease Screen Time:Stop consuming your brain’s energy in reading useless Facebook updates or answering useless emails or scrolling feeds on social media. Instead use the time you’ve saved to learn new things, and pursue activities that makes you feel good and increases the quality of your life. Do what pumps energy into your brain and gives you a sense of relief.
Staring at a computer for long hours while you work causes eye fatigue, which can be tiresome and negatively affect your ability to focus.
6.Diet: A healthy diet is a must for our brains to function properly. Our diet should contain proportionate minerals and nutrients to meet all our body’s demands so we are able to focus and get our work done properly. Drinka lot of water, as simple hydration can do wonders. Do not skip your breakfast. Refined sugars and excess carbohydrates are most likely to affect our brain in a negative manner;however as our brain loves healthy fats like Omega3 which is mostly found infoodslike fish, nuts,etc., include these in your diet.
7. Deep Breathing: Deep breathing can really help with mental fatigue as mental fatigue can occur due to decreased oxygenation. If you are somewhere that is properly ventilated, take some deep breaths, concentrate on your breathing and you would feel more energized, as you are giving your brain proper oxygenation.
Mental fatigue can surely affect your daily life but you can prevent it as well. As soon as you get these symptoms try to take a break, plan things out. Prioritize your work accordingly. Don’t over commit. Get rid of the clutter and give space to your brain. Limit useless activities and talk to someone when you are emotionally overwhelmed. Exercise, yoga, and deep breathing definitely helps in re-energizing your brain and is a must, otherwise your memory and cognitive function will get affected.Talk to a mental health doctor about ways to manage your stress and get you feeling like yourself again.
