5 Sneaky Reasons You Feel Tired All the Time

Spread the love

Are you skipping through your day, full of joy, enthusiasm, and boundless energy? Or are you barely dragging yourself out of bed in the morning only to stumble from task to task, completely overwhelmed and exhausted?

If you’re reading this, I’m guessing you’re leaning more toward the overwhelmed and exhausted than the skipping part.

I’ve been there too. Completely drained of energy and doing my very best just to make it through the day.

It’s a tough place to be.

And the more frustrated you become with the situation, the worse it gets. You’re desperate to feel better but are skeptical that anything will change.

Take heart! There are several reasons why you may feel tired all the time and surprisingly simple solutions.

Stick with me and I promise you will be feeling more energized in no time at all!

This post may contain affiliate links and as an Amazon affiliate, this means we may receive a commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. Please see our full disclosure for further information.

1) You Feel Tired Because You Have No Boundaries

There’s no denying the fact that diet, exercise, and sleep habits play a huge factor in your energy levels. But sometimes fatigue has more to do with the emotional than the physical.

If you feel tired all the time, it’s time to take a good, hard look at your to-do list.

Is it full of activities which ignite your soul with limitless passion and zest for life? Or is your to-do list full of obligations you dread but feel compelled to do anyway?

We all have those tasks which are necessary but not particularly fulfilling. And life certainly can’t be all fun and games. But if you’re feeling drained, could it be because you’re spending more time living for others than for yourself?

If you struggle with overwhelm and saying “no” to others, it’s time to put up a few personal boundaries!

How You Can Set Healthy Boundaries

Boundaries tell you where your responsibilities begin and where they end. At first glance, this may seem restrictive but it actually means freedom.

It means you have the freedom to say “yes” when it aligns with you and your inner purpose.

It’s the freedom to say “no” when you don’t want to do something.

And it means you have the freedom to sit back, relax, and enjoy your life.

Sounds great, right? But how can you actually implement this in your life?

By starting with a commitment. The commitment to stop people pleasing and to start living life on your terms.

And the next step? Learn how to say “no.” Say no to anything which only depletes you of valuable energy while serving someone else’s purpose.

Learn more about how to stop people pleasing and start living your own life by clicking here.

2) You Feel Tired Because Your Mind is on Overdrive

Another incredibly common reason why you may feel tired all the time is because your mind won’t shut down. Day, night, and all other times in between, your brain is constantly working to exhaustion.

Although thinking in and of itself is not a bad thing, the nature of those thoughts impacts how you feel overall. If there is a positive vibe, you may actually feel somewhat energized and uplifted. But if those thoughts are negative, your precious energy will drain faster than you can ever possibly replenish it.

If you struggle with overthinking, your thoughts are also likely to be dominated by worry, guilt, and indecisiveness. The constant dread created by these types of thoughts is enough to make anyone feel tired in only a short amount of time!

Negative thinking is a definite energy suck but it’s never too late to turn it around!

How to Stop Overthinking

Changing your mindset requires both a commitment to change and a keen awareness of your thoughts. After all, it’s tough to change something you’re completely unaware of!

Step one is simply learning to identify your thought patterns. Start recognizing your thoughts and how they make you feel. One of the best ways to do this is to put pen to paper. Writing down all those thoughts circling in your head gives them a place to go and an opportunity for you to objectively analyze them.

, , ,

Find a journal you love and spend some time every day recording what’s on your mind. Is there any truth to your thoughts? Or do they tend to focus on things past and present instead of on the here and now?

Challenge your thoughts! Poke holes in the ridiculous negativity which likely has no basis in reality. Start talking to yourself as if you are your own best friend. Be compassionate and kind to yourself. Take a deep breath, recognize the effort you’ve made toward positive change, and congratulate yourself on your more peaceful inner world.

3) You Feel Tired Because You’re Not Feeding Your Passion

“Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.”

Oprah Winfrey

Do you know that feeling you get when you’re doing that thing you love to do? Or even that feeling you get when you talk about that thing you love to do?

Pretty incredible, isn’t it?

We all have something that lights us up inside. Something we totally nerd out about and can’t get enough of.

That passion feeds our energy reserve and ignites our zest for life. It’s what makes life worth living and counteracts all the negativity we encounter in the world.

But how often do you put that thing on the back burner because you simply have too much on your plate? It’s unfortunately all too easy to shove your passion to the wayside while you’re going about the business of life.

I get it. Finding time for that thing feels impossible and insignificant in the grand scheme of things. But it could just be the key to your life-changing transformation!

How to Find Time for Your Passion

As a wife and working mom of 3, I know a little bit about time. I know that it slips away all too quickly and is incredibly easy to waste. Other than energy, time is one of the most valuable resources we have but we need to be both mindful and careful in how it’s spent.

Awareness is key. In order to make changes, you must first understand where you are currently spending your time.

Although it can be a giant distraction, my phone also holds one of the most valuable tools in tracking my time. Every week I get a notification of how much time I’ve spent on my phone the previous week and a breakdown of which apps sucked up the most. I take a few minutes every week to review and set an intention for the upcoming week.

If you don’t have this feature on your phone, you could also track your time with pen and paper. Writing down where your time is spent on an hourly basis can be truly eye-opening.

After you have an idea of where your time is spent, it’s time for positive change. Start slowly by slotting off even 5 minutes a day to do something related to your passion. Sometimes starting is all you need to realize that you CAN make time in your schedule if it truly is important to you.

Check out this post for more tips on finding more time in your day!

4) You Feel Tired Because You’re Playing the Comparison Game

Social media is utterly amazing! At no other time in the history of the world have you been able to connect with old friends, instantly catch up with someone you haven’t talked to for years, or find out what your neighbor is up to at this very second.

You can meet someone on the other side of the world or connect with others who share your passion.

But social media has a dark side. I’m willing to bet that you’ve lost countless hours caught up in someone else’s drama at one time or another thanks to social media. Or felt your mood darken after scrolling your feed.

Social media has made it easier than ever to compare yourself to others. Gone are the days where you could go home after a long day and shut out the world. We are now constantly faced with everyone else’s highlight reel while feeling a deep sense of inferiority and disconnection from others. And it’s emotionally draining.

How to Stop the Comparison Game

After going through a period of constant exhaustion, I took a good, hard look at my life and made a few discoveries. One was that I wasn’t getting nearly enough sleep at night. Two was that social media was partly to blame for my poor sleep.

Scrolling feeds at night is a nightmare on multiple levels. The blue light from electronic devices has been scientifically proven to decrease sleep quality. It also keep your mind reeling at a time when it should be winding down and preparing for sleep. And if you have alerts activated, you’re virtually guaranteed poor sleep from the constant beeping ALL. NIGHT. LONG.

Even beyond the ill effects on sleep, I began noticing how negative my mindset was becoming. It seemed that the more time I spent on social media, the worse my self-esteem, motivation, and sense of self became. I knew something had to change.

And so I silenced the alerts. From Facebook to Instagram to email, I stopped them all. No more random beeping in the middle of dinner with the family or movie night. The silence was strange at first but also oddly comforting. It truly felt as if I was taking back my life.

I also picked up this book. Although I have always prided myself on efficiency, this book has been truly instrumental in helping me identify all the unnecessary distractions in my life. I highly encourage you to check it out!

And if you haven’t seen “The Social Dilemma” on Netflix, check it out. It will make you re-think EVERYTHING.

5) You Feel Tired for Physical Reasons

Although the majority of this post focuses on emotional reasons why you may feel tired, don’t ignore your physical self. If you’re not getting enough sleep at night, your diet is terrible, or you’re not exercising, you can’t expect to feel energized and ready to seize the day.

It’s also entirely possible that you have an underlying medical condition contributing to your fatigue. Seeing your primary care provider is an incredibly important first step in your journey toward a more refreshed life. Your provider can have a 1:1 discussion with you about your risk factors for certain conditions and reasons why you may feel tired all the time.

If your provider determines there are no underlying medical conditions, maybe it’s time to see a counselor or psychiatrist. We are living in stressful times and all need an occasional mental health tune-up. Don’t put your health on the back burner. You are too important!

Take Charge of Your Physical Health

If there are one or more areas of your physical health which are less than optimal, start slowly. Make small, positive changes in one area at a time. Success comes from small changes on a daily basis.

If your diet could be improved, find one small area to work on rather than completely overhauling everything. Consider cutting down on sugar, salt, or drinking more water every day as a first step.

Sleep can be a struggle for everyone from time to time. Consider a sleep diary to record what time you go to bed and wake up, how you feel when you get up in the morning, and whether you woke up at all during the night. A diary can be helpful in pinpointing specific sleep issues you may be having, an important first step for lasting and impactful change.

And exercise presents its own unique challenges in the time of COVID. Although typically a faithful gym goer, I have recently switched to working out at home to reduce potential exposure. I do have to say that there are a ton of great online resources for home workouts! Gyms can be intimidating but you can eliminate this barrier by picking up a few free weights and enjoying the privacy of your own home.

The key to any change is to start small and be consistent. You can do ANYthing but don’t have to do EVERYthing all at once!

Bonus Resources

And if you still feel tired after trying all of the above, here are a few bonus resources which have significantly impacted my life!

From the Blog

Inspirational Reads

, , ,

I truly hope you have found something helpful in this post! Leave a comment below about why you feel tired and what you plan to do about it! Although frustrating, it can be comforting to know that other people are in a similar situation and that you’re definitely not alone.

38 thoughts on “5 Sneaky Reasons You Feel Tired All the Time

  1. Thanks for this post, definitely number 2 resonates with me, the mind in overdrive! My viewer didn’t show me other numbers though, not sure if it’s my end or not though just letting you know 😊

    1. Hi Kellie! Thanks so much for letting me know! And thanks for stopping by! I hope you found the post helpful.

    1. I completely agree! Feeling creative and inspired is such an important part of life! Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting!

  2. Yes to brain overdrive! Having anxiety is exhausting as well, even if you’re not physically moving around. Thanks for sharing these insights!

    1. Absolutely! This year has been like none other in terms of stress and uncertainty. But with great trial comes great change so I’m hopeful that we’ve all learned one (or a few!) things through all this which will only make the world a better place. Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a comment!

    1. Yes it really is. I try to automate as many repetitive daily decisions as possible to cut down because the fatigue is real! Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting!

  3. I know I feel tired because I am trying too hard to do too many things at once, and I need to pare it back.

    1. You make a great point! Trying to do too much at one time often only results in fatigue rather than momentum. Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting!

  4. What a great post, I’m a overthinker so my mind never shuts down. Even when I am sleeping, I can still hear my brain going 90 to nothing….lol
    Have a blessed day~

    1. I can completely relate to that! Sometimes it feels like I’m always trying to solve problems even in my sleep!! Meditation has been helpful in calming my brain but it takes a bit of practice. Thank you so much for the comment and for stopping by! 🙂

  5. I definitely fall into the “no boundaries” category. I’ve always struggled with setting boundaries as a teacher. Thanks for the tips!

  6. Hey Amanda !

    Thank you for sharing this valuable read during this time. A struggle we all face is overthinking an lack patience ..am trying my best to not own all of the worlds problems and keep chipping at it. like you said we need to be consistent at it for the long run …

    Cheers

    1. Absolutely! Taking it one day at a time is so important! Thanks so much for stopping by and for your positive feedback!

  7. Definitely can’t agree more with each and every point you have mentioned. The urge to compare, social media, little to no time for passion, unable to say no… yes, all of them contribute negatively towards our productivity. Thanks for sharing this wonderful post😊

  8. Thank you for this. All of these resonate with me. I hadn’t considered that comparing myself to others contributes to being tired. This makes so much sense. It’s a great idea to turn off alerts at night and actually step away from social media.

    1. I’m so glad you found it helpful! There’s so much in our daily lives which can contribute to fatigue and we don’t even realize it’s happening. Taking a break from it all can be one of the best ways to refresh and reset. Thanks so much for stopping by and for commenting!

  9. I’m definitely exhausted from overthinking! I find it really difficult to shut my brain off! Great article.

    1. I can completely relate! It’s taken me a while to figure out several different ways to get my brain to shut down but it’s so important to gaining mental clarity. Thanks so much for stopping by and for the comment!

  10. This resonates with my so much right now! Thanks for sharing. I’d also love to talk to you about a guest blog on my blog. Email me know if you are interested.

    1. I’m so glad you found it helpful! And thanks for the collaboration opportunity … I will be in touch.

  11. Thank you for sharing what we don’t realize is happening to us when we don’t sleep. I have had that problem on on off and I find that when I have things on my mind and I wake up, I cannot fall asleep again. This week I actually used Melatonin. I’m glad I am not the only one.

    1. Insomnia can be so frustrating! But sometimes a little tweak in your nightly routine and a plan if you do wake up is all it takes to get a good night’s sleep. Best of luck to you and thanks so much for stopping by!

  12. I do notice that when I go days without exercise, I tend to drag more. All of these have come into play for me at different times! Being mindful and intentional with how I spend my time has really helped!

    1. Absolutely! Mindful intention goes a long way towards helping achieve bigger goals. Thank you so much for stopping by and leaving a comment!

  13. Thanks did sharing! The comparison game is such a good one! It can become all consuming and be exhausting! And is so sneaky you might not even realize it! Great list! Thanks for sharing

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.