Are You Drained and Emotionally Exhausted? Here’s Why

Lately I have been feeling very, very drained. No, no, don’t worry about me. I’m fine. In fact, I am happier than I have been in a very, very long time. Things are going well for me now but lately I have been plagued by fatigue and tiredness.

I am going out too much.

Don’t get me wrong, I am hardly a party animal. Actually I am, but I haven’t been partying too much lately, just doing stuff. It feel like every lunchtime I have an errand to run (yay! Standing in a bank line for 40 minutes!) or a coffee to have with a well-meaning colleague. I’m tired. Then after work I am also running here and there for various reasons, when usually I just want to go home and drink wine and fiddle with my writing stuffs.

I’m not complaining, but I really feel drained.

I also think this might be because of the emotional trauma I had at the start of the year. The further and further the memory of this past relationship breakdown moves into the distance the more I realise that I did the right thing. It was the best thing ever, really. I spent a long time trying to work out how to let go of people and things and how long it takes to recover from a break-up.

Good news, people.

It can be done.

Perhaps it’s my stage of life and relative maturity, but I feel that for the first time in my life I have been able to choose to let go of something, wholly and lovingly. With no bitterness, anger, pain or regret. I had to let go. My old life seems like a distant memory. My new life is so much better. I feel like (as perhaps many women do) I identified so much with many of my past partner’s problems (such as financial woes and lack of work) that I started to take these problems on as my own. They were not my problems. Now I am free of these things.

So – I’m happy. Why am I so tired?

Wikipedia may have the answer: Emotional exhaustion is a chronic state of physical and emotional depletion that results from excessive job and/or personal demands and continuous stress. It describes a feeling of being emotionally overextended and exhausted by one’s work. It is manifested by both physical fatigue and a sense of feeling psychologically and emotionally “drained”.

Yep, that’s me. It has gotten to the stage where I am emotionally and mentally exhausted. I need a break and a holiday but I am so energized and delighted with my work at the moment that I will not take time off. Now is the time to work for me. Later I will rest.

You only have limited energy

There is an esoteric theory that I heard about that suggested that we have a finite amount of energy to expend. Once this has been expended, the body and mind must recharge. That’s why it can be particularly detrimental to be around an emotional vampire– they will suck the energy out of you and leave you none for yourself. We all know these people, the ones who drain us constantly and never return the favour.

Because we are all draining at one time or another. We all require help. It can be great to help someone. I like it when people help me and I am trying to allow people to help me more. I can be a bit of a control freak, but many alphas are.

Are Americans forced to “act happy”?

I love American culture, but it’s not as dark as Australian culture. You poor buggers, it seems you are being forced to act happy, and the results declare that this can eventually be emotionally draining. “An example of a culture with a strong institutional-orientation toward emotions is the United States, due to the strong American norm to act positively and hide negative feelings, (“the service with a smile” norm); Whereas, France can be used as an example of a country with a more impulsive-orientation toward emotions.”

But I am OK I am dreaming of renovating many houses

To dream that you are renovating indicates that you are looking at life from a new perspective. Your old ideas or habits are being replaced by new ways of looking at the world. Alternatively, the dream suggests that you have triumph over much adversity. (source)

Maybe if I could stop building and renovating houses in my sleep I would wake feeling more rested.