At this point, it feels like being tired is just a personality trait. No one is well-rested. No one is caught up. No one is “thriving” the way Instagram influencers claim they are. Instead, we are all running on caffeine, unfinished to-do lists, and the sheer force of obligation.
It’s not just work. It’s not just parenting. It’s not just the endless cycle of laundry, emails, and remembering to cancel that free trial before you get charged. It’s all of it, all the time. And yet, somehow, despite feeling like we are on the verge of collapse, we keep going.
Somewhere along the way, we all silently agreed that rest is for the weak and that being “busy” is a badge of honor. But when did life become a never-ending competition of who can juggle the most responsibilities while looking like they have it all together? We have group chats to maintain, work deadlines to meet, appointments to schedule, and social lives that require at least three weeks of advance planning because nobody is free at the same time anymore.
And the worst part? Even our downtime is exhausting. There is no such thing as “relaxing” anymore. Watching a show? Better be a critically acclaimed series you can discuss intelligently, or a true crime doc so you can feel productive while you panic about home security. Scrolling your phone? Be careful, because you’ll either be bombarded with world-ending news, unrealistic beauty standards, or someone on social media telling you that your morning routine is the reason you haven’t unlocked your full potential.
And let’s not even get started on weekends. Weekends used to be a break. Now, they are just two days where we try to accomplish everything we were too exhausted to do during the week. Grocery shopping, household chores, social obligations, self-care (if there’s time)—all before Sunday night hits and the dread of the upcoming week kicks in.
So, what’s the solution? How do we reclaim our sanity in a world that never slows down? Maybe, just maybe, we start letting things go. Maybe the dishes can wait. Maybe it’s okay to say no. Maybe we stop feeling guilty for resting, for unplugging, for choosing to exist instead of constantly proving our worth through productivity.
Because if the collective exhaustion has taught us anything, it’s this: we cannot out-hustle burnout. The only way forward is to finally acknowledge that doing less isn’t failing—it’s survival.
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