If you still feel exhausted despite getting enough sleep, mental fatigue may be to blame. Experts point out that habits repeated unconsciously in daily life could be quietly draining the brain's energy.
According to the medical community on Wednesday, U.S. media outlet Real Simple recently cited expert opinions to introduce four habits that should be corrected first in daily life to minimize brain energy loss.
The first is multitasking. Handling multiple tasks simultaneously may seem more efficient, but the reality is the opposite. Sanam Hafeez, a neuropsychologist in New York, said, "Multitasking, far from saving time, actually causes mistakes and leads to mental exhaustion."
"Focusing on one thing at a time is the way to use the brain efficiently," she added. "Inserting short breaks periodically during work helps maintain focus and reduce stress."
The second is the habit of procrastination. Hafeez noted, "The more you put things off, the bigger the task feels and the greater the anxiety becomes." She added, "When postponed tasks linger in the background, it becomes difficult to fully concentrate on other work."
If starting a task itself feels overwhelming, breaking the work into smaller pieces and tackling them in order can be effective. Simply shifting one's mindset from "finish it perfectly" to "just start" can relieve psychological pressure.
The third is the habit of excessively trying to please others. Focusing only on other people's emotions and reactions makes it easy to neglect one's own emotional state. Hafeez advised, "Judging yourself by others' evaluations can lower your self-esteem." She added, "It is important to shift from acting out of fear of rejection to acting because you genuinely want to help, and to pay more attention to your inner motivations."
The fourth is spending excessive energy on trivial decisions. Small choices — what to wear, what to eat, what content to watch — can tire the brain when repeated throughout the day.
Madison White, a clinical psychologist in Boston, said, "Spending too much time on small decisions reduces the cognitive resources available for truly important decisions." She added, "The compulsion to make the best choice in every situation can lead to burnout."
White suggested setting a clear time limit, such as five minutes, for routine decisions like choosing what to have for dinner.
