The emotional energy crisis

The real reason you feel tired all the time

How are you this month? Tired? A bit flat? Guess what? We’ve found a name for the reason you feel like crap! Yes, like the growing number of overextended young Australian women (according to a straw poll of the Cosmo office), you could be suffering an emotional energy crisis – one that can’t be supplemented with vitamins or caffeine.

According to Mira Kirshenbaum, author of The Emotional Energy Factor, physical energy – the kind we get from sleep, exercise and eating well – can only make up 30 per cent of our total energy requirements. The remaining 70 per cent we need to be able to pull off a morning run, hectic day at work and still be (genuinely) smiling for dinner with friends must come from emotional energy – which life is designed to drain. So, what’s bringing you down and how can you get back up? See below for Kirshenbaum’s emotional energy secrets.

How to get your bounce back

Do something different
When we’re busy, we create a “good enough” routine, and the monotony drains out emotional energy/ we need “newness” every so often in our lives so we can be happy.
Fix It: if your energy is low, bust out of your routine and do something new. Try a new gym class, a new café, or buy a lipstick in a new colour. Without change, life is boring ... and draining.

Learn to let go of other people’s expectations
When people who are important to you expect something different of you than you need for yourself, this can be emotionally exhausting.
Fix it: Make a “personal declaration of independence”. Don’t tell anyone; just believe you expectations are your top priority and be happy when you meet them. Don’t feel guilty about letting people down, like not partying with friends because you need to relax.

Look forward to something
Most of us have a pretty good life, but constant responsibilities, like work and study, can get us down.
Fix it: Fuel your energy by always having something to be excited about. According to Kirshenbaum, looking forward to a trip is the number one thing that boosts emotional energy. So plan a regular weekend away to help you lose the feeling of being tied down.