What if my tiredness is just a hiding place?

Why I refuse to let tiredness become an excuse for not living life to the full

We’ve all used tiredness as an excuse. It gives us an opt out from doing something we aren’t enamoured about.

Or, even if it is something we are enamoured about, tiredness becomes the reason why we’ll do it later rather than now. ‘I’m too tired this week,’ we tell our friend. ‘Maybe next week?’

Sometimes, after a long day at work and then putting the kids to bed, the thought of heading out again is painful.

Or even sitting down and dedicating quality time to my writing.

It is so much easier to stay in and slump in front of the TV and catch up on my current favourite Netflix show.

And you know what, I refuse to feel guilty about doing this. Sometimes.

But this can very quickly become what we end up doing most nights.

We stay in. We live this settled, safe, and comfortable life.

We stop stretching ourselves. We no longer seek out new experiences. We procrastinate more and more. We spend less and less quality time with people who mean a lot to us.

As an introvert, I’m more susceptible to this than some. But it can affect us all.

Tiredness can become my hiding place. It justifies a safe, mundane existence. When the truth is that I need to get out more. I need to live a little.

We all get tired. Of course we do. Some days we do just need to switch off and rest. But I’m reminded that feeling rested and refreshed comes not only from doing nothing, but also from embracing new experiences, spending time in different environments, and enjoying quality time with people who matter to me.

This is my reminder to myself that it’s okay and normal to feel tired sometimes. But I mustn’t ever let tiredness become a hiding place that stops me living life to the full.

Endnote: The question that titles this post was inspired by a line from one of the characters in ‘Here I Am’, the new novel from Jonathan Safran Foer.

Photo: Benjamin Combs