CHAPTER ONEHow Tired Are You, Really?
If you've picked up this book, you already recognize that you're fairly exhausted. But you may not realize just how tired you really are or recognize the exact ways in which you're exhausted. After all, fatigue can take many forms. One woman feels chronically wiped out with a pervasive tiredness that isn't relieved by getting enough sleep, while another starts the day with plenty of vim and vigor but runs out of energy quickly. Meanwhile, a third woman might have a vague but enduring sense of malaise or listlessness, while another feels physically weak, apathetic, and emotionally vulnerable on a regular basis. The point is, there are many different faces of exhaustion, literally and figuratively speaking.
To address your personal energy crisis and repair the elements that are depleting your vitality, it's important to be sensitive to the specific messages your body is sending. You need to listen closely to what your exhaustion is telling you. Otherwise, how can you possibly expect to reverse your state of depletion and restore your vigor to healthier levels? It's not enough to recognize that your energy balance is out of whack; you need to figure out why it's off kilter. Could it be because you're sick with an underlying medical condition? Could your thought patterns, your stress level, or your general state of mind be dragging and slowing you down? Could lifestyle habits such as your food choices or eating patterns, sleep practices, or exercise routines (or lack thereof) be creating an energy leak that's draining you physically and/or mentally? Or have you created a work or social schedule for yourself that's so demanding that it causes you to run out of fuel without ample opportunities for replenishing your energy reserves?
The first step toward breaking the exhaustion cycle is to identify and understand what is zapping your energy and contributing to your profound sense of fatigue. Then, and only then, can you begin to take steps to revitalize and reclaim your vigor and well-being. So let's start that identification process!
Copyright © 2015 by Holly Phillips, MD. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
