 Hey Psych2Goers, how's your energy level? Do you feel worn out way more than you think you should? You can think of your energy like water with your body and mind being the bucket and the bucket has a hole But how do we fix that hole and get more water? Let's fix the leak with knowledge. Here are some habits we can mix to help with that energy flow Number one watching lots of tearjerkers How ironic is this? We like a show because it makes us feel But then we overload with binge-watching and it makes us feel too much Empathy is great. Don't get us wrong But letting it run amuck by feeding it emotion-wrenching shows makes it a monster. With all that high intensity emotion Continuously ramping up our mental efforts to dampen and control the emotions kick in That extra effort means mental fatigue and you got it low energy levels So keep up the good empathy work, but give yourself a break with something fluffy once in a while number two Taking shallow breaths Although breathing is automatic. We have the power to affect the quality Imagine being parched so you fill a cup with two drops drink that have to refill it with another two drops and repeat The result is you're still thirsty and now you're also tired from the effort of excessive multiple refills Don't be stingy with oxygen Limited O2 means less fuel for our cells and organs and your brain starts to panic because it's feeling a little suffocated That anxiety just makes breathing even shallower and we're already feeling tired just talking about it It feels really good to unshallow yourself. Just take several deep breaths all the way down to your belly button and Slowly exhale You good? We're good. Number three planning too far in the future. Now planning isn't bad. It's great It's how you minimize things like not being able to pay rent or being able to get work done in time So you can go out, but like most things don't go overboard Say it with us Balance if your calendar is virtually made of ink and you have every moment of your life mapped out for the next year It can get overwhelming You start to find that your mind keeps worrying about what's going to happen in the future instead of focusing on what's happening now This anticipatory anxiety is still anxiety and can mess up your ability to stay mindful and finish what's on hand You end up accomplishing less overall and feeling less than stellar Having you time and doing nothing at all time is a necessary breather to stop yourself from screaming into burnout mode It's healthy. So go ahead and tell someone you can reschedule Rabbaging of your choice and chill number four letting little tasks pile up This is the procrastination goblin calling in the little creature is whispering You don't need to call the dentist yet That light still has two out of three bulbs lit know what they don't tell you Lots of little ignored things will pile together like Voltron and become a huge thing that keeps knocking at the back of your mind Before you know it your brain only sees this massive endless list of tasks That's overwhelming so it stresses and worries and gets nothing done You can defeat it though and you still get to procrastinate a bit It'll be our secret you can write the task down on a readily available and visible to-do list This lets you parcel them out into little bits in a reasonable amount of time since they're not out of sight out of mind Number five having to stay indoors for a prolonged period of time This one's a toughie. We know I mean global pandemic anyone Yeah, by law we had to stay indoors for like two years. So if you're feeling drained It's not abnormal the Journal of Environmental Psychology found that humans require nature to flourish Why they didn't say but the studies showed a significant increase in energy when your time was spent in nature Even if it was virtual or imagined they weren't even hiking or mountain climbing So go ahead and lay on the lawn or daydream about it to get a bit of a boost Number six slouching. Are you slouching right now? We know gravity does its thing and it just feels so much Easier to slide down in your comfy chair, but over time your draining your energy poor posture puts additional strain on our joints ligaments and muscles Additional strain means fatigue It's even been found that standing tall and sitting up straight can help with depressive symptoms in addition to reducing fatigue Hey, think of it as a good excuse We mean reason to go shopping for a nice ergonomic chair. We hear gaming chairs have become rather ergonomic Number seven not drinking enough water All right harsh truth time humans are bags of water Seriously, we're something like 70% water. In short, we need the stuff. It's actually required for life Water is in everything and if you ever wanted to be a water bender, you'll definitely know a good portion of blood is water So when you're dehydrated your blood gets thicker Sludgier meaning it doesn't move so well through your body. You know what blood does? Everything it's the ultimate courier for all things life necessary So if it gets all slow everyone suffers and when I say everyone I mean your organs and muscles You cannot have a supply chain issue with your blood and still be energized So remember to have your personal anti-sludge secret weapon on hand a water bottle Stay hydrated and feel the recharge Our modern lives have these sneaky seemingly normal habits that just sap away our energy But knowledge is power and now you know did any of these click with you? Have you tried any of the solutions and how did they work out? Please feel free to comment share and discuss Hopefully these tips have given you the energy to watch another video