Tired…but Wired??

There are some things that are a part of my natural existence as an acupuncturist that don’t even occur to me as being foreign to all non-acupuncture folks.

A common phrase that is bandied about in acupuncture school is “tired but wired”. We study it, discuss it, and write dissertations on why our clients are tired but wired. At the end of our acupuncture master’s program, it is part of our day-to-day lens on human existence. You, however, may not think about it as much as we do.

It’s like “peanut butter and jelly” for the rest of us. Most of us don’t get “lit up” by seeing a peanut butter and jelly recipe; the same way acupuncturists don’t even realize that “tired but wired” might be an “a-ha moment” for the general population.

Are you tired but wired? I mean, c’mon, who the hell isn’t these days???

It’s a state we all fall into, but one that we can easily get out of with the right approach.

Ok, I am going to share with you 3 quick tips list on how to deal with tired but wired. But first, let’s get into the right head space.

Imagine you are in a beautiful mansion walking down a marble hallway with gorgeous decorations, statues, and paintings and running into your future 90-year-old self. Your very wise 90-year-old self holds your hand and tells you that they need to show you that what you desire most in life is right behind a door down at the end of the hallway. They escort you to a beautiful ornate gold door. It opens and right behind the door is what you have wanted for most of your life. Your 90-year-old self tells you that you already know how to achieve this; you already have the answers inside of you. Your higher self already knows the answers and the path that you will take to be your best and highest self.

 

Once in this mindset, I want to you do 3 things:

One: Cut out two soul-sucking activities from your weekly task list. Take a minute . . . think about this. what do you HATE to do? My 90-year-old self hates to sweep the floor and tells me all of the time that this is not an activity that builds good memories – done. No more sweeping. What about you?

Two: Add two things that you love or that support you. My favorite thing to do in the morning is eat 2 Brazil nuts as I drink my coffee, which gives me enough selenium to support my thyroid health. We buy a big organic bag from Costco, which my husband loves to eat by the fistfuls when he gets the 4 pm munchies. He asks me not to buy them anymore since they may affect his waistline. My 90-year-old self advised me to hide them in the drawer freezer since my husband hates to bend over to find snacks. What 2 small things can you do to bring you joy? How will you overcome the objections from yourself or or family so you can implement these 2 things?

Three: Shut the house down at 8 pm or 9 pm and seriously embrace the old-fashioned lifestyle. Have a hard stop with screens. Lay in bed for 60-90 minutes reading a book before you fall asleep. We started doing this about 6 years ago and after a few months, the deep soul-crushing fatigue stopped. My 90-year-old self greatly approves.

Please do these things. Put it in your spreadsheet, in notability, or wherever you keep your task list. It’s very doable. Set a Google calendar reminder in 60 days to see how you are feeling from doing these 3 things. Tell your acupuncturist what you are doing and ask her for the “tired but wired” acupuncture points. I’m excited to hear how your life has changed once you listen to your 90 year-old self.

Chat soon,

Nicole