How to minimise mental drainage

I used to feel totally mentally drained as a student after a few hours of work. This meant I could get very little volume, so I had to no energy leftover to study after I finished my homework, and the quality of even my best hours was very poor. Here’s how I drastically improved it:

1: I stopped eating 99% of carbohydrates. Most people won’t want to go this far, but every reduction you make in the amount of carbs you eat improves your focus, reduces brain fog, and allows you to work for more total hours throughout the day. Cutting out the processed and sugary foods is by far the most important for this, but I also discovered that even when I eat a lot of foods like rice or potatoes I get severe brain fog and lack the energy to start work. I used to think that it was a physical impossibility to study after dinnertime, but turns out I was just going through a crazy carb crash every day.

2:I put strict limits on how I use social media. I use scrolling apps like instagram for thirty minutes on a Saturday, and I have two times during the day when I can use messaging apps. I didn’t realise how mentally draining your phone can be until I limited it like this. Now, if I’m super undisciplined and I open youtube during a break, I can feel that my brain is not resting, it’s being forced to put in overtime.

3: Sleep. I know you’ve heard it a million times. That’s because it is the most important thing. It is not worth sacrificing sleep to study, no matter how much you think you have to do. You’ll get it done twice as fast if you’re fully rested. Pro tip: Sleep in multiples of 90 minutes, so 7.5 hours/ 9 hours. I personally alternate from 7.5 to 9 depending on the time of year.

4: Do your cardio. A few months ago while I was studying for my final exams, for three days I was struggling with really bad brain fog even though I was doing everything like diet and sleep right. I realised I wasn’t doing cardio, I wasn’t running anymore. I put on my shoes and went for a fast run and after I came back and showered I had so much clarity. Even if you do everything else right, if you neglect this, you’ll get mentally drained quickly and you will suffer from brain fog.

5: Use your breaks wisely: I mentioned above that it’s important that you don’t use your phone while on breaks. This is the most important thing, but what should you do instead? (This is predicated on the idea that you’re doing at least 60-minute work sessions) I personally like to walk around my house in a relaxed way, messing with a ball, playing with my dog, or talking to my family. Meditation works well for some people, so does breathwork. If you want to absolutely maximize the restfulness of your break and also keep it as short as possible, go into your room, close the door and curtains, look up NSDR (non-sleep deep rest) on youtube, find a 15/ 20 minute video on youtube and listen to it lying down. This is genuinely a superpower, it is shocking how rested you feel after doing it.

I hope you find these tips helpful, don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions on this.

4 comments