I Was So Tired

So, I returned to work on Monday, April 10, 2017, after a 2 week vacation.  A true vacation, during which I did very little strenuous activity.  I really relaxed and did not worry about work. So, I returned to work on April 10, 2017, and had a lot of emails to wade through, and a lot of business that was not tended to while I was gone, although my co-workers did what they could to cover my work while I was gone. It is reasonable that they did what they could, but they had their own assignments, and could only manage the most emergent of mine.  I accept that.

My personal make up is that I feel like I have to get "caught up" in one day.  Of course, that is not going to happen, and I know that intellectually, but viscerally, I want to do that. So, I had a reasonably good day on Monday, my first day back at work. It was busy, but not frantic. But, I felt the pressure. And, when I arrived home Monday night, I was mentally exhausted. I was able to exercise for a while, but the mental fatigue really knocked me out, and I went to bed early as a result.

Sometimes, going to bed early means I wake up in the middle of the night, and cannot go back to sleep.  Last night, I woke up, still felt tired, and tossed and turned but was able to go back to sleep. 

I hate being that exhausted, and to be honest, the rest I am able to get is not as restorative as I would like. But, I got through the night. And got to work in a timely way on Tuesday.

So on April 11, 2017, I was tired but not exhausted, when I arrived home from work. This is better. I hope by the end of the week, I am back in the swing of things.

Years ago, I worked at a facility, and we hired a new employee, who had not been in the work force for some time.  After the first day, she was exhausted.  I remember telling my supervisor about that, and she said "I didn't remember how exhausting returning to work can be."  She worked with the employee to moderate her schedule so she could adjust to being back at work.  What a wonderful, supportive response. But that supervisor was such a wonderful, supportive person.

What a life lesson to learn.