I knew it

"Mental toughness is something like the physical strength: It cannot develop without exercise, and it breaks down when overworked."

This quote is from a NYT article (which I can't link cause I don't know how). But it doesn't surprise me. I have said for years when you have more to do, you do more. I always just thought is was because you had to be more organized, more efficient, more selective. Apparently I was wrong though, when you have more to do you do more because your brain is a muscle that is apparently in its best shape. I also didn't realize

I remember three years ago when I was in school full-time and working full-time having an absolute S-O-S moment. I was driving home from school at 10 pm, chatting on the phone with stylish older sister, and I legitimately broke down in tears because I was so overwhelmed with everything. It was 10 pm, I wasn't home yet, I had to be at work at 7 am for a meeting, I had no clean underwear, and I was soooooo tired. There was no way I could stay up long enough to do laundry. Luckily stylish older sister is crafty so she instructed me to a) calm down b) wear tights and a dress to the meeting (no undies required) and c) go to bed when I got home, everything would be better in the morning. She was semi-right things didn't calm down for a couple weeks because it was our busy season at work, and nearing the end of semester at school. At the time I didn't think I was JUST overwhelmed. I thought I needed to do something better, and be mentally tougher. According this quote/article that wasn't right either. I was overdoing it. Which people told me, but when you are in the zone and it seems to be working out, when it starts falling apart you don't think it's that you took on too much. You think that you have somehow slipped, or let it get the best of you. Not that you were overdoing it for months, and like a muscle that will pull, your brained just pulled.