Am I Just Tired, or Is It Something Deeper?
A Modern Mental Health Check-in
We all have our go-to explanations when we’re not feeling great:
“I’m just tired.”
“It’s probably the weather.”
“It’s Mercury in retrograde.”
“I stayed up doomscrolling and ate pretzels for dinner—obviously.”
But what if it’s more than that?
In an age of wellness podcasts, therapy memes, and chronic overcommitment, it can be hard to tell the difference between being temporarily exhausted and being emotionally underwater. So let’s talk about it.
Here’s your unofficial, unlicensed (but Defina Health-approved) modern mental health check-in—with a side of honesty and just enough sarcasm to make it bearable.
1. Are you tired—or soul tired?
If you’ve been tired for weeks, no matter how much sleep you get, it might not be a sleep problem. It could be burnout, depression, or anxiety in disguise. Your body might be saying, “Hey… we’re kind of not okay.”
Also: naps are wonderful, but they don’t solve existential dread.
2. Are you avoiding texts from people you love for no reason?
We’re not talking about that one friend who sends 13-minute voice memos. (Boundaries!)
We’re talking about the slow fade you didn’t mean to do. Isolation and irritability can be subtle signs that your brain’s emotional bandwidth is running low.
3. Do you cry when your food delivery is wrong?
No judgment. A soggy burrito has broken many of us. But if small inconveniences feel like emotional avalanches, it could be your nervous system saying, “I’m maxed out.”
Mood swings, overwhelm, and sensitivity to stress? Common signs of anxiety, depression, or being stretched too thin.
4. Have your hobbies turned into “meh-bies”?
If you used to love reading, walking, drawing, thrifting, or watching Shark Tank and now everything feels dull or effortful, that’s a red flag.
Loss of interest or pleasure is one of the hallmark symptoms of depression. It’s not about laziness—it’s about disconnection.
5. Do you feel like a glitchy robot in human skin?
You’re functioning—technically. But inside, it’s like you’re buffering. Emotions are muted or chaotic. You’re going through the motions but not really present.
Congrats: you may be living in high-functioning survival mode. It’s not sustainable—and you don’t have to stay there.
Here’s the thing: You don’t have to wait until it gets “bad enough.”
Mental health care isn’t just for breakdowns. It’s for:
Breaking cycles
Processing feelings
Feeling more like yourself
You don’t need a crisis. You just need curiosity—and maybe a little courage.
You Can Laugh and Get Help
Here’s what we believe at Defina Health:
You can be high-functioning, funny, insightful—and still benefit from therapy or psychiatry. We have both and we’ll never judge you for crying over a burrito.