People Who Are So Tired They Can't Even Sleep Say 6 Telling Phrases In Casual Conversation
Vadim Zakharishchev / Shutterstock When you’re feeling energized, it feels a lot better than when you’re feeling exhausted. You’re more productive, and it’s easier to motivate yourself. When you’re tired, it can feel like everything is too difficult.
Some people get so tired that it can feel too difficult for them to even go to sleep. When they try, they’ll just find themselves lying awake. During the day, their exhaustion leads them to say the same things over and over again during conversations with just about anyone.
If someone is so tired they can't even sleep, they'll often say these phrases in casual conversations
1. "I can't think straight."
Your brain needs sleep. If it doesn’t get it, it won’t work properly. People who are too exhausted to sleep will constantly say, “I can’t think straight.”
That’s not them trying to be dramatic. It’s true. They’re too exhausted for their brains to work efficiently, and it’ll start to change their behavior as well. It’ll probably take them twice as long to get everything done because they’re so tired. Their brains will be so scrambled that they don’t even realize the most important thing is for them to just go to bed.
2. “TV helps me decompress.”
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Sometimes you get too tired to read or do anything intellectually stimulating before going to bed. It’s nice to watch TV to just let your brain shut off for a minute. But you shouldn’t do it every night.
Watching TV late at night keeps people awake. That’s why you always hear people who are too tired to even fall asleep say, “TV helps me decompress.” Their habit keeps them up late into the night, though. Their screens keep them from getting tired. It keeps them wired, and they won’t be able to fall asleep.
3. “I can’t keep my eyes open.”
There are times when we’re supposed to sleep, and times when people are expected to stay awake. When people are at work or out with their friends during the day, they’re usually not supposed to fall asleep. They’ll still tell the people around them, “I can’t keep my eyes open.”
They probably can’t. When people keep themselves awake for too long, their body starts to fight back. It will try to override what their brain wants them to do and try to force them to go to sleep.
Even if they try to sleep, they might be so exhausted that it doesn’t even help. They have to catch up on so much sleep, but they still have to keep living their lives too. They’re too exhausted to go to sleep because they’re probably annoyed that their rest hasn’t helped them yet.
4. “I need more coffee."
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When I’m tired in the afternoon and still have a ton of work to do, I’ll usually drink a coffee to keep myself up. It’s not just me. Many people do this, but some will drink coffee after the sun’s gone down just to make sure they’re getting everything done.
Drinking coffee late at night has been shown to keep people up even when they’re tired. These coffee drinkers can start relying on it to keep them awake, but they don’t realize it’s making them even more tired. Even if the caffeine wakes them up for a minute, they still need sleep to feel fully rested.
They’ll get caught in a toxic cycle of jolting themselves awake with caffeine and then being tired the next day because they couldn’t sleep. They’ll constantly tell their friends, “I need some more coffee.” They think it’s helping energize them, but it’s actually making them exhausted in the long run.
5. “I wish I had time to take a nap.”
When people get really busy, it can be hard for them to find the time to prioritize themselves. They stop getting enough sleep because they’re spending so much time getting everything done. They’ll be too stressed to go to bed because that’s time they could be using to complete their tasks.
Losing sleep can also make people feel even more overwhelmed. People who are too exhausted to even sleep will commonly say, "I wish I had time to take a nap." They don’t feel like they can pull themselves away from their lives long enough to take a nap. They’re probably too worried about falling even further behind.
6. “I just can’t fall asleep.”
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People who are exhausted but still can’t fall asleep often struggle with insomnia. It’s a mental issue that prevents people from being able to fall asleep no matter how tired they are. Even when they try, their bodies just won’t let them.
A lot of people who experience insomnia don’t realize they have an issue. They might think it’s just a phase they’re going through when it’s really a medical problem. They’ll get frustrated at themselves because they think it’s a personal habit when it’s really more serious than that. Instead of getting mad at themselves, they should probably talk to a doctor about how to fix it.
Lily Bell is a college student studying English and Publications who covers relationships, mental health, and personal narratives surrounding the human experience.
