Symptoms and Causes

Finishing the year can feel a lot like crossing the finish line of a marathon. The final few miles are the most challenging as you are physically drained. While there is an overwhelming joy to complete the race, the fatigue accumulated over time often wears us out. It’s not uncommon to share the same sentiments about the year coming to an end. The hustle and bustle of holiday celebrations, work deadlines and personal obligations can weigh us down in this final stretch of the race.

End-of-year fatigue is a state of physical and emotional exhaustion that happens towards the end of the year. For many, it’s a direct result of being stressed and overworked. Studies have shown that fatigue significantly reduces our productivity and ability to perform tasks efficiently.

So, how do we know if we are suffering from end-of-year fatigue?

The common symptoms include:

Changing of moods: You may notice a change of mood like feeling more pessimistic or irritable. The change of mood can make us feel trapped and lose the motivation to complete even simple tasks. If we fail to manage our emotions, we may even snap at our loved ones out of frustration.

Thinking difficulties: It’s harder to think and reason when our brains are exhausted. Research has shown that feelings of fatigue and burnout could impact our cognitive functions in areas such as attention and memory. We may not have the mental capacity to make sound decisions.

Sleeping problems: Fatigue is also commonly associated with sleeping problems. You may find it difficult to fall sleep or stay asleep when your mind is overly active due to stress. Both sleep disturbances may cause you to oversleep, lose focus and leave you feeling sluggish all the time.

What Causes Fatigue?

Various potential causes of fatigue can be categorised as follows:

Lifestyle Factors

What you get up to and your lifestyle choices can impact how your body responds. A healthy lifestyle is essential to balancing good mental and physical health. Lifestyle factors can include:

• Lack of regular sleep.
• Lack of physical activity.
• Emotional stress.
• Using specific medications such as antidepressants.

Mental Health Issues

An imbalance in your emotional and psychological well-being can result in feeling constantly tired. Balanced mental health is crucial to lead a healthy life. Various factors, such as tragic life events, can trigger mental health conditions.

The most common mental health issues that are associated with fatigue are:

Physical Health Conditions

In most cases, fatigue can be linked to your physical health. For instance, you might be vulnerable to tiredness if you have a chronic illness. Physical health conditions that can trigger extreme cases of fatigue include:

• Anaemia
• Anorexia
• Insomnia
• Arthritis
• Diabetes
• Cancer
• Kidney disease.
• Cardiovascular diseases.

Workplace Related Causes

Working in a high-pressure environment might make you vulnerable to fatigue. Working long hours, deadlines, and being dissatisfied with your job are reasons you may feel highly exhausted around this time of the year. It’s important to recognise when dealing with work-related stress to ensure it doesn’t become a significant health issue.

Symptoms of work-related stress can include:

• Anxiety
• Trouble sleeping.
• Decreased work performance.
• Depression