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Wednesday's Health Report: Defeating decision fatigue
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BATON ROUGE — One expert estimates the human brain makes upwards of 35,000 decisions every day. This can drain people’s energy, making even simple choices difficult.
Decisions like what to do for dinner, what to wear to work and whether there is time to get to the gym can add up over time.
"Decision fatigue is the mental exhaustion that individuals feel when they make multiple decisions over the course of the day,” said Susan Albers, a psychologist at the Cleveland Clinic.
Albers says it's a common problem for many adults and can be caused by stress, feeling overwhelmed and lack of sleep. Since decision fatigue can build up over time it can be tricky to spot but she says there are warning signs.
Procrastination, decision avoidance, impulsive decisions, irritability, brain fog and confusion could all be hints that decision fatigue is in effect.
"All of us have multiple decisions that we have to make on in one day that may impact those around us,” Albers said, “For example, if you are a single parent or you carry the majority of the decisions at work, you may find yourself struggling more often with making these choices.”
To help defeat decision fatigue, Albers recommends creating a routine to help know what to expect each day. People can try to limit their options, like having some go-to meal ideas.
Prioritizing decisions is also important. Albers says studies show we make our best decisions first thing in the morning.
Decisions can also be delegated to lessen the load.
"Children can decide what they want to wear in the morning or a spouse can help us to decide what to make for dinner. This helps to lower the pressure and decrease some of the decisions that you have to make that are not that important,” Albers said.
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