20/10/2025
Tired.
Written By Patrice Antoinette De Vera
Illustration by Kiarabelle Denisse Mendoza
An adjective thrown so leisurely, so casually, and yet it settles into so many people's bloodstreams, infiltrates their brains, and affects their day-to-day living. How has it become so normal to be drained—to wake up less motivated than the day prior, spirits barely roused and awakened? You wake up on autopilot and move—𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰? 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺?—and operate based on what the answers are. However, do you actually 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦?
In a world continuously shifting, ever-changing—a world that demands constant hustle, or you fall behind—how fearful it truly is to stop, take a break, and rest. Responsibilities pile up, and you gasp in despair, rushing to accomplish them, tears welling in your eyes, your body shaking, curling into itself, and you think, 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘐 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦? But you must! There is no other option—the world doesn't stop just because of how tired you are. This, you learn from a very young age—not necessarily due to some traumatic experience, but simply because it is in fact, how things are, how society operates. What must you do, if not bend?
This way of thinking is unfortunate but immensely prevalent. Years have transpired, generations even, but such practices have not changed. Of course, nowadays, people speak more openly of rest and recovery—but even then, the quiet guilt lingers, the sheer shame that society attaches to it—creeping up on a person who chooses to pause—as if it were adjacent to admitting defeat, admitting things are unbearable, when all you truly desire is to continue striving, continue pushing.
It may sound cliché, but it is alright. 𝘛𝘳𝘶𝘭𝘺.
Years 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 passed, and opinions 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 changed—though external opinions should not be one's basis for taking action, anyway—the awareness of mental health has grown far more extensive, understanding among people widespread and tremendous.
A choice to rest, to take care of yourself, is no admission of weakness. In fact, it represents strength. Knowing how to step back, take care of yourself, and return once you're at your best is a true skill—one commendable, and one that must be practiced without shame.
As this term's final week approaches, and deadlines mount atop one another—pressure, thus, rising as well—let us be reminded of these sentiments as a lesson to be lived daily: empathy and compassion fostered, both for others and for ourselves.
Perfect marks are appealing, yes—but how meaningful are they, truly, if you wear yourself thin trying to achieve them? A number does not define one's level of intelligence, their competence, no matter how hard it may be to accept, whether internal or external voices amplify the false narrative. As easy as it is to utter sentiments like "take care of yourself, be nicer to yourself," at times like these, to some, it presents itself as a challenge. The mere effort, though, of trying, demands commemoration. So as long as you've exerted your very best effort, whatever results there may be, find peace in that, and pat yourself on the shoulder.
Extend grace not only to others, but also to yourself. Together, we can do this, Nationalians! You are not alone—not this finals week, not this mental health month, not ever.
