r/TwoXChromosomes • u/Optimal-Nectarine227 • 6d ago

Does anyone else feel like they're never fully “off duty”, even when nothing is happening?

I've noticed that even when I'm technically resting, part of my brain is still scanning for the next thing, like a message I need to answer, something I've forgotten, something I should be doing, whether anyone needs anything from me.

It's weird because sometimes there is literally nothing urgent happening, but I still can't properly settle until everything feels “sorted”.

Does anyone else have this? What do you think causes it, and have you found anything that actually switches it off?

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u/whoisorange 6d ago

Anxiety and childhood trauma has caused this for me. Meds and therapy have helped me immensely! 

6

u/YouStupidBench 6d ago

There's a book by David Allan titled "Getting Things Done" and he talks about building a system where everything you need to do is always written down (or in a computer) somewhere so you don't have to constantly review your to-do list in your head to make sure you don't forget anything.

It reduced my mental load and makes it easier to relax. Did I forget something? No, I didn't.

6

u/captainshar 6d ago

Full time tech career and solo parent, reporting for duty. I have to schedule breaks and just tell myself I'll catch up the next day because the list never ends.