The past year has been challenging for many of us. For me personally, it was the kind that involved making a lot of really impactful life decisions and choices. In particular, I noticed that I was not only physically tired, but mentally tired as well, as I kept spinning around in my head trying to figure things out. I saw that there is a certain kind of exhaustion that doesn’t necessarily come from physically doing ‘too much’, but from ‘deciding’ too much.
What to prioritize. How to respond. Whether to speak and fight. Whether you should let it go now. Whether it means persevering. Whether we have to choose what we want or want to please. What to cook that evening.
Mental demands are almost constantly being made of us. And at the end of the day, we can feel exhausted from making micro-decisions, even though we haven’t physically “done” much at all.
The fast pace of hectic modern life asks us to make an extraordinary number of choices. Practical choices, emotional choices, mental choices, soulful choices. We are constantly filtering, assessing, responding, adjusting, directing and planning. And often we think not only about our own decisions, but also about the impact they will have on others.
That can leave us in ‘decision fatigue’ – our executive functioning overloaded – and that’s not a failure, but a sign that our nervous system has been in overdrive. This can be especially taxing if we are neurodivergent – as I have experienced, ADHD or autistic minds can find long-term decision-making particularly difficult.
Instead of applying even more pressure, it asks us to slow down. Essential oils are the perfect medicine for this.
How decision fatigue manifests
Decision fatigue may not manifest itself in a dramatic way; it can manifest itself in more subtle symptoms, such as:
- Brain fog
- Irritability
- Delay
- Overwhelm
- Avoid small choices
- Scroll instead of choosing
- Overlooking little things
- Feeling flat or demotivated
- Impulse decisions
- Physical fatigue.
When the mind is tired, we feel lost at sea – our clarity decreases. We then notice that we think about simple things or even can no longer think at all.
From a holistic perspective based on universal healing principles, when we put our minds aside, the body ultimately speaks – and what started as cognitive overload can move inward, into the body.
How decision fatigue affects the body
I know from my own experiences as a young girl and as an adult that when I’ve been decision tired, my body is ultimately a reflection of what’s going on mentally and emotionally.
Body and mind are not separated; they are connected. So if we stay in decision-making mode for a long time – constantly weighing, evaluating and anticipating – our stress response is activated.
This can manifest itself in the body as:
- Energy crashes
- Exhaustion
- Tension in the shoulders or jaw – or anywhere in the body
- Headache and migraine
- Digestive disorders
- Sleep disturbance
- Hormonal imbalances
- You feel wired, yet exhausted.
It’s not that the body is failing us (which is a big thing I felt when it happened to me) – it’s just showing us that there’s too much to hold, too much responsibility, too much decision making without a break to rest. It is often a result of the accumulation of decisions in one short period of time.
Why essential oils can help
Essential oils work directly through the limbic system – the emotional regulation center of the brain. When we use scent, it can change our state. They are also absorbed into our bloodstream and can help create physiological, therapeutic changes.
In other words, they help us regulate our nervous system – and when our body feels supported and rested, our mind becomes clearer.
Essential oils calm the stress response, reduce mental overload and brain fog, help us feel more regulated and improve clarity – helping us feel less physically exhausted and balanced.
Overall, they can help us feel better rested – mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually. And when we have enough resources, decisions feel easier.
Top essential oils for decision fatigue
My favorite oils for decision fatigue include those that can help us sharpen our mental clarity, calm our nervous system, ground us and help us set boundaries around our ‘problem solving’, and calm our emotions – but of course there are many oils that can help with the physical symptoms too. For now I’m focusing on the nervous system and the mental-emotional basis of things, because the physical always follows.
Oils for Mental Clarity:
- Rosemary – a herbaceous oil. Rosemary is traditionally associated with mental sharpness. It supports focus when the mind feels foggy and helps prevent overthinking.
- Lemon – bright and refreshing. Lemon lifts mental heaviness and restores clarity during energy dips. It is a perfect ‘cephalic’ oil that has a stimulating and purifying effect on the mind.
Oils to calm the nervous system:
- Frankincense – a woody, spicy, grounding and centering oil, this slows down the racing thoughts and helps us create space around a decision.
- Lavender – floral, soothing and regulating. Lavender calms irritability due to cognitive overload and supports a good night’s sleep after a long day full of decisions
Oils for Grounding and Boundaries:
- Cedarwood – a woody oil. Cedarwood stabilizes, grounds dispersed energy and helps us feel anchored in the body.
- Vetivert – a smoky, earthy oil. Vetivert is deeply grounding. It is useful when fatigue turns to stagnation, stabilizing the nervous system when we feel overwhelmed.
- Clary Sage – a musky, bittersweet floral oil. This oil clarifies and liberates our inner truth, encourages focused choices and supports us to set boundaries when we say yes too often.
Oils for emotional calming:
- Bergamot – a citrusy, floral scent. Bergamot is uplifting without overstimulation, easing the emotional heaviness when decisions feel exhausting and soothing the anxiety that lurks beneath indecision.
- Patchouli – an exotic musky-sweet, spicy, spicy oil. This is earthy and grounding, stabilizes us when choices feel destabilizing, and helps us land back in the body.
Ritual for resetting decisions
When we are tired, it is important to keep things simple. That’s why I offer a little ritual to help you calm down, rest and take a moment before making your next choice.
Use one or both of these blends in the morning:
Diffuser mixture – mix 3 drops of frankincense, 2 drops of bergamot and 1 drop of rosemary in water in an electric diffuser or candle burner for 30 minutes.
Massage oil – add 3 drops of Patchouli, 2 drops of Lavendar and 1 drop of Lemon to 15 ml of grapeseed oil and apply it to your body with slow, soothing movements in the direction of your heart.
Place one hand on your heart and one hand on your abdomen. Take a few deep breaths – in counts of 5 – and exhale in counts of 8, allowing yourself to ground yourself in the present moment.
Let yourself know that all the decisions you have to make can wait. Ask yourself: is this mine, is it urgent, can it wait?
Remove one thing from your mental load. Look at your calendar and set aside an hour that isn’t necessary to do something for you – maybe take a walk in nature, or go to a yoga class; everything that doesn’t ask of you.
Postpone your next choice. Delegate it. Or even decide to think about it, if that helps.
Notice how your body feels as you reduce the pressure and demands on yourself.
A call to pause
To remind; While we live in a culture that values and celebrates constant choice and demand, our nervous systems thrive on tranquility, simplicity, and closeness to the natural rhythms of the wilderness.
Sometimes the most regulating thing we can do is pause our decision-making, return to nature’s plant medicine, create a smaller routine, and rest.
Decision fatigue isn’t incompetence, it’s a sign that we’re carrying too much.
Essential oils won’t make the choices for us, but they will help us slow down enough to reconnect with ourselves. Clarity rarely comes from pushing harder. It comes from taking a step back, quieting our minds and calming our souls.
Happy mixing.
Nicole Barton
Advisor Aromatherapist
Disclaimer and safety advice
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