Look, we know you’re probably tired. Between work, school, and family, life can really wear you down sometimes. Add in compounding stress like money worries, second jobs, health issues, problems in your personal life, or poor nutrition and exhaustion can start to take a serious toll. The major problem with being tired is that it can have far reaching fallout. A Harvard study found that insomnia can cost the average worker the loss of 11.3 days of productivity per year. That can add up fast.
Many people don’t realize that exhaustion can actually wind up costing them money. Between lost shifts, purchases of convenience food, and higher medical bills, the very real costs of exhaustion can start to add up. So how can you tell if exhaustion is costing you money?
Are you sick a lot?
Sometimes when you’re just trying to survive from one day to the next, it can be difficult to tell if you’re sick more often than other people. But if you are, exhaustion may be a culprit. According to one study, if you’re stressed and not sleeping enough, you may be at more risk of getting the common cold.
The financial problems caused by frequent viruses are the additional costs of medicines and doctor visits, and often the loss of income because of unpaid leave. If this situation sounds familiar to you, it may be time to consider switching careers. Look for a field with higher pay or better benefits, and look into the training required to enter the field. An online degree may be the answer to not only a new career path, but better quality of life.
Do you have time to cook?
We all have heard and read the science on the dangers of eating too much fast food, or convenience food products. The problem is that when you’re exhausted all the time, the precious hours a week you spend making food can be too much. That’s when we turn to easier food options that might not be good for us. Good nutrition can be easier to maintain in home cooked food. And good nutrition can help keep us healthier.
Cooking at home also tends to be a more cost-effective way to eat than convenience foods. The larger your family, the more savings you are likely to find in cooking for yourself. So your exhaustion can actually cause you to spend more on food than you would otherwise.
Lost work
If you’re one of the increasing number of freelance workers in the U.S. Or one of 28% of civilian workers without paid sick leave, lost time at work from illness means lost money. Exhaustion can actually hurt your ability to keep a roof over your head and food on the table. This can leave you caught between a rock and a hard place where you can’t take the time off to adequately recover from illness and exhaustion because doing so will leave you in deep financial trouble. But of course, your levels of exhaustion will probably not improve.
If you find yourself in this endless cycle, you may want to consider switching to a new career. An online degree program could be the answer you’re looking for.
