Hi Reader,

Last week I told you I'd tell you about the haze I'd been in. And here it is, but I want to be honest about something first: there's no clean, inspiring turning point here. I didn't wake up one day and decide to get my s*!t together. There's no cinematic rock bottom to rise here (those always seem a little suspicious to me anyway).

Really, it's all a little boring.

For a long stretch, I was more exhausted than I was with an infant and a toddler at the same time. Sit with that for a second (and reach out if this is you, I'll give the even more boring details).

Newborn exhaustion is brutal, but it's a kind your body expects — it has a name, people understand it, there's an end in sight. This was different. This was bone-deep, unexplainable, the kind of tired that sleep doesn't touch.

Some of it likely was my nervous system. I was living on high alert, chronically stressed and entirely dysregulated despite my best efforts. And if you've been here for a while, you know that dysregulation isn't just in your head.You feel it in your shoulders, your sleep, your immune system, your ability to remember your kids' birthdays.

Some of it, it turned out, was physical. Inflammation, plain and simple. I got some help and changed how I was eating. I leaned into my own advice (breathwork, mindfulness, rest).

I also ran a quiet experiment on myself: I stopped pushing for anything beyond what was strictly necessary. No hikes, no fun outings, nothing extra — just the dishes done and clean (probably not folded) laundry. I wanted to see what happened if I let "enough" actually be enough for a while.

I needed it. That, plus the way I was eating, brought the energy back. Enough energy to sit at a desk and write you an email again.

This is not as a wellness pitch (although, I do hope you take notice and then take care if you need it). Rather, I think there's something important in my "experiment:"

Sometimes what feels like a character flaw, a discipline problem, a "why can't I just get it together" moment, is your body asking for something specific. And for too many of us, we don't listen until we are beyond exhausted.

That's it. That's the update. And a call to you to spend a minute or two to listen earnestly to what your body needs.

Yours in finally listening,