Tired or Bored?

SometImes I find myself completely drained. Devoid of any initiative or sense of purpose, I struggle to do even the fun things. I’m not talking about depression, just evenings or parts of days where I have no energy.

I’ve always thought that this means I’m tired. That I need to rest more, or better, and allow myself to come back naturally. I am, after all, not getting any younger.

But a thought hit me earlier. This never happens when I’m doing stuff and actually completing things. And as a former cognitive psychology student I know that motivation comes after action, not the other way around..

So I have this vague suspicion that maybe I’m not tired. Maybe I’m just bored. Not bored as “in need of entertainment”, but bored as in “my life is on rails”.

Maybe I need to do more challenging things. Or maybe I just need to sleep more. How do you tell the difference?