Tired = Frustration

I've come to discover that I have different levels of tired, most of which I can deal with just fine. The first stage is just being a little tired. I yawn, wish I could take a nap, but don't. This really isn't that big of a deal and it has very little to no effect on my everyday routines.

The second stage is where my mind gets a little foggy and I start making mistakes (such as in grammar and some logic). It often results from staying up later than I ought to working on homework or writing. This is where I'll actually try to take a nap sometime during the day. This stage makes my mind work a little slower and it takes longer for me to process things, but overall, I can still function.

The third stage is an interesting one. This is the stage where it goes beyond being tired. It results from not getting enough sleep for a consecutive number of days. This is the hyper stage. I don't feel the need to take a nap and everything just seems funny to me. I do over-the-top things that I wouldn't normally do. This makes it hard to sit still and focus on anything.

The last stage is tricky. I can jump to this stage without even going through any of the others. I don't often hit this stage, but when I do, it's a hard hit. This can be caused by a number of things. Generally it's when I've been doing active things all day that usually take place in the sun and then I have trouble sleeping that night, plus a few other factors. My body and mind don't have time to recover, and it results in this final stage. Like I said, it doesn't happen very often. But I hate it. My mind starts harboring illogical thoughts and tries to do more thinking than it can handle. Instead of becoming cranky or grumpy, I get quiet. I analyze everything and come up with ridiculous logic that if I were thinking straight would be able to see the faults in it.

This is what creates the frustration. I know that what I am thinking is unreasonable and I know that if I weren't so tired I wouldn't be thinking this way. But for some reason, I keep thinking that way. By the time I'm thinking clearly again, which takes some doing, I look back on it and think, "Smart one, you know that what you were thinking wasn't right." Then I kick myself and move on.

I hit that last stage today. And I can tell you, I had, or rather am having some pretty absurd thoughts. I decided to try writing about it to see if that would help. So far, so good. My mind is becoming more clear and even though I'm still tired, I'm starting to think a little more straight. Next time I'll write about something worth reading. This was more for me that for any of you. But hey, that's how you gain insights, right?