I am utterly exhausted, yet I'm awake.

Oh lord, this. How does this happen? The last two nights I've woken up around 4:30 (after getting to bed after 11:30) and can't seem to get back to sleep even though I'm frelling bone-weary tired. I don't get it.

Why am I such a pretty pretty princess??

You're so good at it. Take care of your eyebrows, Jesse! They're one of your better assets.

Science-y factoid of the day: Willpower is a finite resource. (Edit to fix order of stuff)

The current understanding of this is that all brain functions require fuel, but the executive functions seem to require the most. Or, if you prefer, the executive branch of the mind has the most expensive operating costs. Studies show that when low on glucose, those executive functions suffer, and the result is a state of mind called ego depletion. That mental state harkens back to the way Freud and his contemporaries saw the psyche, as a battle between dumb primal desires and the contemplative self. The early psychologists would have said when your ego is weak, your id runs amok. We now know it may just be your prefrontal cortex dealing with a lack of glucose.

Remember, no matter what the self-help books say, the research suggests that willpower isn’t a skill. If it was, there would be some consistency from one task to the next. Instead, every time you exert control over the giant system that is you, that control gets weaker. If you hold back laughter in a church or classroom, every subsequent silly notion is that much funnier until you run the risk of bursting into snorts.

The only way to avoid this state of mind is to predict what might cause it in your own daily life and to avoid those things when you need the most volition. Modern life requires more self control than ever. Just knowing Reddit is out there beckoning your browser, or your iPad is waiting for your caress, or your smart phone is full of status updates, requires a level of impulse control unique to the human mind. Each abstained vagary strengthens the pull of the next. Remember too that you can dampen your executive functions in many ways, like by staying up all night for a few days, or downing a few alcoholic beverages, or holding your tongue at a family gathering, or resisting the pleas of a child for the umpteenth time. Having an important job can lead to decision fatigue which may lead to ego depletion simply because big decisions require lots of energy, literally, and when you slump you go passive. A long day of dealing with bullshit often leads to an evening of no-decision television in which you don’t even feel like switching the channel to get Kim Kardashian’s face out of your television, or sitting and watching a censored Jurassic Park between commercials even though you own a copy of the movie five feet away. If so, no big deal, but if you find yourself in control of someone’s parole or air traffic, or you need to lose 200 pounds, that’s when it’s time to plan ahead. If you want the most control over your own mind so that you can alter your responses to the world instead of giving in and doing what comes naturally, stay fresh. Take breaks. And until we understand just what ego depletion really is, don’t make important decisions on an empty stomach.

Ego Depletion

Morning Matilda Report:

Sitting on the couch, cuddled up under her Disney Princess blanket munching on Honey Nut Cheerios and pondering the big questions:

You know what, mommy? Vampires are my favorite persons. They drink people's blood, and they have the sharpest teeth. That's what makes them so interesting.

Bless.

She's not wrong.

Instead, every time you exert control over the giant system that is you, that control gets weaker.

Interesting. I wonder what the impact is on people with ADD, who already have problems with executive functioning. Probably just magnifies it.

If the problem is your brain needing more glucose, it seems to me that you could increase your willpower simply by eating more chocolate.

At least, that's the theory I'll be testing today.

I'm going to have to think about that ego depletion article after I get some glucose to my prefrontal cortex. Interesting.

That is indeed what makes them so interesting, Matilda. Smart girl.

Matt, I'm not sure if you were actually looking for an answer, but this was the first episode Purefoy was in.

If the problem is your brain needing more glucose, it seems to me that you could increase your willpower simply by eating more chocolate.

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