Welcome to 3-2-1 Tuesdays with Better Wellness Naturally- Cognitive Load and Mental Fatigue
- Admin
- Oct 3, 2024
- 4 min read
Updated: Jan 6
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Quick bits of therapeutic info and learning, ideas, concepts, and quotes.
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3: Keys
2: Concepts
1: Quick Article
"It's not the load that breaks you down; it's the way you carry it." — Lou Holtz
3 Keys to Understanding Cognitive Load and Mental Fatigue:
Cognitive Load Drains Your Mental Energy: Do you ever feel like you just can’t find the energy to think? The amount of mental effort in your working memory is known as cognitive load. The more tasks you try to juggle or the more complex a task becomes, the more mental resources you burn through. When you're multitasking or processing too much information at once, your brain gets overwhelmed, leading to cognitive overload. This exhaustion affects your ability to think clearly, make decisions, and even perform basic tasks efficiently.
Decision Fatigue and Reduced Willpower: Each decision you make throughout the day slowly drains your cognitive resources. This phenomenon, known as decision fatigue, happens when the brain becomes overwhelmed from continuous decision-making, no matter how small. As a result, people tend to make impulsive choices, avoid decisions altogether, or have reduced willpower, leading to mental and emotional exhaustion by the day’s end.
Rest and Breaks Improve Cognitive Performance: Short, intentional breaks throughout the day allow your brain to reset, reducing cognitive overload. Studies have shown that even a few minutes of rest can improve focus and cognitive performance, especially during mentally demanding tasks. Regular breaks prevent your brain from becoming overwhelmed and help you sustain higher levels of productivity without succumbing to mental fatigue.
A Couple of Concepts
Intrinsic vs. Extraneous Cognitive Load: Intrinsic load refers to the effort required to understand the core components of a task. It's the necessary mental work that can't be avoided, like learning a new skill or solving a complex problem. Extraneous load, however, comes from unnecessary distractions or poorly organized information that make tasks harder than they need to be. By reducing extraneous cognitive load—like minimizing distractions or simplifying your environment—you free up mental resources to focus on what truly matters, reducing overall cognitive fatigue.
The Impact of Multitasking on Mental Clarity: Multitasking might seem efficient, but in reality, it overworks your brain and reduces cognitive efficiency. The brain is wired to focus on one thing at a time, and switching between tasks can lead to cognitive overload. Studies show that multitasking increases errors, prolongs tasks, and drains more mental energy than focusing on a single task. Over time, frequent task-switching contributes to mental fatigue and lowers overall performance.
A Quick Overview: Understanding Mental Fatigue— The Role of Cognitive Load
Cognitive load theory, developed by psychologist John Sweller, demonstrates that our brain’s working memory can only handle a limited amount of information at any given time. When we overload that capacity with too much information or too many complex tasks, mental fatigue sets in. This is especially true in today’s world, where we’re constantly bombarded with stimuli—emails, social media notifications, multitasking at work—leading to what many describe as “brain fog” or a sense of being mentally drained. The more cognitive load we carry, the harder it becomes to process new information, make decisions, and stay focused.
Quick question here: How many times have you checked your cellphone today?
Mental fatigue has significant implications for both cognitive and emotional well-being. Research shows that prolonged mental exhaustion not only impairs attention and memory but also affects decision-making and emotional regulation. When the brain’s prefrontal cortex—responsible for executive functions such as planning, reasoning, and impulse control—is overworked, we see declines in performance and increased stress. Chronic mental fatigue can lead to burnout, making it difficult to engage in daily tasks or maintain motivation. The depletion of glucose in the prefrontal cortex is a key factor in this process, as it fuels our brain’s higher-order functions, and its exhaustion leaves us unable to sustain clear thinking.
Fortunately, there are practical strategies to mitigate cognitive overload and reduce mental fatigue. Research supports the importance of frequent, short breaks during mentally demanding tasks to help restore cognitive resources. These breaks allow the brain to process information in smaller chunks, making it easier to manage workload and stay focused.
Additionally, reducing unnecessary cognitive load—by minimizing distractions, delegating tasks, or prioritizing single-tasking over multitasking—can help preserve mental energy.
Please remember to pause. Mindfulness practices, such as deep breathing or meditation, have also been shown to replenish mental clarity and reduce stress, allowing individuals to perform better under high cognitive demands.
References:
Sweller, J. (1988). Cognitive Load During Problem Solving: Effects on Learning. Cognitive Science, 12(2), 257-285.
Baumeister, R.F., & Tierney, J. (2011). Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength. Penguin Press.
Ophir, E., Nass, C., & Wagner, A.D. (2009). Cognitive Control in Media Multitaskers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 106(37), 15583-15587.
Arnsten, A.F. (2009). Stress Signaling Pathways that Impair Prefrontal Cortex Structure and Function. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 10(6), 410-422.
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