My Afternoon Coffee Isn't Working Anymore

My Afternoon Coffee Isn't Working Anymore

Lately, I've been drinking two iced coffees a day.

And by “iced coffee,” I mean the most boring homemade concoction ever.

Two shots of espresso.

About 150 - 200 ml of oat milk.

Sometimes a little sugar. Most of the time, nothing.

That's it.

One in the morning.

One in the middle of the afternoon.

And yet, sometime after 4 PM, I get sleepy.

Like properly sleepy.

The kind where I start thinking, Maybe I should just lie down for a while.

So I do.

A 30-minute nap sometimes becomes an hour.

And here's the funny part:

Sometimes I have just finished my second iced coffee and I still fall asleep. 😂

So much for caffeine.

Maybe I'm Just Getting Older

I have a few theories about this new body clock of mine.

Maybe I'm getting older.

I'm 48 now, and I've noticed some changes since turning 48 last August.

But you know what?

I'm not fighting it.

I'm actually learning to embrace getting older - and hopefully, to do it gracefully.

I'm not trying to convince my body that it's still 28. 😂

If my body says it's tired, I'm learning to listen.

If it wants a nap at 4 PM, okay then.

Nap it is.

I'm starting to respect the fact that this is an older body now.

It has carried me through almost five decades of work, motherhood, stress, sleepless nights, corporate life, VA work, business ideas, disappointments, and everything in between.

Maybe it has earned the right to say:

“That's enough for today, Cy.”

Or Maybe My Brain Is Just Tired

Because these days, my brain is braining a lot.

My mornings usually start with VA work around 6 or 7 AM.

Depending on the workload, that's about one to three hours.

Then I switch gears and work on North Star.

And North Star isn't just one thing.

Some days I'm writing an ebook.

Other days I'm tweaking the website.

Checking things.

Researching.

Figuring out how to sell.

Thinking about content.

Trying something.

Changing my mind.

Trying another thing.

A good two to three hours can easily disappear into that project.

Then lunch.

And after lunch?

Back to VA work.

So when 4 PM comes around, maybe my brain is simply saying:

“Girl, we're done for today.” 😂

Except we're not.

There are still things to do.

But sometimes, I just give in.

I take the nap.

And honestly?

I've stopped feeling guilty about it.

I'm Learning to Work With My Body

Maybe this is one of those things that changes as we get older.

When I was younger, I could push through tiredness much more easily.

Now, I'm starting to realise that energy is a resource too.

Not just money.

Not just time.

Energy.

And unlike money, I can't simply earn more of it by working harder.

Sometimes I have to stop.

Rest.

Then come back.

So I'm going with the flow.

I'm not resisting every little change.

I'm learning to adjust.

Because getting older doesn't necessarily mean something is wrong.

Sometimes, your body is simply changing the rules - and you're finally learning to read them.

And honestly, I'd rather work with my body than spend the next few years arguing with it.

I'm still working.

Still building North Star.

Still doing VA work.

Still trying to create the future I want.

I'm just learning that I may have to build it with a little more respect for the energy I actually have.

Maybe This Is What Growing Older Looks Like

I used to think being productive meant squeezing more hours into the day.

Now I'm beginning to think it might also mean knowing when your brain has had enough.

Because I can drink my second iced coffee.

I can sit in front of my laptop.

I can tell myself:

Come on, just finish this one thing.

But if my body is already asking for a nap...

Apparently, the body wins.

Every single time. 😂

And maybe that's not a bad thing.

I'm 48.

I'm not interested in fighting every sign that I'm getting older.

I want to grow older gracefully.

I want to listen more closely to my body.

I want to respect what it needs instead of constantly asking it to keep up with the version of me from ten or twenty years ago.

Maybe I don't have the same energy I used to have.

But perhaps I'm becoming better at knowing where to spend the energy I do have.

And that matters too.