The exhaustion people over 60 feel isn't laziness, it's what happens when your body finally sends the bill for 40 years of never learning how to rest without guilt - Silicon Canals

"When your sixty-something mother says she's too tired to visit this weekend, or your recently retired father spends entire afternoons on the couch, it's tempting to wonder if they've just given up. We live in a culture that equates worth with productivity, so when older adults slow down, we often misread exhaustion as laziness or lack of motivation. But here's what we're missing: that bone-deep tiredness isn't a character flaw."

"My father spent thirty years in sales management, and I watched him wear his exhaustion like a badge of honor. Sick days were for quitters. Vacations were cut short by "urgent" calls. He'd drag himself to the office with the flu because showing up was what professionals did. And you know what? He got passed over for promotions repeatedly anyway. The meritocracy he believed in, the one that promised rewards for those who sacrificed the most, turned out to be a myth."

Decades of internalized work-first values leave many older adults deeply fatigued rather than lazy. Cultural messages equating worth with productivity teach people to earn rest and to view slowing down as failure. Long careers of chronic overwork produce cumulative physical and emotional debt, causing frequent naps and limited daily stamina in retirement. The belief in meritocratic rewards for sacrifice often fails to deliver promised benefits. Guilt around rest becomes persistent, and asking for help is stigmatized. Recognizing exhaustion as the result of lifetime pressures reframes compassion and care for older adults. Providing rest and support addresses root causes rather than blaming individuals.

Read at Silicon Canals