Spanish psychiatrist Marian Rojas Estapé claims daily fatigue stems from decision overload, not work, draining mental energy and affecting brain function.
Spanish psychiatrist discusses decision fatigue
Spanish psychiatrist Marian Rojas Estapé stated in late September 2026 on the program COPE that a significant portion of daily fatigue does not come from work but from the number of choices individuals must make.Mental energy and decision-making
Each decision, even minor, consumes mental energy that the brain struggles to replenish during the day. The decisional fatigue she describes would primarily affect the prefrontal cortex, the brain region responsible for control and reasoning.Brain as a limited resource
Making a decision demands effort from the brain. Each deliberate decision mobilizes the prefrontal cortex, the region that weighs pros and cons, inhibits impulses, and plans. However, this area operates with limited energy, which the thousands of micro-choices in a day gradually deplete, from morning clothes to messages to send.Consequences of decision fatigue
When the load becomes too low, the quality of decisions declines. Instead of choosing, the fatigued brain makes random decisions, postpones them, or follows the easiest option. For the psychiatrist, this is the moment when everyone shifts into their "worst version," one person getting angry over trivial matters, another emptying the refrigerator.Scientific debate and shared experience
However, the model is debated, as some studies struggle to replicate the effects measured in the laboratory, but the experience of a fading clarity in the evening remains widely shared.
