Tired as F*ck
Burnout at the Hands of Diet, Self-Help, and Hustle Culture
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- $19.99
Publisher Description
Blending memoir and blistering social observations, the author of The F*ck It Diet looks back at her desperate attempts to heal her hunger, anxiety, and imperfections through extreme diets, culty self-help methods, and melodramatic bargains with the universe.
Offering a frank and funny critique of the cultural forces that are driving us mad, Caroline Dooner examines how treating ourselves like never ending self-improvement projects is a recipe for burnout. We have become unknowingly complicit in perpetuating our own exhaustion because we are treating ourselves like machines. But even phones need to f*cking recharge.
Caroline takes a good hard look at the dark side of self-help, and explains how she eventually used a radical period of rest to push back against cultural expectations and reclaim some peace.
Tired As F*ck empowers us to say no to the things that exhaust us. It inspires us to carve out time to slow down, feel okay about doing less, and honor our humanity.
This is not a self-help book, it’s a cautionary tale. It’s an honest look at the dogma of wellness and spiritual self-improvement culture and revels in the healing power of rest and letting shit go.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Blogger Dooner (The F*ck It Diet) returns with a snappy and empathetic guide to combating burnout by purging "the guilt." Dooner encourages readers to drop "the shoulds. The comparing ourselves to other people. The forcing ourselves to stay in jobs or relationships that we don't love, but that we don't think we deserve to leave." The "accidental" impetus of Dooner's revelations was her introduction to Marie Kondo's advice on decluttering her apartment; she determined she could extend the principle of chucking anything tangible that didn't "spark joy" to relationships and career paths. After a lifetime of trying to become a successful actor, Dooner declares she got "sick of everything," especially the heightened anxiety auditions caused, so she just quit going to them. She also stopped making any foods off-limits (and dropped dieting), allowed herself to rest, and stopped forcing herself to go on second dates with men she wasn't attracted to. As a result, she forged a better relationship with her body, learned she doesn't have to work 80 hours a week (after hiring a part-time assistant for her blog), and created space in her life to welcome new jobs, new friends and new ideas. By boldly sharing vulnerabilities, Dooner's account should go a long way in helping others accept their own. It's a brave and bracing manifesto that will be welcomed by any reader living in the aftermath of burnout—or trying to avoid it.
Customer Reviews
Skip it
Most of the book is just her telling us about her life story and traumas. There’s very little helpful information until the end and for the most part I’d rather have skipped reading this.
Regret paying for this
Nauseating to see that the author has turned out to be an anti-vax transphobe. Needless to say she was not vocal about these beliefs when I purchased this book when it first came out. Now it makes me sick to my stomach thinking about how I willingly followed this woman and gave her my money. Won’t be making that mistake again.
Don’t waste your time
Sad this author has become a full on conspiracy theorist/ anti-vaxxer. Regularly reposts things from anti-trans right wing Instagram accounts. Don’t buy this book.