"My husband and I are not energetic human beings. Not only that, but we have trouble locating a good 'reason' for doing most things."

"We can talk ourselves out of any activity. We associate a lot of worthwhile pursuits with 'hassles' and associate living like hermits with comfort and safety. These are the baked-in traits of anxious, emotional people, though. Doing new things makes us nervous, so we try to avoid that. Encountering unforeseen hassles makes us anxious, so we try to anticipate roadblocks ahead of time. We are also very self-pitying. We often talk to each other about how difficult very basic, easy things are for us, as a means of admitting just how pathetic we can be sometimes. We make fun of ourselves. We like to say, 'I don’t want to do anything, ever,' in whiny voices, as we lie face down on the carpet. This feels good, for some reason. But honestly, a lot of people are like us. Sometimes you have to be really, really loved by another person to admit just what a tired, anxious sack of shit you are at heart.... Consider giving up. My husband and I do this all of the time now, as a means of understanding exactly what we want from our lives.... Most humans are tired and overwhelmed and dream of quitting their jobs regularly. The ones who are happiest are the ones who honor these feelings and take them seriously instead of telling an elaborate story about how these feelings mean that they suck...."

Writes Heather Havrilesky (in an advice column answering a woman who feels that what she can do is never enough).