As I write this, I’m just on my way back from doing an intense week of work. I was live blogging all week, covering a robotics trade fair for one of my clients, Robotiq.

On paper, this looks just like the sort of activity that would completely destroy me:

• Tons of social interaction with people I don’t know much or (in most cases) don’t know at all.
• Long days working constantly with barely a break from before 9 am until past 7 pm.
• Eating less-than-healthy food and drinking lots of coffee.
• And socializing in the evenings, drinking more alcohol than normal.

I was trepidatious (that’s a word, isn’t it?) before going. This was going to be a total shock to my introvert senses.

Before I arrived, I was already feeling burned out, constantly tired, and not ready for the huge marathon of summer activities that I have planned from now until October.

Now it’s over, I find myself in an unexpected situation.

I’m actually feeling quite energized.

For the last 4 days, my mental chatter has been astonishingly quiet.

I guess it makes sense.

There have been precious few moments when I wasn’t hyperfocused on taking photos, recording videos, writing articles, editing videos, and "activating Networking Alex" during conversations so that I don’t come across as a totally awkward, shy person.

This is just the sort of environment where my brain seems to function quite well.

The adrenaline (if that’s what is causing it) keeps me moving from one thing to the other, with a lot less time than usual to ruminate on the my brain’s favourite worries (such as "Did I say that wrong?", "Does this person think I’m an idiot?" and others).

The triggers are still there. I have noticed them. Those little mini-thoughts that could grow into stronger social anxieties if given the chance…

But I didn’t have time to give them the chance.

Right at this moment, the result of this is that I am feeling quite energized.

I know it won’t last. Which is fine.

Sometime soon, perhaps on Monday, I expect to crash. It’s usually what happens after such intense multi-day complete focus marathons.

But it’s interesting to remember that this effect exists.

Sure, it’s not a sustainable way to remain a happy person in the long term.

After a few weeks, I imagine it would burn me out.

But it does raise the thought…

If you’re feeling low energy, sometimes a jump start complete shock to the senses is a valuable way to kick yourself into gear.

Rest and recovery isn’t always the way to raise you back up.

For now though, some form of rest and recovery is likely what my body and mind need.