Tomorrow’s Another Day…

I believe the human brain functions in 24-hour cycles.

Stick with me on this observation because my scientific hypotheses are never very clear, rarely concise, and usually baffling to someone’s brain (M’s) who actually does think scientifically.

Let’s say that on Monday (24-hour cycle one) you feel energized, ambitious, optimistic, etc. Basically the way Catie feels in the picture above–modeling the pigtails and enthusiastically shouting “cheese!”
For almost everyone I know, this cycle will last 24 hours. And then, the crash: also called Tuesday, 24-hour cycle number two. A person in this cycle, following the high-energy, optimistic feelings of Monday, will be tired, dejected, negative. Ellie’s face is the two-year-old version of these feelings.
From my observations (again, I must mention I almost failed Chem Lab in college), everyone I see on a day-to-day basis goes through this cycle. Like a fire-fighter…24 on and 24 off.
If your world seems hopeless on Friday, you’ll have a resurgence of energy on Saturday. And the cycles seem to be about 24 hours for everyone, so Sunday will be another dejected, impatient day. Definitely happens to me. And (sorry, M.) my husband.
And our kids? Multiplied by a million (again, you’re not reading this for actual scientific data, are you? Googling serotonin would be a better choice for you).
But here’s the complicating factor: if Ellie is having a good day on Monday, something makes Sam feel restless and frustrated and prone to twenty-minute screaming sessions in the time-out chair. You can guess what happens on Tuesday, they switch. Ellie is not at all excited that her pigtail ribbons match her leotard–instead she’s crabby and whiny, and she actually ended up in the time-out chair moments after this picture was taken.
So, either my family is mildly bipolar, I’m way too sensitive to people’s emotions, or I’m on to something. Actually, the last one is true. Realizing that tomorrow is another day, that in 24 hours at least some of my kids will be more cooperative, always helps me put their moodiness in perspective.
So, I’m holding onto these “scientific” observations through the years that Catie is 18, the twins are 15, and the new baby is 12.
Every day will be a new hormonal day.
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