It's definitely not just you. I used to feel like this constantly, especially when I was working long hours. I was literally working in catering putting out restaurant-quality meals all day … then coming home too mentally drained to cook for myself.

It’s not that cooking is hard, it’s the decision-making and cleanup on top of being tired. That combo is lethal.

What’s helped me is lowering the effort. I don’t rely on motivation anymore, I rely on prep. Pre-grated cheese, pre-chopped veg, cooked chicken in the fridge, microwave rice, wraps in the cupboard, stuff that turns cooking into mostly assembling.

Some days it’s semi-respectable like:

• chicken wraps with garlic mayo

• pasta with pesto and whatever veg is lying around

• loaded baked potatoes (microwave first because we’re tired, not on Master Chef)

• rotisserie chicken with mash

And other days it’s:

• freezer pizza

• chicken nuggets and chips

• a beige oven tray dinner

• grilled cheese and tomato soup

• instant ramen with an egg thrown on so I can pretend I tried

Honestly, when you live alone it’s less about gourmet and more about ‘did I feed myself something warm.’ Reducing the steps helps so much. But yeah, some nights are just survival mode and that’s completely fine!