What is laziness?
According to dictionaries, laziness can mean anything from the lack of willingness to perform a certain task, to a kind of aversion to work. In addition, laziness is linked to slowness or sluggishness and, often, to negligence in carrying out activities. Talking about laziness means describing from a rest day, when we leave activities aside to relax, until the unwillingness to resume these activities or initiate any form of physical effort or mental.
Is laziness a disease?
There are no medical or psychiatric definitions that classify laziness as a pathology. The moments of leisure are very suitable for the maintenance of mental health. It is important to emphasize, however, that laziness is a symptom of some pathologies such as Narcolepsy, which is excessive sleepiness, Depression, whose symptoms include passivity and lack of motivation, or even tiredness-related syndromes, such as Fatigue Syndrome Chronicle. In this sense, it is important to be aware of the relationship that is established with laziness. Summarizing and answering: not all lazy people are sick, but some people, when sick, have laziness among their symptoms.
Just as laziness can be a symptom that something is wrong with the organism, another dimension of important understanding is laziness as a cause. Some illnesses can result from lack of motivation, which results in sedentary lifestyle. This immobility can be the cause of conditions such as obesity, heart problems and diabetes, which need efforts to be avoided.
Is there a cure for laziness?
As laziness is not considered a pathology, one cannot speak of a cure. But some changes can significantly lessen the slack and provide new forms of energy and motivation. Physical exercise is one of those changes. Some therapeutic follow-up can also be indicated, in an attempt to understand the causes of laziness or, even, to rescue old activities considered pleasurable. In addition, lighter foods and more balanced diets seem to be directly linked to willingness for activities.
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Good laziness
Despite all the ways to ward off laziness and all the care that it does not become our primary way of life, it is important to recognize the value of laziness. Some authors emphasize the need for moments of laziness so that we can reflect on the tasks and activities we are carrying out. Lack of will can be a moment of discovery, of reviewing how life has been. Laziness can also represent a body's rebellion to a stressful and task-filled lifestyle. many people end up developing, it's as if the body demands leisure and rest through lack of will and easy.
How to find out more?
The book “The right to sloth”, by writer Paul Lafargue, is a classic text for understanding sloth and its dimensions today, through a critical reading of capitalist society.
Juliana Spinelli Ferrari
Brazil School Collaborator
Graduated in Psychology from UNESP - Universidade Estadual Paulista
Brief psychotherapy course by FUNDEB - Foundation for the Development of Bauru
Master's Student in School Psychology and Human Development at USP - University of São Paulo
Would you like to reference this text in a school or academic work? Look:
FERRARI, Juliana Spinelli. "Laziness: disease or condition?"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/psicologia/preguica.htm. Accessed on June 29, 2021.