The Obsession That Everything Must Be Perfect: 'Perfectionism Anxiety' Is Exhausting You

Translating the Donguibogam's concept of the spirit into modern medical terms, it can be seen as encompassing our central nervous system, emotional regulation ability, and overall cognitive function. Perfectionism is essentially a state where obsessive thinking and high self-expectations combine, which triggers immense stress in our brain. Persistent perfectionist thinking creates a state of chronic stress and excessively activates our body's hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. This axis is a core system that regulates the stress response, yet it causes continuous, excessive secretion of the stress hormone cortisol. While it initially helps cope with crisis situations, chronically high cortisol levels negatively affect multiple regions of the brain. In particular, it damages neurons in the hippocampus, which is responsible for memory and learning, and degrades the function of the frontal lobe, which is crucial for emotional regulation and decision-making. That is why perfectionists experience feeling easily fatigued, losing focus, overreacting to minor problems, and becoming indecisive. The brain has entered a state where it is already exhausted and struggles to perform its proper functions. Furthermore, the Donguibogam's statement that pensiveness harms the spleen connects in modern medicine with the importance of the gut-brain axis. Stress disrupts the balance of gut microorganisms and increases intestinal mucosal permeability, which can induce inflammatory responses. Our gut is called the second brain because it produces more than 90% of neurotransmitters, especially the happiness hormone serotonin. When gut health deteriorates, serotonin production decreases, leading to difficulty regulating mood, which leads into a vicious cycle that further deepens anxiety and depression. Ultimately, perfectionism anxiety is not merely a mental issue, but a complex condition with systemic effects extending to brain structure and function, as well as gut health. Chronic brain fatigue and the imbalance of stress hormones exhaust both body and mind. Therefore, breaking this vicious cycle and regaining peace in our body and mind is more important than anything else.