Why Do I Feel Fatigued and Tired All The Time?
Written by Ben Bunting: BA, PGCert. (Sport & Exercise Nutrition) // British Army Physical Training Instructor // S&C Coach.
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Are you tired of feeling tired all the time? Do you struggle to make it through the day without reaching for your fifth cup of coffee?
If so, you're not alone. Daily fatigue is a common complaint, often affecting our ability to perform at our best and enjoy our lives to the fullest.
In this article, we will explore the root causes of this constant exhaustion and provide you with practical solutions to revitalize your energy levels.
From poor sleep habits to an unhealthy diet, there are several factors that can contribute to our energy depletion.
We will delve into each of these factors, giving you a comprehensive understanding of how they impact your fatigue levels.
By recognizing the root causes, you can start making positive changes to combat fatigue and reclaim your vitality.
Whether you're a busy professional, a parent, or simply someone looking to optimize your energy levels, this article will empower you to take control of your fatigue and rejuvenate your body and mind.
Get ready to say goodbye to the slump and hello to a vibrant, energized life.
Here we will explain the causes of fatigue, how testosterone could be a factor, and when it becomes a problem.
Understanding the Concept of Fatigue
Fatigue is an often-reported symptom that can be experienced by people with a variety of medical conditions, including acute, chronic, and debilitating diseases.
Fatigue is usually described in the context of medical conditions. It can occur in conjunction with other clinical symptoms, such as depression and pain.
The Effects of Fatigue
Fatigue is an often-reported symptom that can be experienced by people with a variety of medical conditions, including acute, chronic, and debilitating diseases.
Fatigue is usually described in the context of medical conditions. It can occur in conjunction with other clinical symptoms, such as depression and pain.
These negative effects are not limited to any one discipline, sector, or population. As an example, fatigue is responsible for approximately 100,000 deaths each year due to injuries that could have been avoided.
A study of 3442 adults in the United States found that physicians are significantly more likely than other workers to experience symptoms of mental, emotional and physical exhaustion. (37.9% as opposed to 27.8%). Certain specialists were at a relative higher risk of burnout.
Fatigue-related drowsiness contributes to over 1500 deaths, 100,000 car accidents and 76,000 injuries in the US each year.
Fatigue also has a negative impact on performance, safety, and health of workers.
In the US Army, fatigue is a factor in 12.2% of accidents.
When Should you Worry about Tiredness?
All of us have had days when fatigue was more intense than usual. It's nothing to worry about, unless you are in certain situations or during specific times.
If you've had a late evening followed by an early start, it's normal to be tired. If you've had a long day at the office or an intense workout, it's normal to be tired.
You should look into it further if, despite a good night's sleep and a relatively relaxed lifestyle, your fatigue is frequent. You could be experiencing extreme exhaustion.
You can track sleep patterns by keeping a journal and rating your tiredness. This will also help you determine if there is a persistent issue.
More information and tips can be found in our guide about how sleeping affects energy levels as well as testosterone levels.
There are many reasons you might be tired.
Possible Causes of Chronic Fatigue
Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms in idiopathic inflammation myopathies. It can greatly impact daily activities.
Fatigue is complex and has many dimensions, from the biological to the behavioural. Its pathophysiology is not well understood.
1 . Dehydration
It's not always what you're doing during the daytime that affects your body's ability to sleep well at night. Lack of sleep can be caused by dehydration. This is especially true for athletes.
Dehydration occurs when you do NOT drink enough to satisfy your body's water needs. Every person's hydration needs are different depending on their lifestyle, age and gender.
FYI: It is recommended that you drink 1.5 liters cups of water a day in order to stay well hydrated. Athletes should drink more because of the increased sweating rate they experience during exercise. You can establish your swaet rate and fluid requirements, here.
Be sure to drink water continuously throughout the entire day. You'll need to drink more water if you've been pushing your limits during an intense workout. Drinking too much before bed can cause you to wake up in the middle night.
2. Over-Exercising
Did you know that? Exercise is great for regulating sleep and reducing fatigue. However, excessive exercise can cause the opposite. There is a maximum.
Over-pumped muscles can make you feel restless, fidgety and restless as you prepare to sleep.
You can be kept awake by achy and shaky muscles. This will disrupt your sleep all night.
The endorphins that are released when exercising can cause a "buzz" of energy, which prevents many people from falling asleep. This can lead to sleepless nights if it happens every night.
If you want to sleep well, follow a training schedule. Also, don't over-exert.
Exercise earlier in the day to reduce your endorphins before bedtime. A cool-down and stretch routine can help prevent sore muscle.
Overreaching
A growing number of athletes, coaches and support staff adopt a scientific approach when designing and monitoring their training programs.
A proper load monitoring system can help determine if an athlete has adapted to a particular training program, as well as minimize the risk of injury, illness or non-functional overreaching.
3 . Caffeine And Alcohol
If you love coffee (and we all do--yum), then you might want to consider how caffeine affects your sleep.
Caffeine stimulates our alertness and gives us energy. These effects can be very helpful when you're concentrating on your work or going to the gym. Too much caffeine, however, can affect your ability fall asleep.
Alcohol can also affect sleep. Many people say that alcohol helps them sleep. While alcohol may initially help people fall asleep, drinking too many drinks too close before bedtime can keep your body in lighter sleep.
The deep cycle of sleep is essential for the immune system, glucose regulation and tissue repairs.
Low sleep quality caused by stimulants, such as alcohol and caffeine, can lead to fatigue the next morning and contribute to inflammation. Avoid caffeine and alcohol in the afternoon or evening, to promote deep sleep.
4. Stress
In the last few years, we've seen a major shift in how we view our mental and physical health. Researchers have found that stress can cause daytime sleepiness or difficulty falling asleep.
Stress is an instinctive reaction to threats. We are more stressed in modern times than ever before. Stress can lead anxiety, a disorder that can interfere with sleep.
Stress can be managed by making minor lifestyle adjustments. Relaxing activities such as regular exercise, daylight and meditation can help to reduce stress.
Speak to your doctor if there is no improvement and you suspect that you are suffering from chronic stress. He or she can help you improve mental health and combat the effects of constant exhaustion.
5. Too Little Sleep
Sometimes the easiest solution is best. Maybe you aren't getting enough good sleep. As you might have guessed, sleep disturbances can leave you feeling extremely tired.
Everyone knows that adults require seven to nine sleep hours each night. A third of Americans say they don't get enough sleep. Insomnia is caused by a variety of factors, including poor sleep habits and excessive use of electronics.
Calculate the length of time you sleep to ensure that you're getting adequate rest. Track when you go to sleep each night, and when you get up. If you don't get the recommended number of hours of sleep each night, adjust your schedule so that it is comfortable.
In order to do this, you will also need to make a note of any interruptions in your sleep. Consider using earplugs, or a sleeping mask, if you find that your sleep is disturbed by noise or bright light.
You may also become aware of common sleep disorders such as sleep apnea by keeping a log of interruptions.
Other quick tips for improving sleep hygeine include:
- Avoid using smartphones and tablets at least one hour prior to going to sleep
- Set the temperature of your bedroom to 18 degrees. According to experts, this is a good sleeping temperature.
- Alcohol can increase blood pressure, disrupt sleep and cause insomnia.
- Be sure to keep your bedroom dark and free of distractions before you retire for the night.
6. A diet that is not balanced
An imbalanced diet can be the cause of sleep problems, and you may feel tired all the time.
You could have a few blanks in your diet, which are causing you to be excessively sleepy. Your diet can be deficient if it isn't well-rounded and balanced. This will cause you to feel tired all the time.
For your convenience, we've compiled a list of quick tips that will help you to cover all the bases.
Five portions of fruit or vegetables should be consumed each day. You can get energy-boosting vitamin in your body by eating a variety of vibrant colors.
Tofu, fish, legumes, pulses, nuts and seeds are all good sources of protein. Around 1.2 g per kilogram of your body weight should do it.
Use multivitamins to fill nutritional gaps and meet your needs.
By improving your diet, you can reduce the symptoms that cause constant fatigue.
7. Iron deficiency
Fatigue can be an early indicator of iron deficiency anemia.
Fatigue is one of the main symptoms, caused by limited production of hemoglobin which transports oxygen around your body and reduced production results in increased work from your heart pumping blood around, draining energy.
Iron deficiency also results in other symptoms, including cravings for unusual foods or non-food items (known as pica); cold hands and feet; irritability; feelings of depression and an increase in infections due to our immune systems relying on iron for proper functioning.
Researchers have discovered that people living with iron deficiency anemia tend to experience more fatigue than those with normal hemoglobin levels, though the cause remains unclear.
One theory suggests that IDNA's decreased muscle VO2 may contribute to cardiopulmonary stress which results in fatigue.
Researchers are actively conducting studies to examine this relationship in order to pinpoint those fatigue patients who will benefit from iron treatment.
In the interim, eating a diet rich in lean meats, poultry, dark leafy vegetables, beans and orange juice as well as taking iron supplements may help relieve your symptoms of fatigue
8. Medications
Unrelenting fatigue can be the sign of many health conditions, from viral illnesses like influenza to more long-term conditions like anemia and thyroid disease.
An experienced physician can sift through lifestyle and health factors to identify any contributing causes, as well as prescribe medications to both treat fatigue as well as address its source.
Medication that affects neurochemicals in the brain and nerves to relax muscles often results in drowsiness.
This includes traditional antianxiety medicines like alprazolam (Xanax), clonazepam (Klonopin), and diazepam (Valium).
Antidepressants such as Venlafaxine XR or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) may also induce sleepiness.
Many cancer treatments can contribute to fatigue by altering protein and hormone levels within the body, forcing it to use extra energy in repair work.
Some nausea-relief drugs, like carisoprodol (Soma) and cyclobenzaprine (Flexeril), may also make you feel sleepy and lead to feelings of exhaustion.
Does Testosterone Make You Tired?
Did you know that? A surprising biological relationship is rarely discussed: the strong link between tiredness and testosterone. That's actually a thing.
Low testosterone can cause men to feel chronic fatigue. In a study with cancer patients, testosterone supplementation was found to reduce tiredness and improve energy levels.
It is true that this relationship between fatigue and testosterone also works in the opposite direction.
In a study that investigated the link between overtraining and testosterone in rugby players, low testosterone was found to be a result of fatigue.
Sleep and testosterone are linked in many ways. Low testosterone leads to fatigue, which then supports low levels of testosterone. How do you stop the cycle?
Military Muscle can help you achieve higher T-levels.
To fight chronic fatigue and start feeling like yourself again, choosing the right testosterone-boosting will give you a huge push in the right direction. Military Muscle provides the solution.
Conclusion
On occasion, everyone can feel tired.
Severe fatigue makes everyday tasks nearly impossible, affecting all areas of life - from work and relationships to daily errands and hobbies.
Fatigue may be caused by many conditions and diseases; such as congestive heart failure, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, hypothyroidism or chronic fatigue syndrome (also known as myalgic encephalomyelitis/CFS).
Furthermore, certain antidepressants can have adverse side effects; including these conditions or medicines that lead to fatigue symptoms.
Treatment depends on the source of fatigue. For instance, if an iron deficiency is the source of your exhaustion, your doctor may prescribe iron supplements; or alternatively you could increase energy by eating foods rich in iron such as red meat and spinach.
Psychological factors, like depression or stress may also play a part; in these instances getting enough sleep and treating any associated mental health disorders could often help.
Fatigue is a common yet difficult complaint to diagnose, so the work-up for fatigue should center around investigations that may provide answers such as physical examination, blood tests and imaging studies.
Frequent follow up appointments will reduce any chance of overdiagnosis of somatic causes by having regular office visits rather than occasional ones.
