Feeling exhausted is so common that it has its own acronym, TATT, which stands for "tired all the time". We all feel tired from time to time. The reasons are usually obvious and include: But tiredness
or exhaustion that goes on for a long time is not normal. It can affect your ability to get on and enjoy your life. Unexplained tiredness is one of the most common reasons for people to see their GP. Before you see a GP, you may want to work out how you became tired in the first place. It can be helpful to think about: A GP will look at the following causes of tiredness: Psychological causes of tiredness are much more common than physical causes. Most psychological causes lead to poor sleep or insomnia, both of which cause daytime tiredness. Psychological causes
include: StressThe strains of daily life can worry most of us at some point. It's also worth remembering that even positive events, such as moving house or getting married, can cause stress. Read more about how to deal with stress. Emotional shockA bereavement, redundancy or a relationship break-up can make you feel tired and exhausted. DepressionIf you feel sad, low and lacking in energy, and you also wake up tired, you may have depression. Check how to tell if you have depression. See your GP if you think you are depressed. AnxietyIf you have constant uncontrollable feelings of anxiety, you may have what doctors call generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) in adults. As well as feeling worried and irritable, people with GAD often feel tired. See a GP, as medication and talking therapies can help. If you think your tiredness may be a result of low mood or anxiety, try this short audio guide to dealing with your sleep problems. Audio: sleep problemsIn this audio guide, a doctor explains what you can do to give yourself the best chance of a good night's sleep. Media last reviewed: 2 March 2021 Physical causes of tirednessThere are several health conditions that can make you feel tired or exhausted. These include:
Tiredness can also be the result of:
If you have been feeling constantly tired for more than 4 weeks, it's a good idea to see your GP so they can confirm or rule out a medical condition that could be causing your tiredness. Lifestyle causes of tirednessIn today's 24/7 "always on" world, we often try to cram too much into our daily lives. And to try to stay on top of things, we sometimes consume too much alcohol or caffeine, or eat sugary and high-fat snacks on the go rather than sitting down for a proper meal. The main lifestyle causes of tiredness include: AlcoholDrinking too much interferes with the quality of your sleep. Stick to the guidelines of no more than 14 units a week for both men and women. Read more about tips on cutting down on alcohol. ExerciseToo much or too little exercise can affect how tired you feel. Read more about the benefits of exercise. CaffeineToo much of this stimulant, found in tea, coffee, colas and energy drinks, can upset sleep and make you feel wound-up as well as tired. Try decaffeinated tea and coffee, or gradually cut out caffeine altogether. Night shiftsNight workers often find they get tired more easily. This is more likely if the timing of the shifts keeps changing. Daytime napsIf you're tired, you may nap during the day, which can make it more difficult to get a good night's sleep. 1. You are going to bed at the wrong time, for YOU.Remember you have a specific chronotype (Early Bird, Night Owl etc), and if you wake up, at a time that is not consistent with your chronotype, it can make mornings miserable. For example if you are a Night owl (what I call a Wolf in my Chronotype Quiz) and you are waking up at 6 am, even if you went to bed at 10 (giving you 8 hours to sleep), you will still feel terrible, because your brain still wants to produce Melatonin, while you are trying to wake up! Solution: If you want to learn about your chronotype, and when to go to bed, check out our free quiz or get a free copy of my audiobook here. 2. You stay in bed too longMany of my patients tell me that they hit the snooze 4-10 times while trying to get up in the am. This is a terrible idea and here is why: the average snooze button is about 7-9 minutes long, this does not give your brain the time it needs to get back into a deeper more refreshing stage of sleep. So, during the last 30-60 min of shuteye you are actually getting broken, fragmented sleep. Solution: Set your alarm for the last minute until you need to get up. Or if you MUST have a snooze, then limit it to one time. 3. Your bedroom environment is disturbing your sleep.There are many different things that can be impacting your sleep in your bedroom. For one, your environment’s temperature is crucial to your sleep quality, so consider turning the A/C down or trying out a cooling mattress to help set the stage for restful sleep. To start, I look around the room based on the 5 senses and see what is being impacted. But if you want to do just one thing, I suggest limiting blue light exposure at night. Remember blue light will keep Melatonin from being produced, which is critical for good rest. Solution: Good Night Melatonin filtering blue light bulbs you can use the code Breus17 and get 10% off and these blue light blocking glasses, especially if you ever use a device at night (these should be on EVERY person’s bedside table) 4. Your Bedpartner is keeping you from getting good sleep.Did you know that if you sleep next to a snoring bedpartner YOU lose an hour of sleep each night? Yes, it is true. But have you tried to get them to stop snoring and it failed? It’s likely because you’ve been trying incorrect solutions. Did you know that there are 3 different types of snorers? Solution: Check out my new Snoring Quiz to learn more about the type of snorer you have in your bed, and what solutions can be personalized for them, trust me you will be thankful that you did and most are very simple and inexpensive to use. And, if your bed mate is keeping you up not from an abundance of snoring, but rather from tossing and turning too much, consider trying out a memory foam mattress that limits motion so you can rest uninterrupted. 5. You ate or drank something that is reducing your sleep quality.The two biggest issues are alcohol and caffeine. While alcohol may make you feel sleepy, it actually keeps you out of the deep stages of sleep, which makes you feel awful in the morning. Caffeine does that same thing, this stimulant keeps your brain out of the deeper stages of sleep, which also makes sleep unrefreshing. Solution: Stop caffeine by 2pm and stop alcohol 3 hours before bed. Caffeine has a half-life of 6-8 hours so stopping by 2 means that by 10 at least ½ is out of your system. As for alcohol, it takes the average human 1 hour to metabolize 1 alcoholic beverage, so if you have 2-3 glasses with dinner, make sure it is out of your system before bed, by waiting 3 hours. 6. You could have a sleep disorder.While the symptoms may be mild, there are many sleep disorders that can affect sleep quality. A typical one is sleep apnea, but others include narcolepsy, insomnia, and restless legs syndrome. But when is it time to see a sleep doctor and do a sleep study? Solution: Check out this blog post on When to do a Sleep Study. All of these and even more reasons are addressed in my Sleep Coaching Course “Get Better Sleep” which you can do all on your own for less than the cost of a bottle of “sleep” medication. 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Why do i wake up feeling fatigued
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