How to get rid of tired feeling in the morning

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It’s not unusual to wake up feeling a bit groggy. For many people, it’s nothing a cup of coffee or shower can’t fix.

But if you regularly wake up tired, especially if you continue to feel fatigued throughout the day, there may be something else going on.

Here’s a look at some common causes of waking up tired.

Chances are, your morning grogginess is just sleep inertia, which is a normal part of the waking process. Your brain typically doesn’t instantly wake up after sleeping. It transitions gradually to a wakeful state.

During this transition period, you may feel groggy or disoriented. If you aren’t careful, you can easily fall back asleep.

Sleep inertia slows down your motor and cognitive skills, which is why it sometimes feels impossible to do anything right after you wake up.

Sleep inertia can last anywhere from a few minutes to over an hour, though it typically improves within 15 to 60 minutes.

If within the first few hours of falling asleep, you suddenly wake up from a deep sleep and are in a confused state, you may have sleep drunkenness.

Also called confusional arousals, sleep drunkenness is a sleep disorder that bypasses the inertia phase. An episode may last for up to 30 to 40 minutes. You may not even remember it occurred when you wake up to start the day.

You’re more likely to experience symptoms of sleep inertia or sleep drunkenness when you:

• don’t get enough sleep
• wake up abruptly from a deep sleep
• set your alarm for earlier than usual

Sleep inertia can also be worsened by shift work sleep disorder, obstructive sleep apnea, and certain types of circadian rhythm sleep disorder.

what you can do

Sleep inertia is a natural part of waking up, but you can limit its effects by:

• regularly getting a full night’s sleep
• limiting naps to less than 30 minutes
• drinking coffee or another caffeinated beverage when you get up

If your symptoms persist, visit your primary healthcare provider. They can rule out an underlying sleep disorder.

Blue light is any artificial lighting that emits blue wavelengths, which aren’t necessarily a bad thing. During daylight hours, they can boost alertness and mood. But this isn’t the vibe you’re going for when you’re heading off to bed.

Energy-efficient lighting and electronic screens have increased our exposure to blue light, especially after sundown.

Blue light, more than other types of light, suppresses the secretion of melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate your body’s circadian rhythm, which is your sleep-wake cycle. This makes it harder for you to get good-quality sleep, which can leave you feeling tired the next morning.

what you can do

To reduce the impact of blue light on your sleep:

• Avoid screen time for two or three hours before you go to bed.
• Use dim red lights at night, which don’t have as powerful of a melatonin-suppressing effect on your circadian rhythm.
• Expose yourself to a lot of bright light during the day.
• Use blue-blocking glasses at night or an app that filters blue light if you have to use electronics at night.

A poor sleep environment can have a big impact on the quality of your sleep.

Mattress problems

If your morning fatigue is accompanied by stiffness or aching body parts, your mattress could be to blame.

Research shows that a medium-firm mattress is best. The age of your mattress also matters. A small 2009 study found that participants reported better sleep quality and fewer aches and pains in the morning after sleeping on a new mattress.

Mattresses are also home to common allergens — such as dust mites, which can cause nighttime sneezing and coughing, especially in people with allergies and asthma.

Shop all expert-verified mattresses in our sleep shop to work toward your best snooze possible.

What you can do

Make sure your mattress isn’t hurting your sleep quality by:

• replacing your mattress every 9 or 10 years, ideally with a medium-firm mattress
• using a hypoallergenic mattress cover if you have allergies

Too-cold or too-hot bedroom

Being too hot or too cold can cause restlessness and make it hard for you to fall or stay asleep. Personal preference should play a role in your bedroom’s temperature, but a cooler room is better when it comes to a comfortable sleep, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

If you still have trouble sleeping, warming your feet by wearing socks may help dilate blood vessels and adjust your internal thermostat.

A 2007 study shows that adults who wore unheated or heated socks to bed were able to fall asleep faster.

Shop all Healthline-approved products for hot sleepers in our sleep shop.

what you can do

Create the optimal temperature for quality sleep by:

• keeping your bedroom between 60°F and 67°F (16°C and 19°C)
• wearing socks to bed or placing a hot water bottle at your feet
• choosing appropriate sleepwear and bedding for your local climate

Loud noises

Even if you’re the type of person who can fall asleep with the TV on, noise can still have a big impact on your sleep quality.

Reducing background noise can help to increase the amount of deep sleep you get each night and decrease the number of times you wake up during the night.

What you can do

Even if you can’t get rid of the source of noise, you can try:

• sleeping with earplugs
• using a sound machine, which you can find on Amazon
• keeping your windows and bedroom door closed

What you consume before bed can keep you up at night and make you feel tired in the morning.

Too much caffeine

Caffeine is a natural stimulant that promotes alertness.

Having too much caffeine during the day or having it too close to bedtime can:

• make it harder to fall asleep
• make it harder to stay asleep
• increase the number of times you go to the bathroom overnight

Coffee, chocolate, and certain teas and soft drinks all contain caffeine. Caffeine can also be found in certain medications, including some prescription and over-the-counter pain-relieving medications.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

To keep caffeine from interfering with your sleep:

• Avoid having caffeine three to seven hours before bed.
• Limit your intake of coffee or other caffeinated beverages to one or two servings a day.
• Check medications for caffeine content.

Drinking alcohol

Alcohol has been shown to have a sedative effect and make you sleepy, but it doesn’t lead to a good sleep. According to the Cleveland Clinic, alcohol increases the number of times you wake up once the relaxing effect wears off and prevents you from getting deep sleep.

The more alcohol you consume before bed, the more it disrupts your sleep, increasing your likelihood of waking up tired.

what you can do

You can prevent alcohol from affecting your sleep by:

• avoiding drinking alcohol in the evening
• limiting your alcohol consumption to no more than one drink a day for women and two drinks for men

Frequent urination

Drinking too much of anything too close to bedtime can make you frequently get up to urinate throughout the night. This can also happen in certain situations if you’re retaining a lot of fluid.

Excessive urination at night, also called nocturia, may also be a sign of an underlying medical condition. If you continue to wake up two or more times per night to urinate after limiting how much you drink before bed, speak to your doctor.

what you can do

You can reduce how often you get up to urinate by:

• avoiding drinking liquids for at least two hours before bedtime
• cutting back on caffeine and alcohol-containing beverages
• wearing compression socks during the day if you have swollen ankles and legs or certain states of water retention

If nothing seems to be helping your morning grogginess, you may have an undiagnosed sleep disorder.

Sleep disorders require diagnosis and treatment by a healthcare professional, who’ll likely have you come in for a sleep study.

Sleep movement disorders

Sleep movement disorders are conditions that cause movement before or during sleep, making it hard to fall or stay asleep.

Some common sleep movement disorders are:

• restless leg syndrome, which causes uncomfortable sensations in your legs and a strong urge to move them that intensifies when trying to sleep
• periodic limb movement disorder, which causes your limbs to flex, twitch, or jerk during sleep. Movements may occur every 20 to 40 seconds and may last up to an hour.
• bruxism, which involves clenching or grinding your teeth during sleep

Sleep apnea

Sleep apnea, usually obstructive sleep apnea, is a serious sleep disorder that causes your breathing to stop periodically in your sleep. You may not even realize you have the condition.

Other signs and symptoms of sleep apnea include:

• snoring
• gasping for air during sleep
• feeling tired after a full night’s sleep
• trouble staying asleep
• waking with dry mouth
• morning headaches

Shop all Healthline-approved products for snoring & sleep apnea in our sleep shop.

Insomnia

Insomnia involves having a hard time falling asleep or waking up too early and not being able to go back to sleep. Short-term insomnia is very common and often caused by stress, a traumatic event, or sleeping in unfamiliar surroundings, such as a hotel room.

Insomnia that lasts a month or more is considered chronic insomnia. This can be a condition itself or a symptom of an underlying issue.

Along with waking up tired, insomnia can also cause:

• difficulty concentrating
• irritability
• depression
• anxiety over not getting enough sleep

Waking up tired can often be remedied with a few changes to your sleeping habits and cutting back on caffeine or alcohol. If nothing seems to be helping, it’s best to follow up with your doctor to check for underlying conditions.

Chronic fatigue syndrome: signs and treatment

Spleen, apathy, depression - that's what many people call it.
Asthenic syndrome - doctors call it.

What is it? There is such a simple life hack: if symptoms of weakness and lethargy appear right in the morning, then you need to ask yourself when do you feel better in the morning or in the evening? If in the morning, then everything is ok. If in the evening? For example, you went to bed on time, and it’s very difficult to get up in the morning, you have to persuade yourself for a long, long time, while there may be sleep disturbances, you get up as if you didn’t rest, you feel overwhelmed in the morning and this lasts for a long time, then, of course, you need to suspect depression . And here the help of a specialist may be required, very often this condition is a mask of some kind of chronic disease. 9 should work here0010 is not just a psychologist, but a good practitioner who can see the condition that is masked by depression.

The second option

when the condition is not bad in the morning, but it worsens in the evening. I worked quite a bit and was exhausted, I have no more strength, I want to sleep again, and there is still a long day ahead. In such a situation, we must think about organic conditions, most often hormonal. There may, of course, be conditions such as anemia and dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract, but more often endocrinology. A hormonal examination will allow you to dot the “and” and make adjustments. The third variant should include moments of depression and asthenia that occur after past illnesses. When the body struggled with something, it used up resources and is now exhausted. The end of winter-spring is a period when we often get sick, and the energy reserves in the body are replenished slowly, also because the products that we can find this season are depleted in vitamins and microelements that are necessary for energy processes.

If an asthenic condition has already arisen, then, of course, one change in the diet will not achieve the desired effect. You definitely need vitamin supplements.

Consultation with specialist is required for selection.

Vitamins themselves are not a source of energy, but they activate numerous metabolic processes. Thanks to vitamins, food is properly digested and gives us strength. The metabolism works exactly the way it is supposed to work. The activity of hormonal glands, the cardiovascular, nervous system is regulated, they are involved in hematopoiesis. Vitamins are involved in all body processes, so the deficiency of each affects the deterioration of well-being.

So, vitamins and microelements - activators of energy processes: C, B1, H (biotin), folic acid, vitamin D, Copper, Chromium, Potassium, Magnesium, Iron, Iodine.

Let's see why and what vitamins we need. Why is it necessary in the spring, even if we eat right and include a lot of green and fresh foods in the diet. First of all, of course, vitamin C . He is responsible for immunity, for vitality, for a good mood. Increases the body's resistance to disease. Participates in the exchange of norepinephrine - this is the hormone of courage, thanks to which we kind of internally gather, mobilize, begin to think more clearly, make decisions faster and be effective. Effectively deal with stress.

The second most important vitamin in this respect is vitamin B1 . It helps the regeneration of the nervous system, which affects the emotional state. Participates in the Kreps cycle, this is the main energy station in the body, so it is essential.

Vitamin B7 (Biotin, Vitamin H, Coenzyme R) controls the absorption of nutrients and their conversion into energy. Eliminates the feeling of eternal fatigue even with prolonged exertion, relieves sleep problems and, along with thiamine, determines the human ability to concentrate and mental work.

B9 (folic acid), like vitamin C, promotes the production of norepinephrine, protects against stress, awakens optimism and gives us energy. Including sexy!

Vitamin D orchestrates blood flow. It depends on how well he copes with his task, whether the cells will be fully supplied with oxygen and cleared of decay products in a timely manner, as well as how quickly we can restore our strength after rest.

No less than vitamins, we need minerals:

Copper , the presence of which in the body directly affects metabolism, is involved in the formation of norepinephrine and serotonin.

Iron together with vitamin D is responsible for delivering oxygen to cells.

Selenium strengthens the nervous system and performs many other functions.

Potassium , the lack of which results in muscle weakness and heart rhythm disturbances. In order to avoid potassium deficiency, first of all, it is worth giving up fast food, which contains monosodium glutamate and salts, which are potassium antagonists.

Iodine saves us from chronic fatigue, shattered immunity and mental decline.

Chromium affects the functioning of the brain and the activity of the nervous system.

Magnesium is the “main power engineer” of cells, participates in more than 300 biochemical reactions and metabolic processes, and at the same time provides us with healthy sleep. Its deficiency is expressed in a feeling of permanent fatigue, lethargy and dizziness.

Additionally, we want to say that iron and iodine deficiency also causes a state of apathy and lethargy. Their prescription is recommended by doctors because there are certain restrictions.

If you take vitamins, eat well and properly, but nevertheless you are still covered in spring. There is an even more advanced level, we can test the genetics of vitamin metabolism . This is a simple and quick test, it is cheaper than constantly testing vitamin levels. In genetics and metabolism of vitamins, there can be persistent vitamin-deficiency states, even despite taking medications. There may be features associated with the exchange of vitamins, genetic features in which a person needs higher adjustments than others. Vitamins are coenzymes of many metabolic processes. They are involved in the synthesis of substances-accelerators of metabolic processes. Without them, they are not produced; without them, genomic material cannot be read. We have certain genes that encode all metabolic processes, the synthesis of regulatory proteins, enzymes that ensure the regulation of all metabolic processes. Information from genes may or may not be read due to the fact that there is a deficiency of certain vitamins in the body at the moment. Activation and synthesis of hormones may not occur due to the lack of certain vitamins, there is no reading of genomic material that encode information about the activity of hormones, for example. Therefore, vitamin deficiency is the first thing to be eliminated. This study opens the veil of chronic conditions: persistent anemia, persistent chronic fatigue syndromes, digestive disorders. Gives simple answers to what needs to be monitored, and correct only what is a stumbling block for each individual person. We would like our readers and patients to know that on a highly scientific level we can give a simple understanding of the processes, a simple answer to this question.

We invite you to consult one of our doctors and choose the best way to take care of your health!

Severe constant fatigue and weakness, what to do if there is not enough strength?

Everyone knows the feeling of tiredness and lack of energy, especially during periods of bad weather or outbreaks of viral infections. Normally, this problem is solved with the help of proper rest and sleep. But when such a state drags on and significantly reduces the quality of life, this is a signal that the time has come to think about the state of health of the nervous system.

Fatigue is a functional state of the body with a significant decrease in energy, performance and motivation, which affects both the physical and mental well-being of a person. As a rule, constant fatigue is a symptom, not a separate condition. In most cases, it is caused by a combination of lifestyle, health characteristics and social problems.

Constant feeling of fatigue can cause a variety of physical, mental and emotional symptoms:

• Headache, dizziness
• Decreased immunity, frequent infectious diseases
• Lack of feeling of proper rest after sleep in the morning
• Muscle weakness, body aches
• Ringing in the ears
• Slow reaction time, problems with coordination
• Constant lethargy, inertia, apathy, laziness, lack of motivation
• Deterioration of thinking processes: decrease in attention, concentration and ingenuity, and hence the deterioration of educational and work activities
• Loss of appetite
• Problems with short-term and long-term memory
• Exacerbations of allergic reactions
• Enlarged lymph nodes
• Vision problems

Symptoms tend to get worse after exercise.

Clinically significant is the feeling of fatigue with accompanying signs for two or more weeks.

Certain symptoms may predominate depending on the type of fatigue. There are two of them:

Physical fatigue: Normally, muscle fatigue gradually accumulates during exercise and disappears after rest. Pathological cases are associated with lack or lack of sleep and health problems. It becomes difficult for a person to perform ordinary physical actions that he easily coped with before. For example, a patient who used to go to the gym regularly and with pleasure, completely quits training due to lack of strength. The problem can also affect completely routine matters: climbing the stairs to the second floor, walking to the nearest store. Muscle weakness will be a mandatory symptom.

Mental fatigue: it is difficult for the patient to maintain not only physical, but also mental activity. Memory, concentration, learning ability are impaired. Eternal fatigue and drowsiness do not allow even light mental work to be done. This condition affects the reaction and attention of the driver. According to statistics, sleepy people at the wheel get into car accidents three times more often than others. This is comparable to the risks that are associated with the state of intoxication.

It happens that a person sleeps enough every day, eats normally and leads an orderly life, but constant weakness and fatigue do not go away. Feeling exhausted can make it impossible to manage even the necessary daily activities. This means that the condition requires professional diagnosis and possibly treatment.

Causes of fatigue

Fatigue can be conditionally divided into physiological (normal) and pathological.

With physiological fatigue of the body, the causes are usually the following:

• Active recreation
• Emotional outburst, overexcitement
• Sports training
• hard work
• Biorhythm shift due to travel or flights

Pathological causes of fatigue:

• Mental and psychological problems: mental overload, chronic stress, anxiety disorder, depression, alcohol or drug abuse
• Medications: Incorrect dosage, abrupt withdrawal and incorrect use of certain drugs are a common reason why constant fatigue, weakness and loss of energy do not go away
• Insomnia: if a person does not get enough sleep, then the body becomes exhausted and chronic fatigue sets in
• Avitaminosis: vitamins and minerals are involved in the activity of the nervous system and are responsible for mental work
• Chronic diseases: the presence of heart failure, arrhythmia, hepatitis, COPD, rheumatoid arthritis, hormonal imbalance, cancer, infectious diseases and other diseases are common causes of weakness and fatigue
• Overweight and eating disorders: the body is forced to experience an increased load on the cardiovascular, skeletal and other systems, prone to muscle and joint pain and the development of conditions such as diabetes or sleep apnea
• Chronic pain: such patients often wake up at night and are in a state of permanent tension, which may be associated with constant fatigue
• Viral infections and subsequent rehabilitation period
• Lack of physical activity

Separately, it is worth talking about such a reason as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS, myalgic encephalomyelitis). This is no longer just a symptom, but a separate disease, which is characterized by a high degree of fatigue without a somatic disorder corresponding to the state. Such patients may wonder why they are tired and apathetic all the time, almost constantly, since they are hypersensitive to even light exertion.

Patients with chronic fatigue syndrome are able to conduct some kind of relatively productive activity for only a few hours a day, or even less. It's not about hard work, creative projects, or intense workouts - such people are exhausted even by talking about abstract topics or going to the nearest store. They have to spend most of their time trying to rest and recover.

For persistent weakness and fatigue, the causes in this case include viral infections, primarily the Epstein-Barr virus, and problems with the immune system. The etiology of this disease is still being studied. Risk factors are age over 40, female gender, and stress.

The main symptom of CFS is severe fatigue that lasts at least six months and is not relieved by rest. Characterized by post-exercise weakness, which persists for at least 24 hours.

Constant companions of chronic fatigue syndrome are various sleep disorders, cognitive disorders, muscle and joint pain, orthostatic hypotension, painful lymph nodes and frequent colds. With constant fatigue, the reasons for the decline in the quality of life lie not only in poor health, but in the fact that it becomes almost impossible to lead a full-fledged lifestyle: there is no strength for previous hobbies and even work, self-development and learning new things stop. It becomes difficult to maintain daily contact with people up to social isolation.

Symptoms of the disorder may wax and wane, which can create a false sense of well-being. But, unfortunately, in the pathological state of severe fatigue, the causes are rarely eliminated without specialized treatment. Therefore, despite temporary remissions, the old problems return with a vengeance.

It is always important to understand why you feel tired. If the condition lasts for a considerable time and it’s not just a too busy day, then you need to consult a specialist, because this not only interferes with life, but can also be a symptom of a serious mental or somatic disorder.

What to do with constant fatigue

If you are sure that your condition is caused by a natural cause and is a normal reaction of the body, then you should give yourself a rest. In cases where the cause is unknown or pathological, only a specialist can tell you what to do if you constantly feel tired.

Since fatigue is often associated with insomnia and disruption of the nervous system, it is necessary to consult a psychiatrist-psychotherapist and a neurologist. Depending on the situation, the help of a therapist, psychologist and other specialists may be needed.

There are no diagnostic tests that can pinpoint the exact reason why the patient constantly feels tired. This difficult-to-diagnose condition that can mimic other health problems requires ruling out a number of other disorders and identifying the underlying cause.

The elimination of this pathological condition requires special knowledge and experience from the specialist, since there is no standard treatment regimen. The use of one drug is not enough; correction of prescriptions in the course of therapy is often required. Therefore, with constant fatigue and weakness, only a highly qualified specialist can determine what to do to ensure that the result is as effective and lasting as possible.

This condition affects many organs and systems. With general fatigue of the body, what to do can be decided only after the examination. It may include laboratory testing, exercise tests, instrumental methods, and mandatory psychiatric diagnosis.

Treatment should primarily relieve symptoms. It may include:

1. Medications. They are prescribed depending on the patient's complaints. These can be painkillers, antidepressants, sleeping pills, antihistamines. With constant fatigue, what to do needs to be decided not only with new drugs, but also to correct the previous treatment of other disorders, if any. In this case, there is no universal drug - therapy is prescribed based on individual needs.
2. Psychotherapy: autogenic training and cognitive-behavioral therapy are used, aimed at normalizing the psycho-emotional background, relaxation and restoring the dynamic balance of the body.
3. Advice for normalizing lifestyle: The patient should receive advice on rest regimen, dietary therapy, and restoration of physical activity.

If you caught yourself on such questions as “I am constantly tired, what should I do? Why can't I rest and pull myself together? How to stop this?” — don’t expect everything to go away by itself. Contact a competent specialist, because it is not known what is hidden behind these symptoms. Chronic fatigue develops differently for everyone: it happens that it is enough to normalize the lifestyle and eliminate beriberi, but sometimes complex complex therapy is required. Remember that fatigue quickly depletes the body, reduces immunity and prevents you from leading an active life.

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