Fatigue: I'm 100% drained

Praetorian

I went to bed reasonably early last night, about 11.30pm. I got to sleep pretty quickly. According to my girl friend, I wasn't tossing and turning all night, but when I woke up this morning at 7.30am I was absolutely shattered. I could barely open my eyes. I’ve consumed copious amounts of caffeine (I don’t usually drink tea or coffee at all), but it hasn’t helped. I don’t feel ill; I haven’t got any flu symptoms or a headache, I’m just chronically tired. While driving into work this morning, I felt it necessary to have the windows open to ensure I was conscious enough to not kill myself or anyone else on the road! What is going on?

Did this ever happen to you? I already had a holiday about two weeks ago. Your thoughts and opinions please.

fjon

I've had the same thing a few times also. I felt like I had taken sleeping tablets. I noticed it the most when I was driving - you really don't feel safe driving in that state.

I found that a lot of it had to do with my diet - as soon as I tried one of those "girly" detox diets I felt a hell of a lot better. A week after eating brown rice, fruit, veg and fish I was going to bed at 12 and waking at 5:30 feeling fine.
It does take a bit of self-discipline, but I would definitely reccomed it. I used this book (borrowed from a female friend I hasten to add!)

Praetorian

Thank you very much for replying. My diet is actually reasonably good for a twenty something year old, I rarely eat at Mcdonalds or BK, although I did have lunch there yesterday. I always have a proper breakfast; a glass of orange juice, a bowl of cereal and a piece of fruit. My lunches are usually pretty good, and my dinners are always very healthy, because my parents recently turned into health food gurus.

koneko

Are you stressed about anything? You might be getting "superficial" sleep with things praying on your mind, so you don't go into a deeper sleep and don't get the rest you might need. Try sleeping less hours and see how you feel aswell, some people need less hours a night, sleeping more might throw your system off (just guessing there though).

Mr E

Your body might be dehydrated. Drink a couple of pints of water and see if that helps.

Agent Smith

tbh this sounds like the early stages of diabeates....


get yourself checked out at a doctor, would be my advice

Praetorian

agent smith wrote:

tbh this sounds like the early stages of diabeates....

get yourself checked out at a doctor, would be my advice

Jesus I hope it's not that serious, I'll certainly consider going to a doctor if things don't improve by tomorrow or the next day.

Your body might be dehydrated. Drink a couple of pints of water and see if that helps.

This is possible. I've just drank a pint of nice cool ballygowan.

Are you stressed about anything? You might be getting "superficial" sleep with things praying on your mind, so you don't go into a deeper sleep and don't get the rest you might need. Try sleeping less hours and see how you feel aswell, some people need less hours a night, sleeping more might throw your system off (just guessing there though).

My work is extremely stressful at times, but stress has never gotten to me like this before. I usually just get moody, and start cursing alot.

Thank you all kindly for your posts. Karma all around.

tinkerbell

Maybe you're going to bed too late? Try going to bed around 10 / 10:30 for a few nights to see if it improves. Also, you could've been in dream overload last night - dreams can tire you too, so maybe twas just a one off.

embee

Hey...

I went to the doctor recently after pretty much 3-6 months of feeling constantly exhausted. He sent me for blood tests to the hospital, and the results that he got back showed up pretty shocking nutrient deficiency.

In particular, I was heavily deficient in iron, to the point that my bone marrow was being sapped of iron, and my bones are sort of weak. An iron deficiency can be pretty nasty, in particular because it drains you of energy and causes really awful lethargy and fatigue. He prescribed a heavy dosage iron tablet to be taken daily, as well as increasing levels of protein and calcium in my diet. He also recommend I start taking a multivitamin supplement, so I am on Vivioptal.

That was a month ago, and I am feeling so much better. My sleeping patterns are starting to return to normal and I feel a lot more energetic.

In addition, exercise is a wonderful thing for reducing feelings of tiredness. If you have some sort of moderate exercise every day (like a brisk walk, go to the gym etc) you will find that your natural levels of energy will increase and exercise makes you feel GREAT. It really gets endorphins flowing around the body.

Good luck though! I would definitely recommend the exercise and also as someone suggested, drinking lots of water. I have started to drink 6 pints of water a day (it seems like a lot, but as you start to feel the benefits, it gets easier) and I really feel the benefit.

edit : Try this Sleep Hygiene Test and see how you score. You might find a lot of your routine isn't allowing you to wind down properly before you go to bed.

Mercury_Tilt

This post has been deleted.

Falkorre

Just found this.....

It is hard to imagine that even on a cool day, your body loses around four pints of water through perspiration, from your kidneys as urine and every time you breathe out. Even more in hot weather, or if you lead an active lifestyle and go to the gym.”

Sports professionals, like footballers should drink at least 8-10 pints of water a day, and others between 5-6. It is imperative that this water gets replaced daily, or it could lead to dehydration and all sorts of stress and strain placed on your kidneys.

Not drinking enough water can result in dehydration, lethargy, headaches, constipation and more that 75% of our hunger pangs are signals of thirst.

Here -> http://www.southeastwater.co.uk/news_archive.asp?month=5/27/2003&year=2003&newsid=1136

I only realised this recently, and Ill tellya, after drinking 5 pints of water a day im *amazed* at the difference it makes to how i feel in general. Takes a day or so to kick in, and dont over do it, that can be just as bad as underdoing it lol I would stick to a max of five pints (unless ur sporty)

Hope that helps some,

B

NeMiSiS

I'm allways like this.. have been for years. Sometimes I have to have a kip in the middle of the day to stay in any kind of sensible state, and then when I get home aswell for an hour or so, rarely if ever do I feel totally awake. It aint good cause I've fell asleep in work a few times, my eyes would literally start to roll up into my head and I'd just go asleep. And its not like I don't sleep, I will go to bed reasonably early and be asleep before say one am.

I'm gonna start taking vitamin tabs and eating better, started as of yesterday.Mind you was bollixed tired again today by four PM, fell asleep at six.. only up about a half hour. I used to remeber coming home from school about five and literally sleeping til 7:30 the next morning.

Tom

Kai

Jees Nemisis that sounds bad. Your energy levels must be very low. i definetly go see a doctor as you may have an under active thyroid gland or something which is making you feel tired all the time.

In the past i always thought i didnt get enough sleep and felt tired most of the time but in the last year ive become a dad of a gorgeous baby girl and along with all the cuteness comes a lot of sleepless nights and early mornings.

Im so used to it now that for instance i came home at midnight from work on tuesday night went to bed at about 1.30 and got up with my daughter again at around 4.30 as she had an ear infection and was crying.

So that night i got about 3 - 4 hours sleep and then back into work again. Last night i went to bed at around 12 and then up again this morning at 7 again. and i didnt feel (too) tired !

You just snap out of it i think when you have to, a lot of it is in your head.

Stark

I’ve consumed copious amounts of caffeine (I don’t usually drink tea or coffee at all), but it hasn’t helped.

The caffeine won't help chronic fatigue, it'll worsen it. So will other stimulants like sugar and stuff. Have some protein with your breakfast in the morning, that helps an awful lot, I always feel much better after it. The only over the counter things that help fatigue are ginseng and licorice root, but they'll probably be ineffective in your severe case.

Someone here mentioned getting a diabetes test, it can't hurt. Even if you don't have diabetes, the blood tests will probably uncover something else. You can get blood tests to see how much cortisol you're producing, how your adrenal glands are functioning,how your thyroid is functioning. Here's a handy grid to see whether adrenal fatigue/underactive thyroid/combination of both might be a problem: http://www.drrind.com/scorecardmatrix.asp (licorice root boosts the adrenals btw).

I was in your state a while back and the detox diet helped me immensely.

Your best bet is still the doctor though. Nothing beats the power of the blood tests

OfflerCrocGod

Mercury_Tilt wrote:

This post has been deleted.

/Ditto
I've been feeling the same for the last while and I think a lack of water is what is doing it. So I'm going to start drinking heavily ( water not alcohol ) I just don't drink at all ( I eat very little aswell - not helpfull at all!! ) because I spend hours daily on the bus and crossing my legs for 2 hours is not nice.....but neither is falling asleep in the middle of the day so I'm just going to afto start gulping down the water.

newgrange

Nemisis, have you ever had your thyroid levels checked?
Hypothyroidism, or Hashimoto's disease is very common in Ireland - mainly in women, but also men.

NeMiSiS

No I havn't had them checked, not to my knowledge anyways. I have blood tests and stuff like that done, for unrelated stuff, and nothing has ever showed up on those that would be out of the ordinary. I would have thought an overactive Thyroid would result in weight gain ? I don't gain weight at all, I have probably been the same weight since I have been about 16.

I drive alot too, and have found myself having to pullover just to have a rest, even five minutes or so. May go to the doctor, it's been going on long enough. But I'm guessing she they will say excersize more eat healthier etc etc. I don't eat junk food all that often as chocolate makes makes me sick, I get awful migraines and stuff after it, so I don't really think it's dietary.

Tom

newgrange

Women generally (though not always) gain weight when hypothyroid, as there is some sort of connection with oestrogen levels and fat storage, but men do not always. It may not be thyroid-related at all of course, but it is one thing to cross off the list, particularly if anyone in your family has had it - male or female.

It often develops, or rather becomes more obvious after someone has given up smoking from a high level (20+ daily).

I hope you get to the bottom of it.

damien

agent smith wrote:

tbh this sounds like the early stages of diabeates....

For god's sake ! Fatigue is a symptom of most things when the body is not at 100%. Don't be scaremongering.

Is this a frequent thing or has this just happened today ? If it's frequent see a doctor first and ignore all these other old wives tales from people that obviously don't know better. A full set of blood tests is what you need, not a test for diabetes because that'll only look for one thing.

If this is a once off then don't worry and move on. Everyone has an "off day".

Calibos

Praetorian wrote:

.......because my parents recently turned into health food gurus.

You mean your mum did and your father plays along to prempt the nagging. :D

Praetorian

Thanks again for all the replies. I'm feeling a lot better today, still not 100%. It could have been dehydration although I never seemed to be particularly thirsty yesterday; I drank lots of water regardless.

Calibos wrote:

You mean your mum did and your father plays along to prempt the nagging. :D

Nope, my Dad does most of the cooking and he shops for the ingredients too. My mums happy to go along with that.

pickarooney

Have a look for information on sleep cycles. It varies from person to person, but they say most people work in cycles of 4 hours, from drifting off to deep sleep and back to a lighter sleep near the end. An 8-hour night involves two complete cycles, and if you sleep any shorter it interrupts the cycle and can make you feel like you missed a lot more than the half-hour or so under the 8 that you actually slept. When you say that you went to bed at 11.30 and that's reasonably early, and if you're getting up at 7.30 every day, you may have accumulated a lot of unfinished sleep cycles that are only now taking effect.

Stark

Yeah I notice that in college. I feel a whole lot better when I get up at 8 than the few mornings when I have to get up at 7:30 and I feel like absolute crap.

Parents have turned into health food gurus eh? That could be worrying, my dad's idea of healthy eating is dry boiled potatoes I guess his reasoning is they taste so bad they have to be good for you, but they're not.

The_Conductor

damien.m wrote:

For god's sake ! Fatigue is a symptom of most things when the body is not at 100%. Don't be scaremongering.

Is this a frequent thing or has this just happened today ? If it's frequent see a doctor first and ignore all these other old wives tales from people that obviously don't know better. A full set of blood tests is what you need, not a test for diabetes because that'll only look for one thing.

If this is a once off then don't worry and move on. Everyone has an "off day".

I wouldn't call it scaremongering.
Its something that is extremely easy to check out, and extremely prevalent as an undiagnosed condition in the population at large.
Yes, there could be any of a large number of reasons for fatigue etc- which may or may not be dietary related- get it checked out. Would recommend allergy testing along with the usual FBCs/Fols etc. Your GP will be able to recommend an appropriate course of action.

S.

smemon

hang on a second here, this is ONE day you feel really tired getting up?

am i the only 1 that is shattered EVERY morning getting up? i set 3 alarms to wake me up as i usually switch of 1 and dont get up then the 2nd one goes and i usually get up but sometimes dont, the 3rd is just to make sure i get up.

when ive a day off, i'll sleep into 12pm at least no matter when go to bed, even half 10, 11.

but thats life, is everyone no tired getting up in the mornings?

The_Conductor

smemon wrote:

hang on a second here, this is ONE day you feel really tired getting up?

am i the only 1 that is shattered EVERY morning getting up? i set 3 alarms to wake me up as i usually switch of 1 and dont get up then the 2nd one goes and i usually get up but sometimes dont, the 3rd is just to make sure i get up.

when ive a day off, i'll sleep into 12pm at least no matter when go to bed, even half 10, 11.

but thats life, is everyone no tired getting up in the mornings?

Eat more vegetables, check your iron levels, what time do you go to bed at the night before? Make a mental note to yourself- its not cool to try to survive on 4 hours of sleep per night (or however much it is you get). If you are getting sufficient sleep- see above advice, go to your GP and GET IT CHECKED OUT!!! No, its not normal......

S.

Gordon

smemon, how many hours a day do you work? (including travelling time)

LegacyUser

smemon wrote:

but thats life, is everyone no tired getting up in the mornings?

yes, constantly. think it might be related to having glandular fever when younger. got blood tests done about 2 years ago cos i was afraid i had some sort of thyroid imbalance but nothing showed up. dont want to go back to doc if its nothing but always so tired..

smemon

i go to bed about 12ish usually, fall straight asleep, get up at half 7. get home about half 5. not too bad.

but its not just recently like, that always been the way for years. i remember id hate getting up for school and dragging meself outa bed, it was and still is the hardest thing i have to do every day. but i could stay awake all night no bother, i dont get tired at night unless im reading or something.