For most people, feeling tired when you wake up is the result of sleep inertia, which is a natural feeling you experience as you transition between being asleep and awake. This feeling generally dissipates between 15 and 60 minutes after waking, but for some it can last longer.
Most likely, you're still tired after eight hours of sleep because of these three factors: (1) you don't know your sleep need, (2) you're not taking into account your sleep efficiency, and (3) you carry sleep debt.
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.
Common causes of fatigue include: Sleep disorders like sleep apnea and insomnia. Medical conditions like chronic fatigue syndrome, anemia, problems with your thyroid gland like hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid), autoimmune diseases, fibromyalgia, and mental health issues like depression and anxiety.
Medical causes – unrelenting exhaustion may be a sign of an underlying illness, such as a thyroid disorder, heart disease or diabetes. Lifestyle-related causes – alcohol or drugs or lack of regular exercise can lead to feelings of fatigue. Workplace-related causes – workplace stress can lead to feelings of fatigue.
The following factors can contribute to fatigue, either alone or in combination: Psychological and psychosocial – stress, anxiety, and depression. Physical – anemia, diabetes, glandular fever, and cancer. Physiological – pregnancy, breast-feeding, inadequate sleep, and excessive exercise.
Exhaustion isn't a mental disorder. But it can be caused by anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, neurological and sleep disorders, anemia, electrolyte abnormalities, diabetes, obesity, and/or an infectious disease or cancer.
This sleep inertia, or transition from sleep to wake that comes with temporary grogginess, is part of the natural sleep-wake cycle. Sleep inertia typically lasts for 60-90 minutes. Natural light, exercise, coffee, and low sleep debt can help reduce its length and severity.
Fatigue can have a variety of causes. Some conditions that cause fatigue include thyroid disorders, iron deficiency anemia, diabetes, chronic fatigue syndrome, and COVID-19. Some other causes of fatigue may involve your diet, sleep, and levels of stress.
There are three types of fatigue: transient, cumulative, and circadian: Transient fatigue is acute fatigue brought on by extreme sleep restriction or extended hours awake within 1 or 2 days.
Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of depression. There can be physical effects (lack of energy), emotional effects (apathy), and cognitive effects (difficulty concentrating).
Fatigue can be one of the first symptoms of depression, and one of the most noticeable. Those with depression might find themselves thinking things like “I'm tired of being tired,” or “I just want to sleep the day away.” Are you wondering why depression makes you tired?
Call for an appointment with your doctor if your fatigue has persisted for two or more weeks despite making an effort to rest, reduce stress, choose a healthy diet and drink plenty of fluids.
Even a week of feeling more tired than usual is not uncommon. Yet most people can tell when their fatigue feels like something more serious. If that's the case, or your fatigue gets worse or lasts longer than a week or two, it's time to see your doctor.
Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a serious, long-term illness that affects many body systems. People with ME/CFS are often not able to do their usual activities. At times, ME/CFS may confine them to bed. People with ME/CFS have severe fatigue and sleep problems.
Nearly everyone is overtired or overworked from time to time. Such instances of temporary fatigue usually have an identifiable cause and a likely remedy. Unrelenting exhaustion, on the other hand, lasts longer, is more profound and isn't relieved by rest.
Sleep deprivation leaves your brain exhausted, so it can't perform its duties as well. You may also find it more difficult to concentrate or learn new things. The signals your body sends may also be delayed, decreasing your coordination and increasing your risk for accidents.
Is Sleep Deprivation Psychosis A Mental Illness? By itself, it's not considered a mental illness.
For people with sleep deprivation, insomnia, sleep apnea, or other conditions that prevent getting adequate rest, short-term daytime cognitive impairment is common. In addition, multiple studies have linked poor sleep with longer-term cognitive decline, including the development of dementia and Alzheimer's dementia.
While insomnia can be a symptom of psychiatric disorders, like anxiety and depression, it is now recognized that sleep problems can also contribute to the onset and worsening of different mental health problems, including depression, anxiety, and even suicidal ideation.
By the age of 6, the size of the brain increases to about 90% of its volume in adulthood. Then, in our 30s and 40s, the brain starts to shrink, with the shrinkage rate increasing even more by age 60. Like wrinkles and gray hair that start to appear later in life, the brain's appearance starts to change, too.