Does anyone else think they have low energy/excessive sleepiness? (thyroid, blood tests)
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I always thought I was a low energy person, but I also think I have excessive sleepiness. For instance, I sleep about 9 hours per night, great sleep, but I have a lot of trouble getting out of bed in the morning--I am just so tired in the morning that I often fall back asleep after my alarm goes off or it takes me a long time to get out of bed. I rarely feel well-rested after waking up, unless I've slept 10-12 hours. I feel sluggish and sleepy all morning, until lunch, which seems to wake me up. Then I'm fine all day until I come home from work, at which point I need to take a nap otherwise I can't function during the evening. I usually end up sleeping at least an hour, sometimes 2 hours, after work. On weekends I usually have an afternoon nap, otherwise I feel tired all day.
I have no problems falling asleep--in fact, I fall asleep as soon as I get in bed. I think the quality of my sleep is excellent--it's just that I feel I need so much of it compared to other people. I'd like to have more energy, but I've always been like this, ever since high school (I'm now in my early 30's).
Does anyone else experience this? I'm not overweight, I don't smoke or drink, I don't consume caffeine, and I eat a healthy diet. I'm wondering if it's more of a personality trait than anything physiological, especially since I've had this since age 15 or so.
I will admit that I don't exercise, but part of that is because the times I have tried to follow an exercise plan, it makes me so tired that I'd have to nap for a few hours afterward because I'd feel so drained. And I'm talking about just moderate exercise--nothing too strenuous.
For me, as much as I hate to admit this to myself, but this is self-perpetuating. In other words, if I don't exercise, don't get around, if it's break, or whatever the reason, I suspect I would get into a pattern where I would eventually never budge.
But ... I can get into schedules where I'm considered a very high energy person. I don't have stamina, but I can be "energetic" until I crash.
Again, I suspect that my mitral valve prolapse might have something to do with this.
I call it my post-holiday lazy-ass syndrome. Every night I go to bed thinking tomorrow will be the day. Tomorrow comes, another pot of coffee is brewed and drunken, and that's about as far as I get. Next thing I know it's dark out and I have once again successfully procrastinated and put off doing anything useful until it's too late. And then I say to myself, Okay, tomorrow will *really* be the day...and then tomorrow comes, the smell of coffee fills the kitchen, and so on...
Yes, I've had bloodwork done and the thyroid is fine.
Tonight is a perfect example of my typical day. Came home from work, ate dinner, had to take a 1.5 hour nap to have the energy to get through the night.
Whenever I had low energy when I was younger, it was always that I had anemia, and so the doctor would give me a liquid iron, B combo. It could also be hypothyroidism, but your thyroid is normal, so that is good. It could be anything.
That was the story of my life! Low energy and always sleepy. I have always told people God gave me a tired body at birth. I would have to have a good 12 hours of sleep a day and I feel like I slept most of my life away. Menopause took care of that and I am SO glad! I was SO tired of being tired and sleepy all the time. People think you make the choice to be like that and just do not understand. I married a man who never slept more than 4 hours a day and thought the rest of the world should live on HIS schedule and it was the source on many fights between us. When I was on my period, I could sleep 24 hours a day and when I wasn't sleeping, I was just plain drowsey and just about non functional.
My sister was the one with all the energy, going ang going, never stopping and I use to think God gave it all to her and there was none left for me. I finally accepted I was low energy and needed a lot of sleep and quit feeling like something was wrong with me.
I always thought I was a low energy person, but I also think I have excessive sleepiness. For instance, I sleep about 9 hours per night, great sleep, but I have a lot of trouble getting out of bed in the morning--I am just so tired in the morning that I often fall back asleep after my alarm goes off or it takes me a long time to get out of bed. I rarely feel well-rested after waking up, unless I've slept 10-12 hours. I feel sluggish and sleepy all morning, until lunch, which seems to wake me up. Then I'm fine all day until I come home from work, at which point I need to take a nap otherwise I can't function during the evening. I usually end up sleeping at least an hour, sometimes 2 hours, after work. On weekends I usually have an afternoon nap, otherwise I feel tired all day.
I have no problems falling asleep--in fact, I fall asleep as soon as I get in bed. I think the quality of my sleep is excellent--it's just that I feel I need so much of it compared to other people. I'd like to have more energy, but I've always been like this, ever since high school (I'm now in my early 30's).
Does anyone else experience this? I'm not overweight, I don't smoke or drink, I don't consume caffeine, and I eat a healthy diet. I'm wondering if it's more of a personality trait than anything physiological, especially since I've had this since age 15 or so.
I will admit that I don't exercise, but part of that is because the times I have tried to follow an exercise plan, it makes me so tired that I'd have to nap for a few hours afterward because I'd feel so drained. And I'm talking about just moderate exercise--nothing too strenuous.
I feel exactly the same as what you described!
AND, I'm in high school right now, and this started for me my freshman year in high school. I, like you, get a great nights sleep, but I still feel exhausted by about 2 or 3 in the afternoon. I've gone to a doctor about it, and they've done blood tests and other things, but haven't found anything wrong.
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