Underactive Thyroid And Fatigue
Symptoms: Extreme fatigue, sluggishness, feeling run-down, depression, cold intolerance, weight gain
The problem may be a slow or underactive thyroid. This is known as hypothyroidism. The thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped gland that sits at the base of your neck. It helps set the rate of metabolism, which is the rate at which the body uses energy.
According to the American Thyroid Foundation, about 17% of all women will have a thyroid disorder by age 60. And most won’t know it. The most common cause is an autoimmune disorder known as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Hashimoto’s stops the gland from making enough thyroid hormones for the body to work the way it should. The result is hypothyroidism, or a slow metabolism.
Blood tests known as T3 and T4 will detect thyroid hormones. If these hormones are low, synthetic hormones can bring you up to speed, and you should begin to feel better fairly rapidly.
You Dont Sleep As Well
Depression may be disrupting your sleeping patterns in some way. About 80% of people with depression, for example, experience insomnia.
But its not just a lack of sleep that causes tiredness. Oversleeping, which is also a common symptom of depression, can cause similar feelings of fatigue over a period of time.
These kinds of sleep irregularities are among the biggest causes of fatigue in those who experience depression.
Fatigue Meaning And Causes
Posted by Dr. Chris
Low energy levels is one of the most common symptoms that we all experience in life, sometimes without finding any possible cause. It often starts just before an illness, continues during the course of an illness and even lingers after the illness resolves. Sometimes low energy levels can continue for weeks, months and even years and in certain cases the lack of energy is the only symptom that is present. Needless to say, this can be a confusing symptom to diagnose at times.
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Heart Disease And Fatigue
Symptoms: Fatigue from an activity that should be easy
If youre exhausted after an activity that used to be easy — for example, walking up the steps — it may be time to talk to your doctor about the possibility of heart disease. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in women. If your fatigue is related to your heart, medication or treatments can usually help correct the problem, cut the fatigue, and restore your energy.
Youre Getting Over An Infection
Just because youre on the mend from, say, a virus doesnt mean you should expect to automatically bounce back energy-wise. Recovery can take time. “A viral or bacterial infection can cause dehydration, generalized inflammation, and immense fatigue,” Dr. Khan says.
How to fix it: Dr. Khan recommends simply giving yourself time to recoup. Drink plenty of water and just take it easy, and you should feel less tired and more like yourself in a week or two.
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Safe And Easy Ways To Naturally Up Your Iron Levels Include:
- Eating plenty of dark green leafy vegetables.
- Eating plenty of vitamin c-rich vegetables and fruitsvitamin c naturally enhances your bodys iron absorption.
- Eating red meat, eggs and other dark meatsanimal products contain whats known as heme-iron, which is easier to absorb than non-heme iron, which comes from plant-based products.
If youre a vegetarian, vegan and/or unable to eat meat and you have low-iron, youll want to work with your Knew Health Coach or practitioner to craft an iron-enhancing nutrition and supplementation program that works for you.
For more information on iron levels and lab work, check out: Understanding Your Lab Results: The Iron Tests Your Doctor is Missing.
Hpa Axis Dysfunction And Morning Fatigue
The hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis is basically your central stress response system. It is connected to your central nervous system and endocrine system. The responsibility of your HPA axis is the neuroendocrine adaptation within your stress response. The neuroendocrine signals are responsible for lead to the release of a variety of hormones and neurotransmitters, including cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine.
However, when you are exposed to repeated and sustained stressors, it may result in sustain HPA axis activation and dysfunction. This may deplete your metabolic output, results in changes in cortisol output, affect DHEA, melatonin, and epinephrine levels, and as a result may lead to fatigue, including morning fatigue, chronic fatigue syndrome, and adrenal fatigue .
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Too Many Energy Drinks
Drinking too much caffeine, especially in the afternoon, can certainly interfere with your sleep. Energy drinks actually have more caffeine in them than a cup of coffee, and they are also full of sugar.
The high amount of vitamin B in energy drinks will give you a quick fix if you feel your energy starting to drop, but it will lead to a subsequent plummet in energy later in the day.
You Have A Thyroid Issue
Your thyroid is a small butterfly-shaped gland in the front of your throat that produces hormones that control the way your body uses energy. When it doesn’t produce enough thyroid hormone, it causes a condition known as hypothyroidism, which can mess with or slow down many of your body’s functions, according to Medline Plus.
Thyroid hormones have receptors on essentially every organ of human body and their deficiency can cause fatigue by excessively slowing the metabolic pathways, Dr. Khan says.
How to fix it: The treatment for hypothyroidism is medication to replace the hormone that your own thyroid can no longer make. Just know this: It could take a little while for you to feel better. As a result, your doctor may need to adjust your medication until you reach the optimal level.
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How Will Your Doctor Treat Fatigue
Your doctors recommended treatment plan will depend on whats causing your fatigue. To make a diagnosis, they will likely ask you questions about:
- the nature of your fatigue, including when it started and whether it gets better or worse at certain times
- other symptoms that youve been experiencing
- other medical conditions that you have
- your lifestyle and sources of stress
- medications that youre taking
If your doctor suspects you have an underlying medical condition thats causing your fatigue, they may order some medical tests. For example, they may order blood or urine tests.
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/adrenal Fatigue Syndrome
Many peopleespecially women in their 40s and 50sexperience hormonal imbalances that can lead to non-fading fatigue. Hormonal imbalances also have other symptoms, such as:
- Difficulty concentrating
- Anxiety
- Hair loss
If you body has hormonal imbalances, many key hormones go up and down depending on the level of stress in your body. Because of this, high levels of stress and symptoms of adrenal fatigue are closely related.
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Increase Energy With Diet And Exercise
Fatigue may result from poor diet and a lack of exercise. Exercise might be the last thing you want to do with low energy. But getting the blood pumping with just a 30-minute walk, at least 5 times a week, can put a spring in your step. Regular exercise can decrease fatigue and improve the quality of your sleep.
Diet is a big factor in fighting fatigue. Eating portion-controlled meals and healthful snacks throughout the day can be beneficial in fueling your system. A diet of fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, whole grains, lean protein, and plenty of water can give you much more energy. Fried food, high-fat foods, and highly processed foods like candy, chips, and soda should be limited. These foods can drain energy levels and give you sugar highs and lows that result in fatigue.
Cancer Can Also Be A Cause Of Tiredness And Low Energy
Another one to add to the category of unlikely, but worth knowing. Cancer-related fatigue is incredibly common: At least 80 percent of people diagnosed with cancer experience it, according to the American Cancer Society . While people can experience fatigue from cancer treatments, they can also feel wiped out from the cancer itself. Cancer leads to fatigue by various mechanisms, explains Dr. Khan. It overtakes almost all the metabolic pathways and sabotages the mitochondrial energy of the body, she says.
How to fix it: Don’t freak out that you have a serious health issue. But know that getting a proper diagnosis is important and, from there, proper treatment is needed to target the health issue, including a specific type of cancer. That’s why seeing your doctor to rule out a serious issue is key if you haven’t been able to shake your tiredness for a prolonged period.
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What Else Causes Fatigue
Some lifestyle habits can make you feel tired. Here are some things that may be draining your energy:
- Staying up too late. A good night’s sleep is important to feeling refreshed and energetic. Try going to bed and waking up at the same time every day.
- Having too much caffeine. Drinking caffeinated drinks like soda, tea, or coffee late in the day can keep you from getting a good night’s sleep. Limit the amount of caffeine you have during the day and avoid it in the evening.
- Drinking too much alcohol.Alcohol changes the way you think and act. It may also interact with your medicines.
- Eating junk food. Say “no thanks” to food with empty calories, like fried foods and sweets, which have few nutrients and are high in fat and sugars. Choose nutritious foods to get the energy you need to do the things you enjoy.
- Getting too little or too much exercise. Regular exercise can boost your energy levels, but dont overdo it.
Causes Of Fatigue And Low Fever
Fatigue and a low-grade fever commonly occur with a lengthy list of illnesses and conditions. These nonspecific symptoms serve as a general immune system alert, signaling an abnormality somewhere in the body. The underlying causes of fatigue and a low-grade fever range from common viral infections to autoimmune diseases to life-threatening cancers. Persistent fatigue and an unexplained fever warrant medical evaluation to determine the underlying cause and appropriate course of treatment.
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Can Emotions Cause Fatigue
Are you fearful about the future? Do you worry about your health and who will take care of you? Are you afraid you are no longer needed? Emotional stresses like these can take a toll on your energy. Fatigue can be linked to many conditions, including:
- Anxiety
- Stress from financial or personal problems
- Feeling that you no longer have control over your life
Not getting enough sleep can also contribute to fatigue. Regular physical activity can improve your sleep. It may also help reduce feelings of depression and stress while improving your mood and overall well-being. Yoga, meditation, or cognitive behavioral therapy could also help you get more rest. Talk with your doctor if your mental well-being is affecting your sleep or making you tired.
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- Supplying you with pure, happy energy
- Powering up your brain and increasing your focus
- Calming down nerves, anxiety, and distractions so that you feel content and energized
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Sneaky Causes Of Low Energy Fatigue And Exhaustion
Do you remember what it felt like to be a kid just chock-full of energy?
For most of us, childhood is a time of boundless vitality and staminawhere we could run and play for hours without feeling tired.
Then young adulthood hits, and aside from the all-nighters studying most young adults have no trouble bouncing back from a little fatigue.
Next we hit our late-twenties and early thirties, and thats when a certain level of low-grade fatigue starts to plague all too many people.
And if you have children and a career, that fatigue can quickly escalate to a state of chronic exhaustion.
But, just because nearly everyone over thirty is walking around glued to their coffee mugs complaining about being tired all the time, doesnt mean that it is normal.
The fact is, unless you have a child waking you up several times a night or are going through a very stressful time, you should have plenty of energy to spare.
Yet most people slog through their days utterly exhausted and completely reliant on caffeine and other stimulants to get them through.
Morning Fatigue: Causes And 7 Steps To Enhance Energy
Fatigue is a serious problem in our modern world that millions of Americans are facing every day. Morning fatigue is characterized by tiredness, lack of energy, or lack of motivation that is present in the morning, however, it often continues on throughout the day. Morning fatigue may have a serious impact on your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health and overall quality of life.
The good news is that you can combat morning fatigue and enhance your energy naturally. In this article, you will learn what fatigue is and its most common causes. I will share with you 7 steps to enhance your energy naturally and three powerful supplements that may help to reduce morning fatigue.
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Reasons Why Your Energy Is Low Or Depleted
Tired. Pooped. Fatigued. Washed out. Drained. Outta energy. These are some standard ways to reflect how you can feel at timesor perhaps more than youd like. Experiencing low or depleted energy occasionally is normal, but you dont want to go through life feeling like you cant get out of first gear, do you?
According to experts, one in ten people around the world are experiencing persistent tiredness at any one time. An even higher number of Americans say they have fatigue that interferes with their daily lives.
When low energy becomes chronic, its time to uncover the cause and find ways to remedy the situation. The first step, however, is identifying the reason. To help you, weve come up with 16 possible reasons why people can experience low or depleted energy. Could your answer be on this list? If you believe it is-or even if its not-it may be time to ask a healthcare provider to help you ferret out the final answer, get tested, and begin the treatment you need.
Possible Reasons For Shortness Of Breath And Fatigue
Shortness of breath literally means facing a difficulty in breathing due to lack of sufficient quantity of oxygen. It may affect one’s productivity while performing even daily tasks.
Shortness of breath literally means facing a difficulty in breathing due to lack of sufficient quantity of oxygen. It may affect ones productivity while performing even daily tasks.
Shortness of breath generally occurs due to infections, allergies, asthma or other nervous and respiratory disorders. Difficulty in breathing and fatigue are closely related to each other as the latter is a prominent indicator of a person suffering from shortness of breath. Frequent cough, fever and pain in the chest are the most general signs which highlight the presence of this disorder in an individual. You should contact your family doctor immediately, if you face any of the above problems as prevention is better than cure.
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Is It Possible That I Have Pots And Was Incorrectly Diagnosed
This is entirely possible. Given how common POTS symptoms are and how unfamiliar many doctors are with this condition, diagnostic mishaps happen. POTS is frequently misidentified as chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, myofascial pain syndrome, anxiety disorder, ADHD, irritable bowel syndrome, myositis, etc. It is also possible that you have both POTS and one of these conditions, which may complicate the diagnosis. Sometimes people with POTS are told that its all in your head, implying that the cause of their symptoms is psychological. If you feel like something is physically wrong, dont hesitate to seek a second, and even a third or fourth opinion.
COVID-19 and POTS: Is There a Link?
Although many people recover quickly from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, others who recover may continue to experience symptoms for months. Researchers are still determining the cause of these extended symptoms, but some COVID-19 “long-haulers” may actually be dealing with POTS.
Youve Been More Sedentary Than Usual
While going hard during your at-home workouts can wear you out, the opposite is true too. The human body gets more tired with progressive sedentary habits due to generalized deconditioning of the body and, ultimately, muscle loss, says Sobia Khan, MD, assistant professor of general internal medicine and Director of Women’s Center for Comprehensive Care at Baylor College of Medicine.
Basically, your body takes a use it or lose it approach to fitness. And, if you dont exercise regularly, youre going to feel more tired when you actually do start moving, and during the time when you’re not expending energy.
How to fix it: This solution is pretty simpleget moving more. Just a reminder, the general physical activity recommendation is that you get 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise each week, along with two or more days a week of muscle-strengthening activity. Once you start moving again, itll be easier to get through your day-to-day stuff without being a zombie.
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