Healthy living requires a great deal of planning. Most people do not consider sleep something they have to plan. The benefits of sleep outweigh the work required to plan for a good night sleep. When we focus on our goal to look better, to feel better, and to improve our memory the extra 10 minutes that are necessary to plan a good night sleep seem well worth it.  Let’s take some time to review the benefits you may not have thought about.

A good night sleep helps rebuild collagen this gives her skin more elasticity and less wrinkles. This helps improve our overall look and makes us feel younger. When we are feeling good we are willing to do more during the day. Sleep also helps contribute to being able to perform more activities. Those who play golf have noticed that when they get a proper night sleep their scores go down. This is because the brain works better when it is not sleep deprived. The benefit is that the increased exercise allows you to sleep better which then them helps you improve your gain more. Proper sleep also allows for better social function. When we are feeling healthy and well rested we are able to interact with other people on a higher level. We are able to make more successful judgments. We are able to accept more events that do not necessarily fall within the box that we consider normal disability to accept is in direct proportion to the amount of sleep that we have the night before.

A good night’s sleep also helps those that we are with during the day whether it’s our spouse, our children, or our current coworkers.  When we are sleep deprived we make poor decisions. When we have enough sleep we are able to access more of our brain more of our memories and more averred areas of judgment and so we are able to communicate better with those around us.

It is our job to ask our doctors when we are not getting enough sleep how to achieve optimal sleep. You must let him know if there is snoring teeth grinding movements or others or getting up to go the bathroom multiple times during the night.  Each of these issues can be handled if the physician knows about them.

Our ultimate goal is to be healthy and to be as active as possible for as long as possible. If we can also look good at the same time the entire better. It’s a simple step to get enough sleep so you can achieve all these benefits.

For the last several months I have played the role of the caregiver.  It feels like somewhere along the line you get lost among the myriad of medications, doctor’s appointments and just the general care and cleaning up.  Then there is the isolation and loneliness that comes with it.  I did not realize how it sneaks up on you and overcomes you.

As my husband got ready for his surgery and his ultimate progression of his illness to one where he is almost not able to care for himself, I have put my life on hold and forgot to take care of me.  It started with little things, putting off exercising then there was not going out to activities and finally I stopped even eating healthy and instead tried to find my pleasure in food.  I was so tired at the end of the day trying to do everything for everyone in my family I would fall into bed exhausted only to remember there was more to do. 

But what kind of help can I be if I hate coming home, I feel sick all the time and I am always exhausted.  This is no way to live a life.  There has to be at least a little balance.  Sleep cannot be secondary, exercises cannot be secondary and healthy eating and sunlight cannot be secondary.  All these things will give the caregiver strength to help those that they love and are helping. 

I know today I got up and went for my 1.5 mile wog.  I am not fast enough to call it a jog but it made me feel better.  It gave me more energy and it reminded me that I need to feel good.  I need to feel healthy.  I need to sleep better.  I need to be able to study for my classes and bring a positive attitude to my students and patients. 

Being a caregiver is a hard job.  But remember you cannot give what you do not have.  Do not stand alone.  Reach out and remember there are others out there to help you or at the very least cheer you on.

 

You have already figured out that fatigue can be caused from sleep apnea but correcting sleep apnea does not automatically correct fatigue.  You have been sleep deprived and had poor sleep for a very long time and you will probably need to take a look at several other things along the way to make sure you have the energy you want to have on a daily level.  Let’s look at the main causes of this problem of fatigue and then we will discuss some creative solutions.

The first thing you should do is ask yourself when you are feeling the most fatigue.  Are you tired when you get up, in the middle of the afternoon or possibly the early evening? Also does this fatigue last a long time or is it a short transient experience? 

·         Look at your medications and when you are taking them.  If you are taking something for pain it can cause issues 20-30 minutes after you take it and may last several hours.  You could also be taking an antidepressant that could be causing you fatigue.  Are you taking a cough suppressant again that can be causing fatigue.  If you are taking a stimulant too late at night that might preventing you from getting enough sleep. 

·         Do you have another condition that is robbing you of a restful sleep?  Limb movements, GERD and bruxism, also known as teeth grinding, could be causing you to continue to have disrupted sleep and increase your level of fatigue.

·         What are you eating and when are you eating it.  Is the meal large and high in carbohydrates or protein or is it a moderate sized balanced meal?  Do you have diabetes and have issues during certain times of the day or night?  All of these could be contributing to your fatigue.

·         Are you getting enough exercise?

·         Do you have a history of a mood disorder?  Many of them can cause issues with sleep patterns and levels of fatigue.

·         Have you gotten enough sunlight and vitamin D?  This can also contributed to afternoon and evening fatigue.

You have an idea of what could be contributing to your levels of fatigue now let’s look at some solutions to the tiredness you might be experiencing.  Some of the solutions can be used as a stop gap to a specific experience and some are habit changes you might want to try and make to help you over the long term. 

·         Take a minute and do some deep breathing exercises.  It can be diaphragmatic breathing or it can be slow inhale, hold and slow exhale.  You can do an 8 count of a 4 count whatever deep breathing exercise you try will increase your oxygen level to the brain and help you to feel more energized and focused.    

·         Go for a walk.  This can help with two of the issues.  It will allow you to get some sunlight which will stimulate the brain that it is time to be awake and exercise helps to stimulate the body to have more energy.  The other great effect is that exercise will allow a person to sleep better. 

·         Take a nap.  A short 20 minute nap will allow you to recharge and reboot your brain so that when you wake up you are able to focus and learn more. 

·         Talk to your doctor about your medications.  Sometimes you can be having a side effect not just to a single medication but it could be the interaction between two medications.  Many people have more than one person prescribing medications.  It is in your best interest to make sure that your primary care physician knows all the medications you take so they can make sure you’re at optimal health without side effects. 

·         Get enough sleep.  We live in a 24 hour a day world and we are making sleep less of a priority.  Some people say well I have never slept longer than 4-5 hours therefore that is all I need.  This is just not true.  Our body needs 7-8 hours of sleep.  You need to plan for that long.  If you do not get enough sleep the side effects to your body are significant.

·         Get enough water to drink.  Chronic dehydration will cause fatigue.  A great example of this is that hot summer day at the beach where all you want to do is sleep as soon as you get home.  Well imagine your body having that kind of stress all the time.  That would cause a great deal of fatigue.  So drink enough water you will have more energy.

These are just a few solutions.  If you continue to have fatigue you should talk to your doctor.  There can be some medical conditions that can cause fatigue.  Your doctor can test you for low vitamin level, low iron levels, or anemia, or issues such as chronic fatigue syndrome or fibromyalgia. 

No matter what the issues occasionally we all experience fatigue but do not let yourself or your goals get derailed because you continue to have problems with staying awake during the day.