Constant Fatigue and Tiredness

Do you feel like you have to be wound up like a toy just to get going everyday? You could be suffering from constant fatigue and tiredness. Constant fatigue and tiredness could have many sources and/or causes. Believe it or not one of which could be hereditary. You could come from a low energy family. So the first place of your research may need to start with dear old mom or dad. It’s unlikely that both of your parents are that way especially since opposites attract right? But maybe it’s one parent or one side of the family tree. I for one have dealt with feeling constant fatigue or tiredness at one point or more in my life and after looking at my father’s side of the family I thought for sure that I’d come from a low energy clan. But to my surprise as I looked deeper into what may have been causing my issue, I realized that it could have come from the 2 ½ hour drive one way to work 5 days a week, not eating right and taking 45 minute detours after work rather than going straight home to rest. What am I saying here? I’m saying take a good long hard look at what you’re doing on a daily basis. In today’s world our commutes back and forth to work, sitting in traffic and sitting in our posh offices under artificial lighting is enough to zap the energy right out of you every single day and while you may be sleeping good at night by the time you get to work everyday, you are already tired from fighting traffic in the morning commute. What can be done about that? Fresh air and sunlight are sometimes enough to energize you in the middle of the day. Take a couple of breaks from the action in the office, walk outside and take a few deep breaths. Being in the sunlight alone for about 15 minutes a day is healthy for you. It somehow infuses vitamin D into your skin which is good for strong bones. Strong bones makes you feel strong. Our skeletal system is the foundation to a strong “feeling” body. O.k. I have to talk about diet and exercise. In today’s world with obesity being wildly out of control, we are beginning to hear more and more everyday about the benefits of diet and exercise and rightfully so. It is so important to keep moving. I was talking about this on a nightly run that I take with my spouse. Two generations before us, our grandparents worked their farms and gardens and raised kids and got so much more exercise just in their daily lives than we get today in ours. We drive to work, sit down at work and drive back home. We have to get out of our cars and out of our offices and get our blood pumping through our bodies. This moves oxygen throughout our muscles which makes us feel energized and believe it or not, happy. Also eating good vegetables, fruits and drinking water are good ways to get energy. When I started running and got up to 5K distance, I noticed the more I ran, the further my distances got, the more energy it took from me and the more my body craved good energy-boosting foods like vegetables, fruits and nuts. There is not enough that can be said about this.

Not getting a good night sleep could also be a culprit of always feeling tired and fatigued. Research still says that we need 8 hours of sleep each night.  Another big one for women is childbearing, breastfeeding and childrearing. These things will zap the energy right out of you and send you straight to your favorite napping room in the house. The mental, emotional and physical toll that parenting takes on you is, I think just about immeasurable. Pay attention to these things, know your body. When you are putting stress on your body by doing or not doing any of the above you have to make up for it in other areas like eating right, resting at night and the others. Stress is another huge factor of fatigue and tiredness. Money woes are many in today’s economy. Don’t let it zap you. Realize the drain, get an outlet and make up for the stress by exercising, this releases the pent up tension from being stressed out over money issues and whatever else life tends to toss your way.

After taking a good long look at yourself and your activities, do consult a doctor to get a good plan on how to get energized. Also do this to rule out any serious medical conditions. Seeing that I am not a doctor and these statements are more personal and not medical advice, always, always consult your doctor before doing any exercise program, change in your diet or daily activities.