>U Mom Knows Best: Wake Up: Combating Fatigue

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Wake Up: Combating Fatigue

Sometimes just staying awake during the day can feel like a battle! You may be familiar with this feeling if you have ever woken up tired. Or had a slump at 3 pm. Or even, no matter how hard you have worked to shake it off during the day your brain is still foggy, and your muscles ache? Well, that is fatigue and for many of us that are busy moms, work out a lot, or just have a full schedule, it can be a daily reality. But surely there are some things that we can do to alleviate this constant feeling of being exhausted all of the time? Read on to find out.


Address your sleeping issues


Waking up tired every morning is not too much fun. In fact, it can make it near on impossible to get out of bed at a decent time, in the morning and get going with your day. But to help you wake up with more energy, you must first of all look at the quality of sleep you are getting.


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Remember we spend an entire third of our lifetimes asleep. So that means good sleep is a necessity, not a luxury! But what can we do to ensure that we get the best night sleep possible?


Well, first of all, take a look at the atmosphere in which you are sleeping. It is clean, well aired, and organized? If not, you may have found your problem. As these factors could be affecting how easy it is to get off to sleep as, well as how well you sleep through the night.


Of course, not everyone has the luxury to be able to sleep right through the night. Especially if they have young children that are teething, or even pets that misbehave at bedtime. As these are things that just can't be ignored. That means your best bet it to try and minimize them as much as possible.


This might mean getting the kids into a good sleep routine with a lavender bath and story before bed. Or even getting a pet calming product like Feliway for cats, so you fur babies don't disturb you by running around the house all night!


But is not just others that can disturb your night sleep, but your bed as well. Did you know that having the right size bed and structure of mattress is essential to getting the best nights sleep? As well as waking up ready to seize the day in the morning.


Beds need to be large enough to sleep comfortably in them with the person that you share with. If you haven't got enough room to roll over without waking the other person up, then you are going to have a problem.


Mattress needs to be comfortable as well. But as you can see from the reviews on www.mattress-guides.net/saatva-mattress-review-complaints/ getting it right isn't always easy.


The thing with mattresses to remember is that soft don't necessarily mean comfortable. In fact, having a soft mattress might bad for you. Especially if you sleep on your front. That is because your joints won't be supported enough. Which can actually wake you up in the night, because you are moving around a lot to reduce the strain on them.


What about diet?


It’s not only what we sleep on, but also what we eat, that can have a big effect on how energized we fell during the day.


Firstly eating food high in sugar and caffeine before bedtime can disrupt your body by interfering with its ability to wind down from the day and fall asleep naturally. That is why if you are experiencing sleep issues, cut these items out after dinner and during the evening.


Also, the food that you eat during the day will have an effect on your energy levels. In fact, you can eat a specific type of food to help you combat fatigue.


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Food that is particularly good for this includes slow release carbohydrates like oats, wholemeal grains, and sweet potatoes. These have a good amount of energy in them. But instead of releasing them into your system in one big go. Like the more refined sugar products do, they release their energy steadily which helps you to remain awake and alert without such pronounced highs and lows.


Of course, there are also some products on the market for when you are expecting a real energy slump, that can give you a little boost as well.


Rule out underlying conditions


Something else that you need to be aware of when you are experiencing fatigue is that it could be caused, not by your lifestyle, but by an undiagnosed condition.


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There are many medical and mental health conditions that have extreme tiredness as one of their symptoms. These include depression, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, ME, lupus and the like.


No one is entirely sure here these conditions affect the body in this way. But it can result in needing way more sleep than the normal range to just survive the day. Let alone getting all of the things that you need to get done, sorted.


Of course, the treatment for each condition is different, and it's not really a matter of just ‘bucking up’ and getting on with things. That is why you need to go to your medical professional to get a proper diagnosis. As then you can work on healing the condition as well as improving the other aspect of your life.


Get you exercise right


Also, something that can have a profound effect on how much energy you have the day is whether you exercise or not, and what activities you are doing.


For example, folks that exercise very little can often feel sluggish during the day, because they aren't getting as much oxygen as they need. They also don't have the ability to flush out toxins from their body as well as those that exercise regularly. Which can result in them feeling, more tired and sleepy.


However, like most thing in life exercise can be a double-edged sword, because while it can really improve your energy levels, if you are doing too much, you can also get too tired.


This is because your body rips muscle fibers and uses energy when you move it. You can read more about this process at https://www.weightwatchers.com/util/art/index_art.aspx?tabnum=1&art_id=60361&sc=3405. So if you are doing a lot, you will need more rest to ensure the healing and replacement of energy occurs.


This is proven by those that are training for marathons or bodybuilding. As they swear by extending their sleep periods. As this allow them to have the energy to continue to work out at an intense rate.


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Manage your stress levels


Something else that is a big cause of fatigue in many people's lives is stress. Stress, which when it gets too much is seen as a negative thing, usually come from a situation where we feel pressure. Things like deadlines, not feeling confident about what we are doing, or not being as in control as we would like can all result in stress.


Stress can make up feel tired because it puts a strain on our body. Our heartbeats increase, our muscles tense up, and if you are exposed to this for a long period of time, the body will become increasingly strained.


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The thing to do, however, is to ensure that you are managing any stress that you have in your life.


Different people choose a different way of doing this. Some work out their frustration at the gym. Others go for quiet walks alone to get their thoughts together.


Also if you are in a tough situation like a relationship breaks down or major life change, it can also help to talk to a professional therapist. As not only will they give you a platform to offload your concern. But they may also be able to give you some life tips of how to better deal with particular situations that are causing you an issue.


Don't overload yourself


Lastly, and also relating to the factor of stress, it is important that whether your energy levels are high or low that you schedule events and activities in realistically and don't overload yourself. Having an overloaded schedule in one surefire way of causing yourself to feel exhausted day in and day out.


It may be that you struggle to say no to people, even if you really haven't got the time and energy to do what they are asking. Or it may be that you think the responsibility for certain things like looking after the family or running the business is all on you.


But delegation is not a crime, and nor is asking for a bit of help one in a while so that you can have a rest.


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To help you with this be more conscious of how you are planning your time, and ensure that you are getting a balance between doing and just being. You can even use an app on your home or a paper planner to help you do this. As sometimes it easier to do things if they are written down and made formal.


Just remember Everyone needs downtime in which to relax and recharge and without this, you are setting yourself up for struggling with your energy levels in everyday life.

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