In some cases, chronic fatigue can be a sign of an underlying illness.
We all know the feeling of being able to fall asleep in almost any position, anywhere. However, it’s possible to feel fatigued without feeling sleepy. Fatigue is primarily a lack of energy, while lethargy tends to affect our mood.
Habits That Cause Fatigue
We’ve all experienced times when we felt out of shape and weren’t performing at our best. Acute fatigue is typically sudden, affects women more often, and lasts less than three months. It is usually triggered by lifestyle or environmental factors like stress, lack of sleep, dehydration, or an improper diet.
Fatigue can also be a side effect of alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine. If you’re overworked, stressed, smoking throughout the day, relying on coffee to stay awake, and winding down with alcohol at night, your body will eventually signal that it needs rest and recovery.
Eat, Sleep, Exercise
In the case of acute fatigue, symptoms typically improve after reorganizing your daily routine. Managing stress, getting enough sleep and rest, eating regularly, and reducing or eliminating harmful habits can lead to significant improvement.
Regular exercise should not be neglected. It’s an excellent way to relieve stress and get physically tired in a healthy way. Experts suggest that even 30 minutes of moderate exercise daily can make a positive difference.
When It Lasts More Than Three Months
Chronic fatigue can persist for months, often linked to an underlying medical condition. Conditions like anemia, autoimmune disorders, anxiety, depression, kidney, liver, or heart disease, and hypothyroidism can all be early signs of chronic fatigue.
If fatigue continues for more than three months without improvement despite adequate sleep, a proper routine, healthy eating, and regular exercise, it’s important to consider seeing a doctor.
I Can’t Handle It Alone
With chronic fatigue, individuals lose control over the situation and are unable to resolve the issue with usual methods that work for acute fatigue.
Chronic fatigue may be caused by sleep disorders and breathing issues, but the stress and tension from the fatigue can increase the likelihood of sleep problems, creating a vicious cycle.
To treat chronic fatigue, a comprehensive medical examination is necessary to identify and address the root cause of the problem.
