Anyone else perpetually tired?

[LoneCowboy]

Welcome to my world. I have Fibromyalgia and one of the symptoms is that you don't sleep well. You don't reach that deep healing sleep. If I were you, I'd have a sleep study done. It could be sleep apnea too. Whatever the case it is very common, especially in women and a symptom of lots of different aliments

 

[kodiakchicken]

Quote:
I've wondered about the sleep thing. I don't sleep well a lot, but not for any apparent reason. I am almost 100% positive it's not apnea, as I've never woke myself up gasping for air and DH has never noticed anything. However, I dream vividly - A LOT - and I snore something fierce. Sometimes when I'm snoring DH can't wake me up to get me to stop, so I sleep hard, but not deeply. I've wondered if I'm not getting enough REM.

 

[mychickensrock]

I'm telling you, getting good sleep at night has made a big difference for me. I don't know how easily your doc will prescribe something, but maybe that would help. I do worry about being addicted to it, but my doc and I agree that quality sleep is super important for me not to have seizures. Good sleep is so important to good health!

 

[halo]

Could any of it have to do with the fact that you are in Alaska, and you dont get anywhere near the amount of sunlight we down south do. I know myself, if we have 2 days of overcast weather, its enough to put me in a funk....drowsy, irritable, want to nap all the time.

 

[beak]

You mentioned sleep apnea. people that have sleep apnea are not usually aware of it. If you are overweight and you spend a lot of time sleeping on your back then sleep apnea could be a problem. Sleep apnea usually stops your breathing and wakes you partially up so you start breathing again. About 6 yrs ago I went in for my yearly physical. I had a new doctor and he looked at the structure of m neck and throat and wanted me to go have a sleep test. I discussed it with my wife. We decided not to do it because I sleep on my stomach at all times. You only get sleep apnea on your back. Plus my wife sleeps real poorly and spends a lot of time awake and she has never heard me stop breathing. With the exception of when I first go to bed . I always lay on my back and fall asleep then I start snoring and stop breathing. At that point I roll on my stomach and sleep all night.

If you sleep on your back you might want to check it out.

 

[skirbo]

I have fibromyalgia, too, and thyroid problems and a whole host of other junk not worth mentioning here. I suggest you get your doctor to refer you to an endocrinologist. The specialist can do more extensive bloodwork and will have a more thorough understanding of the results and your symptoms, including things you might not even consider a problem like sparse eyebrows or something.

Believe me, you can have 'normal' thyroid tests and still have a thyroid problem. You could also have a dopamine or seretonin imbalance (any of you guys with sleep problems might have that as well).

My gp takes care of me now that we know what I have, but I saw an endo for a long time.

Sarah

 

[Chirpy]

I'm sorry and I totally understand.

There are so many things that can cause fatigue and many of them have been mentioned here.

I just wanted to say that CFIDS (Chronic Fatigue Immune Deficiency Syndrome) is easier to diagnose (with the right doctor) than people often think. With a blood test the doctor checks the titer level and by going through a checklist of "symptoms" you pretty quickly rule it out. If you meet the "criteria" from the blood test and symptom list and have ruled out other things then it's highly likely (not positive) that you have CFIDS.

 

[debilorrah]

Quote:
Gosh you are right about Ambien!!!! My body reacts differently to most meds so Ambien really puts me out for days, but my doc did give me Temazepam (Ristoril) to sleep and I can take that and wake up rested with only a little groggy effect.

I think Kodiak, and me too for that matter, would like a solution and disagnosis rather than anyother prescription. Though the prescription CAN help in the meantime!!!

 

[Livinzoo]

I too have always felt tiered. I felt in a fog. I found a wonderful doctor that doesn't rely on TSH levels to treat with thyroid meds. He goes by symptoms. You might want to look at this site and see if any of the other symptoms fit you. http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/ My TSH was 2.5 which is considered normal. But I feel soooo much better since starting the thyroid meds. Within the first week my brain fog was clearing and my nails were harder. And I am now 7 weeks into it.

 

[kodiakchicken]

Thanks, everyone. I'm thinking that I need to push my this with my Dr. more or find one that will listen and not just tell me to lose weight and it will solve everything. I'm sick of that.

beak - like I said, I'm almost positive it's not sleep apnea. I never sleep on my back, always on my side. I can't fall asleep on my back at all. My husband stays up much later than I do and he's never heard my stop breathing. But thanks for the info.

I'm so tired of Dr's trying to fit us all into nice neat square diagnosis - particularly those that have a social stigma, like being overweight. Yes, I'm overweight, but I haven't always been and it doesn't slow me down that much. I do heavy duty field work all summer and keep up with all of them. No, I'm not a triathelete, but I do more than most women my age, even with being tired all the time. And if I had more energy, maybe I'd have the drive to lose the weight (again - I lost it once).

Sorry for going off on a rant. Thanks again!