9 Reasons You’re Feeling Tired All the Time

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Low energy could mean more than you’re not getting enough sleep! If you have low energy, it doesn’t mean you’re just not getting enough sleep. You may be getting an optimal amount or even 10 hours of sleep a night and still feel exhausted during the day because there is an underlying issue that is causing your body to feel sluggish.

9 Reasons You’re Feeling Tired All the Time:

1. Thyroid Problems (Hypothyroidism)

One of the most common causes of feeling tired all the time that is undiagnosed by doctors is hypothyroidism. Nearly 30% of the population is walking around with it, yet have no idea! Hypothyroidism happens when your thyroid, a gland in the lower part of your neck isn’t producing enough thyroid hormones. When I went to my naturopath and said I had low energy, this was the first thing he said to have checked through a blood test. Most family doctors and even endocrinologists will brush off the symptoms of hypothyroidism and even miss diagnosis it from standard blood tests because their ranges of what they consider normal are often too wide. They are missing many people who truly have thyroid issues!

What you can do:

Get a simple blood test to check your thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and additional thyroid tests that look at T3 and T4. If you do have hypothyroidism, here are some simple ways you can naturally treat it. Your naturopathic physician may also recommend taking a natural desiccated thyroid supplement derived from pigs, such as this one I took.

2. Adrenal Fatigue

This is another one of the most common underlying causes of feeling tired all the time! If you don’t get enough sleep and experience stress regularly, it is likely that you have some adrenal fatigue (high cortisol). Your adrenal glands, which are located above your kidneys produce cortisol, a hormone related to how your body responds to stress. When you are under stress such as when your heart rate increases and blood pressure rises, this causes your cortisol to increase. Typically, the body can handle the shift in cortisol and can adapt to calm down. But, with those who suffer from stress on a daily basis and very demanding lives, or have another health problem such as an autoimmune condition, it becomes too difficult for your body to keep up the high stress and as a result, your adrenals get taxed.

What you can do:

The best thing to do is to implement some simple life changes to help minimize the effect on your body and see how you feel as a result. If possible, it would be also best to get a blood test to check your cortisol levels and determine if this is a concern for you.

Steps to improve your adrenal fatigue:

• Go to bed at the same time every night (preferably by 10pm, even on weekends).
• Take a vitamin C supplement. Many recommend it for treating adrenal fatigue.
• Only do low intensity exercise, like taking a nice relaxing walk down the street. Exercises like intense running or biking can put more stress on the body causing your cortisol to increase even more.
• Limit stress in your life if possible, avoid stressful situations and practice deep breathing to relax or meditation.

3. Stress

Stress wreaks havoc on the body in so many ways! We all experience it to some level, but some have more than others. We need to limit the amount of stress in our lives and use some relaxation techniques to help minimize the effects. When we’re under stress, our body gets in to flight or fight mode, and this ties back in to the adrenal fatigue because stress can cause your cortisol to skyrocket causing you to feel exhausted.

What you can do:

Reduce the amount of stress in your life if possible, don’t make so many commitments to things and take time to just relax. Most of us have too much work to do and the work doesn’t stop when you get home! Also, try some relaxation techniques like deep breathing, yoga, or get out and go for a walk. A study found that by going for a 10 minute walk, your stress hormones dramatically decrease and your endorphins, which make you feel good increase.

4. Insomnia – Not Getting Good Sleep

Everyone needs a different amount of sleep. I know a few men that have so much energy they never stop going, yet only get 6 hrs of sleep a night! I often wonder if their even human to be able to do that! Sometimes I still feel exhausted by the end of the day even when I get 9 to 10 hours of sleep a night. Another problem may be that even if you’re sleeping enough, you’re not getting adequate sleep due to decreased melatonin.  For example, if you have lights on in the bedroom or watch TV before you go to bed, this can dramatically decrease your melatonin, which is necessary for the body to relax.

What you can do:

Use this simple at home test to find out how much sleep you really need per night and some tips to increase your melatonin naturally.

5. Anemia or Low Iron

Having a lack of iron is not as common of a cause of low energy, but definitely worth checking out. It is more common in those who may not be getting sufficient iron from their diet, like those who follow a vegetarian or vegan diet, and those with digestive issues or thyroid issues. The most typical symptom of low iron is fatigue.

What you can do:

Get your blood checked to see if you have a low iron level before trying a supplement.

6. Lack of Movement / Circulation/ Exercise

Have you heard that sitting may be killing you? We’ll it may be true! Too many of us spend the entire day sitting at a desk and then go home from an exhausting day at work to sit at the computer or just watch TV, hardly moving much at all. When you don’t get enough exercise (it doesn’t have to be high intensity workouts), your blood doesn’t circulate and can cause fatigue. Whenever I sit too long at my computer desk, I get up and do rebounding for 5 minutes and this helps me feel more refreshed and energized.

What you can do:

Get up and move your body at least once every hour, even if you’re at work. Go for a quick walk around the room to get your blood circulated or if you’re at home jump on a mini trampoline and rebound for 5 minutes. It sure would be nice if we could all have these cool standing up desks or a treadmill desk!

7. Low Magnesium

Recently, it was said that the primary cause of feeling tired all the time today is low magnesium. I definitely think this true for a lot of people! Nearly 80% of Americans are deficient in magnesium and this causes symptoms such as fatigue, weakness, and anxiety.

What you can do:

This is the simplest deficiency to correct! See four easy ways to increase your magnesium. After much experimentation with trying to increase my magnesium, the best way I’ve found is using magnesium oil, see how to make it. It has the highest absorption rate and I notice an immediate difference within 10 minutes of using it.

8. You’re Dehydrated

Too often, we do not drink enough water or hydrating drinks. Drinking soda and other sugar laden, chemically processed drinks can even lead to dehydration! It’s easy to forget to keep drinking enough water throughout the day. A study from 2012 in the Journal of Nutrition, found that women who did not drink adequate amounts of water throughout the day suffered from low energy.

What you can do:

Listen to your body, when you’re thirsty, make sure to drink some water or a healthy hydrating electrolyte drink. Some good options are coconut water or  a salt water drink, which is super hydrating and replenishes electrolytes.

9. You Have Low Vitamin B12

If you’re deficient in vitamin B12 you can experience fatigue, restless legs, and other symptoms like forgetfulness. A B12 deficiency may be the result of your stomach having poor absorption of the vitamin. For example, if you have an intolerance to gluten or any other digestive issues, like Crohn’s disease or leaky gut, autoimmune conditions, or even a parasite, these can affect your body’s absorption of vitamin B12. Medications such as those for acid reflux and also alcohol decrease your body’s absorption of B12. Also, if you’re vegan or vegetarian, you are likely to be deficient in this vitamin because B12 is found in animal products. Vitamin B12 deficiency is more common than most think, particularly for older adults, as it is estimated that nearly 40% are deficient in vitamin B12.

What you can do:

Get your blood checked to see if you’re low in vitamin B12. If you’re low in this vitamin, simply taking a vitamin B12 supplement should help eliminate feeling tired all the time.

Are you feeling tired all the time? Do you think one of these may be the underlying cause?