To not cope at all with tiredness

The endo will definitely be part, if not all of the problem.

The monthly pain and battling it means that your body never ever properly recovers.

Get a gynaecology referral and insist on a hysterectomy to solve the problem entirely. Currently a two year wait for hysterectomy on NHS, so get yourself on the list ASAP.

In the short term

• magnesium, b12 and vitamin d supplements, every day without fail
• give up alcohol, it just drains
• nap.at the weekends and just accept that you need more sleep than normal people
• acupuncture or reflexology both help to try and get the body to recover

Good luck, this is the worst point as all the children need you so much. It will get easier but do try and take action now

Thirty minute Power Nap if you can fit in on your days, no more no less. Honestly without my thirty minutes I can't get through the day made a huge difference to my energy levels.

You’ve got too much going on, it works test anyone. I used to drive to the underground car park at the big Tesco (it was darker) and sleep in car.

Could you possibly be menopausal? Mine started at age 40 and I’d not that long popped a kid out. I definitely think you should see your GP or try and take some annual leave and get some rest.

No, I copied this from a functional clinic page! I have seen a functional doctor when I was bed bound for a long time with fatigue and it really helped!

Fellow endo sufferer here. I've always been exhausted too. It feels like you're just recovering from a period when another one starts.

Have your iron levels checked. We lose an awful lot of blood. Some people find the mirena coil helpful. I didn't, tbh, but it might be worth a try.

Diagnosis was a huge relief, all of a sudden so many battles made sense. There are lots of different genetic forms and I have a fairly "mild form" (I've never had a crisis touch wood ) but diagnosis explained so many battles I had in life and why every illness makes me iller that everyone around me.

The hardest bit was being a mum to new babies and not understanding why I found it so hard to carry them (my arms are very weak), now I understand I am at peace but at the time I felt like I had failed my children!

Anyway as a result I feel very strongly that if people feel they are constantly battling more than everyone around them then there might be a real physical cause even if all the standard tests doctors run come back "normal".

What were the results of your thyroid test?
Often a ths level over 4 will leave you really tired. However the nhs don't usually treat unless your ths is over 10. If over 4 or under 0.4 it is worth checking your antibodies to see if you have an auto immune disease.

Just to second everyone else about medical investigation. I also used to sleep 8-10 hours as standard and felt that I must be lazy to still be tired. As an adult, discovered I had a (severely) deviated septum, undiagnosed asthma and allergies. Meant that my sleep was really poor quality (akin to sleep apnea) so I slept a really long duration but always woke up feeling tired. I didn't realise that I woke up a lot during the night as I didn't fully come round, but I remembered lots of different dreams during in the morning, which apparently can be a sign of disturbed sleep as well as messed up sleep stages.

Autoimmunes cause such fatigue and often not diagnosed until later in life. The bad news is that there isn't much to help with fatigue but at least you would know the reason. Often more common in women perhaps due to hormones. You would need to see a specialist and specifically check for autoimmune markers, which would not be in standard blood tests.

Do you eat well enough?As in get enough calories as I imagine you are burning through them each day.

@CassandraWebb B**y hell! you waited a long time to be diagnosed...spec if you were born with myasthenia, sorry you suffered like that.

@JLT24 thank you, that's quite a list! are you a 'functional doctor' interesting..

I think this is actually normal I felt the same with 3 young children / working full time and it's debilitating. There's not much respite but I found some help on a Saturday morning so I could catch up on sleep helpful. In time it does get better, my youngest (and last) now 3 and i miss the baby stage - amazing how your memory edits out the bad bits!

Maybe you're just more sensitive to the effects of being tired than most people. That is definitely a thing. People have different tolerance levels and if you're already predisposed to functioning very poorly on lack of sleep it would make more sense that it's become even more of a problem now. That said, is definitely a good idea to start taking supplements especially b12 and a good b complex..

Noone was judging you - I think it will be lovely for them all and especially when they get older!

@wavingfuriously

There are two markers that the NHS routinely tests: TSH and T4. But to fully understand and treat the root cause of thyroid complaints, we often check other markers in your blood:

• T3 is the active part of the thyroid hormone. This test isn’t offered routinely on the NHS.
• Thyroid antibodies: There are many reasons why the body may start producing thyroid antibodies. Once this process starts, the antibodies attack the thyroid and affect its function which ultimately leads to thyroid autoimmunity. These markers include anti-thyroid peroxidase antibodies and anti-thyroid globulin antibodies.
• Reverse T3 levels: Reverse T3 mimics T3 in the body but does not perform the same function. It is influenced by high cortisol levels, which can arise from adrenal stress, heavy metal exposure, chronic illness and vitamin and mineral deficiencies.
• Free T3 and T4: This is the only portion of the hormone that exerts its effect at cellular level. It is important to consider this marker and it also gives an indication of sub-clinical manifestations of thyroid dysfunction.

Watching thread with interest.

3 under 3 is a killer!

Can you get some help?

I had the same exhaustion from pretty much I got pregnant with my first child. At the age of 50 I was diagnosed with hypermobility and fibromyalgia which explains the exhaustion, but also many other symptoms I've suffered with since childhood.
Maybe have a read about these.

Yep this was and is me.

I always wondered how the people who said just suck up tiredness managed because honestly I can fall asleep on trains, in my lunch break, and when my kids were small I regularly fell asleep in the afternoons.

No deficiencies. I also have endo.

It hasn't changed as I've got older either.

(And eating green vegetables most days too )

I think when we have children it can drain some of our life force forever. I used to get my blood tested and it would be fine, but I can tell when I need iron and vitamins and I'm more tired at those times. I've been taking a vitamin supplement for 2 months and for the first time in my life my skin isn't really pale and the dark circles under my eyes have improved

Why do you think it's rubbish?

Iron, b12, vit D, thyroid and don’t listen to the NHS ranges. Esp iron as you’ve had twins. Worth supplementing vit D and iron (with a decent supplement, ones like spatone will maintain but not increase your level often). Also- make life as easy as possible with three very little ones, don’t expect too much of yourself so prioritise sleep and self care wherever possible.

What does the private thyroid test have that nhs one doesn't please?