Sacked because I can’t stop sleeping

[desperateexhausted]

Posting here for traffic and NC because I’m ashamed and furious with myself.

So I haven’t been sacked but if I don’t get a handle on the problem I’m heading that way. I have a job with regular daytime hours (no horrible shift patterns, no very early starts or late finishes) and I can’t manage it.

A week of regular 9-6 work absolutely exhausts me to the point that I have in the past fallen asleep in my clothes the moment I got home, not eaten any dinner and slept through til the next morning several times a week. Some weekends I sleep for almost the entire 48 hours, emerging only to use the toilet or microwave a ready meal. I’ve had countless sick days (probably over 20) in the last year because I’m sometimes so tired that I can’t see straight, I feel nauseous and dizzy when I sit up and the fatigue is so overwhelming I feel like I’m being crushed.

I also sometimes (often) sleep through the morning and simply don’t turn up at work. I have two alarm clocks going off right next to my head and they don’t wake me, particularly if I’ve had a night of insomnia (which I also, somewhat ironically) suffer from. This has been going on since my teenage years (I’m now in my 30s) and affected every single job I’ve had - I’ve had probations extended, been sacked from freelance contracts, and now I’m on very thin ice at work. I’m outwardly a professional and successful person but I can barely hold down a job because I cannot stop sleeping and I’m at my wits end. Chronic fatigue has been mentioned by a previous doctor but wasn’t followed up for reasons beyond my control.

I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to live like this. I’m not exaggerating when I say it’s ruining my life and will ruin it even more if I lose my job (which, frankly, I deserve to). I don’t want special treatment from work, I know how ridiculous it sounds as a grown adult to say ‘sorry I slept through my alarm) 20 odd times a year. I would chop off a limb for an official diagnosis but every blood test I’ve had for the obvious possible reasons comes back completely clear (and I’ve had a lot of blood tests for this over the years).

Has anyone experienced similar and found a solution? It’s getting to the point that I’m terrified every time I go to bed on a weeknight that I won’t wake up when I need to, which in turn keeps me awake worrying, which then disrupts my sleep even further. Any advice would be very, very gratefully received.

I'd recommend doing some research into POTS. It's surprisingly common in women (generally from teens to menopause) and underdiagnosed. It is linked to chronic fatigue, regular fainting or presyncope, and hypermobility. It's a disorder of the autonomic system so won't be picked up on blood tests. Usually it's diagnosed through analysis of symptoms and the heart rate (an increase over 30bpm consistently from lying to standing) with a tilt table or poor man's tilt table test. Something to consider. If it is then there are simple treatments that can make huge improvements to quality of life.

Oh god this is me. I’m constantly tired to the point I’ll sleep like 11 hours at night and then working during the day i need a nap. I have severe anaemia though and mines always been put down as that. Chronic fatigue has been mentioned too. But the sleep apnea hints are worrying me think I need to get checked again myself.

I would push for a sleep study too. You may have sleep apnea.

Have you had your thyroid checked , I used to fall asleep if I sat down but also suffered insomnia

I've named changed.

Do you have any other obvious symptoms other than a desperate need to sleep? Aching muscles for example. I had similar symptoms years ago though not quite so drastic - some days I'd just about manage to get the children to school and come home and sleep until it was time to pick them up and I'd still be exhausted. I was also aching all over as if I'd taken a good beating. I had to give up work in the end because I couldn't work. DP was working away most of the w soeek I had to do all school runs etc.

All blood tests clear, no explanation suggested, no obvious reasons... and then finally DPs work changed, he was home most of the time and realised I was having massive seizures in my sleep on a regular basis.

Finally diagnosed with epilepsy and once they identified the right medication my life changed

I would definitely get checked for sleep apnea. I would ask a trusted relative or friend to stay over this weekend and check on you, if your breathing seems odd or you are snoring I would ask them to film you so you can show the GP.

Low iron wipes me out. Spa tone gets my levels up very quickly so may be worth buying a box and taking two a day with fresh orange for a couple of weeks to see if it makes a difference.

Also vitamin d. The gov recommended dose is very low. There was a poster on mumsnet who knew a lot about vitamin d, I read lots of her posts and did my own research and I have taken vitamin d for a few years now again I felt better for it.

@m0therofdragons

My gp did bloods and all was fine then I called back because I still had symptoms (exhaustion) and a different (female) dr said she wasn’t happy she had all the tests she wanted. More bloods showed I am not anaemic but my blood cells are so small they can’t absorb enough iron - my ferritin levels are 6 and should be at least 12 to 100 ish although women with periods are rarely higher than 75. My periods aren’t especially heavy these days. I’m flagging at the moment so back on iron tablets. When my ferritin levels were at 24 i felt amazing. B12 deficiency also has this kind of impact xx

Agree with this post. Have you seen your blood test results, or just been told by the GP that they're fine...? Did you get ferritin, B12, vitamin D levels?

There are so many things that cause severe symptoms when blood tests don't flag your levels as abnormal, but they are at the low end of "normal range".

That's the case for me with iron deficiency (without actual anaemia right now, but constantly "low-end-of-normal" ferritin) and I've heard loads of people mention on MN about similar with thyroid test results.

@Rewis

I'll echo others. There are a few diagnoses where this might be a symptom. I'd go to see a private doctor if you can afford it. Does your job offer occupational health care? If you can't afford it then go to your GP and demand further investigation.

As for your job. Have you talked about this with your manager? Would you be comfortable telling them?

I’m in a very lucky position with work. We do have occ health which I’ve been sent to before about this and I have a very patient and understanding boss but, completely understandably, they’re running out of patience. I have been open with them about the extent of the symptoms and assured them I’ll go back to the doctor ASAP. I am able to afford going private so I’m going to do that. I feel so stupid for not going private sooner, I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me! I really don’t want to lose my job over this, it’s quite a prestigious career job (hard to believe I know when I describe how much I struggle) and I’d be devastated if I lost it. Plus the fact it’s such a supportive environment and the job itself isn’t stressful or pressurised. I also have quite high living expenses so I need a certain level of job to maintain that - if I could get by financially on a part time job in a nice little coffee shop I actually would do that, and freelance in my spare time, but unfortunately I couldn’t afford to. A slight pay cut to go down to part time hours might actually be manageable, though.

Do you snore?

Yes keep pushing . Also do a full private thyroid check on medicheck or blue horizon . Home test . It picked up my thyroid problem and b12 defeciency that doctor missed. They also do fatigue tests.

See a different doctor . Tell them you are at risk of losing job .
Yes get test for sleep apnea

Don’t give up !

Do you think you may have had Lyme disease?

I haven't had a chance to read the full thread because I'm putting kids to bed -

But I have ME and autoimmune hypothyroidism and these symptoms were one of my big ones before I was diagnosed. I'd get your doctor to start there.

@justasking111

Do you snore?

I believe so, yes. I’ve been told I do by previous partners but never recorded myself. Might do that tonight.

I would ask the GP if you could be referred to a sleep disorders clinic. That may be your best chance of getting to the bottom of the problem.

Try taking a daily anti-histamine for a couple of weeks and see if it makes a difference. Cetirizine once a day at bedtime, it might make a difference, it did to me.

I ask because friends husband became like this, he fell asleep in the middle of dinner at our house, once it was diagnosed sleep apnoea he got the machine and was a new man. They took his driving licence off him in the meantime. You must be referred it can be dangerous.

Have you checked your iron and vitamin D levels?

You can get some answers OP, don't feel silly. And it sounds like your work might hang on if they know tests are underway.

Reading your thread did help me realise that my iron is probably low again as i'm more exhausted more than usual.

@Coolandclamy

Have you checked your iron and vitamin D levels?

Vit D, not actually sure. I have had low iron levels in the past but the GP never seemed too concerned about them, just put me on iron tablets and sent me away. The iron tablets didn’t really make any difference. So I know I am mildly anaemic but as I understand they weren’t low enough to cause such drastic symptoms. I was also told I had a phosphate deficiency by one doctor, then a second doctor at the same practice said that was an error, so that’s also something I’m not sure of. I took phosphate supplements for a while but they did nothing apart from make me feel sick!

If you go privately and you don’t have health insurance the tests will cost a lot of money. The doctor’s appointment which will be around £250 is the least of it.

If you have health insurance you will need a GP’s referral.

I have a couple of autoimmune diseases. When I am poorly I can do nothing but sleep. Even if I sleep for 2 days straight I am still exhausted.
I suggest you document a complete diary of symptoms of a typical month. Send a copy to your gp and keep a copy. Either email or send recorded delivery.

Not quite to the same extent, but I find it extremely difficult to get up every morning and sleep whenever I can. I have no problem falling asleep and could sleep all day and night if it I was able to. Have been like this for as long as I can remember, but much worse in the last few years. I have hyperthyroidism and low iron, but I didn't find that out through the GP, as they won't tell you anything if you are within range in a blood test, even if you are right at the bottom or top, and for hypothyroidism, they won't even tell you until you are double over the range, infuriatingly. I investigated my blood test levels myself and joined a thyroid forum, which has been a huge help in improving my health. Unfortunately I still don't feel right, but have given up expecting any help through the GPs.

@desperateexhausted

I can only imagine how debilitating and frustrating this must be.

I wanted to ask if you have any other accompanying symptoms that perhaps are over shadowed by the obvious issue. Things like headaches, migraines, feeling faint, irregular periods, persistent nausea, muscular aches?

Just to suggest, could you ask for reasonable adjustments through work (via OH) with a Dr's note if they are willing to provide to support whilst investigation ongoing. And start a bit later.
I don't know if depression has been mentioned (as only other thing I could think of other than anaemia, B12, thyroid, apnoea or narcolepsy)

If the iron tablets made no difference, have you had your B12 levels checked (and it must be active B12). Make sure you get to see the results yourself.

I don’t want to say it’s not, but it doesn’t sound like narcolepsy to me, my husband had a relative with it, and you suddenly fall asleep. Like you’d be talking to them and they’d fall asleep as they were mid sentence. Ummedicated the person can’t drive, they’d fall asleep behind the wheel. They can’t work. This doesn’t seem to be what the op has, she’s not randomly falling asleep mid activity, it’s she’s constantly sleeping and can’t wake up.