I go to bed at 10, wake up at 7;15. Why is that so hard?!?

[Whysoootired]

I think I go to bed and wake up at quite “normal” times. I get in bed at 10, it maybe takes me half an hour or so to fall asleep. Then I get up at 7:15.

But I am SO TIRED every morning and then really slump around mid afternoon every single day. I WFH and, if I have time, I often take a cat nap on the sofa for 30 mins! (Rarely have time for this though.) I don’t drink caffeine.

I eat well - lots of homemade food with fruit, veg, legumes etc, I take a multivitamin. I’m peri menopausal but take hrt (but, tbf, I’ve been like this most of my life).

Left to my own devices, I’d probably wake up at 9am. I wouldn’t be tired that day at all (this is what I do on the weekends sometimes).

That can’t be healthy, right?! (YABU - that’s normal, YANBU - that’s not right!)

Please help - why am I so tired?!

What HRT are you on? Too much oestrogen can cause over sedation. Even if your levels are well within the ‘normal’ range, the levels might still be too high for you. Might be worth getting them checked and seeking further guidance. Good luck. x

I’m like that all the time, it doesn’t matter what I do or how much sleep I get, I am always awful in the morning. I did a stint at a sleep centre (NHS referral), I basically have a parasomnia which means I don’t sleep “normally” due to abnormal REM patterns. No treatment, it is just what it is. I will never not be tired.

I was struggling similarly and as others have suggested, it turned out that I was extremely vitamin d and iron deficient. Have been supplementing accordingly for six weeks and I feel like a new person!

I sympathise as dread the dark months and have just dug out my SAD lamp. Do you get much daylight (particularly morning daylight) when WFH? It's supposed to be helpful for regulating sleep.

A colleague does a fake "commute". Whatever the weather he heads out of the house and goes for a walk around the block for 20-30 minutes as though going into an office. When he gets back home he starts work. He does the same at the end of the day. In the winter he goes out at lunchtime for some daylight.

Says it also helps him make a mental separation between home time and work time when WFH. I do similar but that's because I've got dogs who need a walk!

Agree with everyone about testing iron/B12/Folic acid/Vit D as when i was feeling this i was all these extremely low.

@magicmole I switched on my new SAD lamp for the first time yesterday! A fake commute. What an amazing idea. I reckon this will help me SO much.

Thank you for sharing!

Depression can make some people very tired so think about what you can do there.

Do you get outside first thing? That’s supposed to be very helpful to tell your body it’s wake up time.

Can you not go to bed at 11 get up at 9? Start work 9.30?
Also as a time served knowledgeable veg who had in-depth nutrition analysis, I was shocked how low my protein levels were and I too thought I "ate enough" protein.

Also Omega 3 helps.

Perimenopause/menopause?

Do you have a partner? Have they said that you snore? Sleep apnoea would account for very poor sleep quality even if you go to bed early, and it can affect slim people as well as those who are obese.

@Whysoootired I would also add that this sounded exactly like me... all my tests came back normal. My husband then randomly mentioned how bad my snoring was and that I made weird noises (never really mentioned it in any serious way). After tests and a long wait, turned out I had Obstructive Sleep Aponea Syndrome. I was stopping breathing 33 times per hour on average!!

I now have a CPAP Machine and feel like a different person.

You probably need more sleep/rest than you're getting.

Instead of bed at 10pm and asleep for 1030pm, once or twice per week try going to bed at 8pm. And the rest of the nights 9pm.

Before having kids I could easily go to sleep 11pm, up at 7am, and feel fine. Since becoming a parent I literally go to bed at 7pm some nights, don't always sleep until 8-9pm, occasionally later, but I find the amount of extra energy I expend running around constantly after a toddler and cleaning and tidying just means I need more downtime and rest and sleep than I used to.

I sleep at those similar times too. When I hit my 30s, I started to get so tired and brain fog appeared by lunchtime. I literally didn't know what I was doing. I went to a holistic shop and tried all kinds of vitamins and tonics. The only thing that actually worked was changing my drinks to decaff!!! Within days I felt back to my normal self!!! Tetleys decaff is the best tea, and morrisons do a lovely decaff ground coffee. I've tried them all and those 2 actually taste like my old caffeinated drinks. Pepsi do a caffeine free version too. Please try it, and update us on here!

Are you sure you're not getting too much sleep? Nine hours sleep seems an awful lot for an adult, and I know I feel much worse and more tired if I sleep for too long.

I did find out something interesting recently; I was eating a bowl of porridge after the school run (not diabetic BTW!). I was so sleepy after I could have slept and wondered what was wrong with me. It has tryptophan in it apparently which in some people can cause excessive sleepiness after eating! Once I stopped eating it I felt so much better. I realise this isn't necessarily related to your situation but it is a useful thing to know in case you do eat porridge!

What are you eating for breakfast?

The OP literally says in the opening post that she doesn’t drink caffeine.

B12?

OP, I felt exactly like that. It finally got to the point my ds said 'mum, why are you SO tired?' and alarm bells started to ring.

My routine mammogram screening came through the same week, so I went along and they found a lump.

That was two years ago. The NHS got rid of it, I had some admittedly not-pleasant treatment but now I'm back to normal energy levels.

Definitely get yourself checked by a GP. It's probably thyroid or vitamin deficiency but always make sure.

I always feel exhausted if I’m woken up suddenly by my alarm - but if my alarm goes off after the bedroom has been gradually getting lighter as the sun rises, I feel great.

In the summer, I just leave my blinds open, but in the winter I use a Lumie bodyclock lamp from John Lewis to simulate the sunrise.

People need different amounts of sleep. My husband is fine with 6 hours but I need at least 9 hours and also have a little nap like you too.

Ooh, would you be able to tell me which iron tablets you take please? I'm looking for some that are gentle on the stomach

I'd say it's because you are in peri menopause.
I am too and constantly exhausted. All my bloods came back normal.

According to my GP, peri and menopause are exhausting!

Is it the amount if sleep or the times you get it? Left to myself (in holidays etc) I sleep 12-8. If I have to wake up earlier than 8 I feel it’s a struggle, even if I go to bed earlier and get the same sleep. My natural rhythm is to sleep 12-8, any other pattern leaves me tired.

I'm the same. I sleep about 14 hours each day at the weekend to catch up, which probably doesn't help but I can't stay awake. DH doesn't need so much sleep so it's difficult balancing bedtimes. For me I think I just need a lot of sleep and always did even as a child. I'm a bit of an all of nothing person too so tend to work and exercise hard