6 reasons why you feel tired after waking up

Do you frequently feel worn out, sleepy, and lethargic even after a good night's sleep? Learn from an expert the potential causes of your morning fatigue.

It's common to feel a little drowsy when you first get up. For many, a cup of coffee or a shower can solve the problem. However, if you frequently have morning lethargy, particularly if you feel exhausted all day long, there might be another issue at play. It can start to negatively affect your capacity to live life to the fullest if you consistently struggle to get out of bed even after a restful night's sleep or if your sleepiness lasts for an extended period of time. There are actions you can do to reduce the amount of time you spend in the morning grogginess zone and there are ways to maximise your energy levels throughout the day.

6 reasons why you feel tired after waking up (Unsplash)

Dr. Michael Breus, Sleep Expert, explains reasons why you might be waking up tired in his recent Instagram post.

1. You are going to bed at the wrong time

Remember you have a specific chronotype (early bird, night owl etc), and if you wake up, at a time that is not consistent with your chronotype, it can make mornings miserable.

2. You stay in bed too long

Many people snooze 4-10 times while trying to get up in the morning. This is a terrible idea and here is why: the average snooze button is about 7-9 minutes long, but this does not give your brain the time it needs to get back into a deeper more refreshing stage of sleep. So, during the last 30-60 min of shuteye you are actually getting broken, fragmented sleep. Set your alarm for the last minute until you need to get up or if you must have a snooze, then limit it to one time.

3. Your bedroom environment is disturbing your sleep

There are many different things that can be impacting your sleep in your bedroom. For one, your environment’s temperature is crucial to your sleep quality, so consider turning the A/C down or trying out a cooling mattress to help set the stage for restful sleep. You can also get a blue light night lamp as blue light will keep Melatonin from being produced, which is critical for good rest.

4. Your bed partner is keeping you from getting good sleep

If you sleep next to a snoring bedpartner you lose an hour of sleep each night. And, if your bedmate is keeping you up not from an abundance of snoring, but rather from tossing and turning too much, consider trying out a memory foam mattress that limits motion so you can rest uninterrupted.

5. You ate or drank something that is reducing your sleep quality

The two biggest issues are alcohol and caffeine. While alcohol may make you feel sleepy, it actually keeps you out of the deep stages of sleep, which makes you feel awful in the morning. Caffeine does that same thing, this stimulant keeps your brain out of the deeper stages of sleep, which also makes sleep unrefreshing. Stop caffeine by 2 pm and stop alcohol 3 hours before bed. Caffeine has a half-life of 6-8 hours so stopping by 2 means that by 10 at least ½ is out of your system. As for alcohol, it takes the average human 1 hour to metabolize 1 alcoholic beverage, so if you have 2-3 glasses with dinner, make sure it is out of your system before bed, by waiting 3 hours.

6. You could have a sleep disorder

While the symptoms may be mild, there are many sleep disorders that can affect sleep quality. A typical one is sleep apnea, but others include narcolepsy, insomnia, and restless legs syndrome.

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