Why do I wake up tired?

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For most people, dancing out of bed when the alarm goes off doesn’t come naturally. On occasion, morning or daytime sleepiness is a common occurrence for most people. However, if you are suffering from excessive sleepiness after a full night of sleep, it may be time to seek help.

Symptoms of daytime sleepiness include memory loss, trouble concentrating, lower alert levels, and feelings of irritation. Fortunately, you don’t have to live with the feelings of daytime drowsiness forever. Here are some tips to help you reevaluate your sleep and start your journey to waking up feeling well-rested and ready to conquer your day.

1.     Listen to Your Chronotype

Your chronotype is your natural inclination for your body to sleep at certain times. Most people understand this as being an early bird or a night owl. If you are trying to fight your natural biological sleep rhythms, it might be resulting in excessive sleepiness. Understanding your chronotype can help you determine your ideal sleep schedule and better learn your peak function times during the day.

2.     Watch What You Eat and Drink

Eating large meals and snacks that do not digest easily so close to bed can hinder your sleep quality at night. Instead, plan to eat dinner 2-3 hours before you go to bed to allow your body appropriate time to digest your food. As for the late-night snacks, try to limit yourself to low-energy and minimally processed foods that your body can easily digest.

3.     Stop Hitting Snooze

Hitting the snooze button as your alarm goes off early in the morning may seem tempting; however, it will leave you feeling more tired as you try to wake up. Due to the sleep cycles your body experiences each night, as your alarm goes off in the morning, you are nearing the end of your REM cycle. When you hit the snooze button, it throws your body right back into the beginning of the sleep cycle, and snooze doesn’t allow you to complete the cycle back through. As a result, you will wake up feeling more groggy and tired for the rest of the day.

4.     Optimize Your Bedroom Space

Believe it or not, the atmosphere of your bedroom can affect sleep quality. Temperature, light, mattress quality, electronics, and clutter can all affect how you sleep in your bedroom. If you wake up with stiffness or body aches, causing you to be tired for the duration of your day, your mattress could be to blame, and it might be time to invest in a new one.

Still Feel Tired?

If you are practicing good sleep hygiene and still feel exhausted in the morning and during the day, it might be time to seek help and speak with a doctor as you may have an undiagnosed sleep disorder.  At FusionSleep®, we have dedicated our entire medical practice to helping patients get their lives back through healthy sleep. We offer various sleep solutions, along with in-lab and at-home sleep testing options and virtual appointments on our established telemedicine platform. Contact us today on our website or by calling 678.990.3962.

 

Lisa Driscoll