The Trumpet Medical Advisor |
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Patricia Naeder, RN, BS.
May, 2011 Edition ew3 |
~ ~ ~ ~ WHY AM I SO TIRED? ~ ~ ~ ~ |
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1-
Depression. Depression
immobilizes you. You may be unaware that you are depressed at first. It
is treatable with medications and talk therapy. It has multiple causes
but two basic causes are:
a.
Brain chemicals that are
out of balance. Called endogenous.
b.
Life situations such as
the constant thwarting of your life dreams and daily goals either by a
key person or persons in your life, or by circumstances. Called
exogenous, meaning the cause comes from outside yourself. The treatment for depression is usually a combination of taking
antidepressant medications such as the Selective Serotonin Reuptake
Inhibitors (SSRI) or other anti-depressants, combined with talk sessions
with a Licensed Psychologist. This is very successful because the causes are addressed and can
be eliminated or handled by using problem solving and learning new skill
sets to deal with the reality of what is happening to you.
2-
Diabetes.
Extra sugar floating in your bloodstream instead of being properly
metabolized by your pancreas and cells for energy can make you tired.
See your Doctor for a simple blood test and exam and history. Walking 30
minutes 5 days a week and eating a low glycemic diet will help. Learn
the Glycemic ORAC scale and use it.
3-
Sleep Apnea. Usually happens to obese people because there is too
much fat around the windpipe, trachea area which obstructs the airway
dozens of times a night You will wake up tired, with no energy and will
have to take naps all day.
Equally as important is that over time brain cells can be
damaged. Memory, concentration and thinking will degrade. Get tested and
treated by your Doctor or at a sleep center. A good start would be to
lose weight and walk 15 minutes a day.
Eat a low sugar low fat diet.
Eat more vegetables.
4-
Insomnia. Not enough sleep or intermittent sleep can ruin your
memory, concentration, mood, and brain function. Make sleep a priority.
Insomnia has many causes.
See your Doctor for the Dx.
I highly recommend spending a night in a Sleep
Study Center. It is like
staying in a lovely Hotel for the night with little sensors on your
scalp.
Insomnia can be from a low a level of a natural chemical called
melatonin, or from other simply corrected chemical imbalances in the
brain or from your brain circuitry. Don’t guess. Go to the Sleep Study
Center that every Hospital has.
Your Doctor may do a simple bio-rhythm test to see how your brain
functions in its cycles. Insomnia must be corrected with whatever
treatment or meds that your doctor prescribes. Long term insomnia does
damage.
*Do not drink yourself to sleep. Alcohol itself causes insomnia.
5-
Hypothyroidism or low activity thyroid. Your thyroid is the
engine that moves your metabolism. Have it checked with a simple blood
test by your Physician. You may need to take a synthetic hormone or
bio-identical hormone like thyroxin in pill form, or other simple
treatments to correct this condition. There are cells that can attack
the thyroid glands and make your thyroid smaller or less functioning.
Tests for that are easy and effective.
6-
Urinary Tract Infections can make you tired. Urinary tract
infections affect the entire body. Antibiotics are one of the main
treatments. Important to treat early to prevent kidney involvement.
7-
Alcoholism is a cause of insomnia. Initially alcohol is a
relaxant because it decreases oxygen level and you feel light headed and
‘drunk’ but then it backfires and will keep you up at night or cause the
sudden awakenings of insomnia.
People who drink excessively, daily, and often drink to go to
sleep will have serious issues eventually. This is dangerous because
alcohol slowly destroys the brain, liver, pancreas, nerve branches and
families. It is debilitating.
The good news is that, at most stages, except the end stages of
liver failure and pancreas issues, it is treatable, but Alcoholism must
be avoided at all costs.
See my other in-depth article on the little known mechanisms
involved with this insidious killer………Alcoholism. It doesn’t have to be
this way.
8-
Heart Disease. You may not realize that your heart is under
strain or not functioning efficiently. See your physician for a basic
electrocardiogram and exam. There are many good treatments that will
make a big difference.
9-
Fibromyalgia. This can cause chronic fatigue syndrome. Doctors
will look for autoimmune, viral and other microbiological evidence. Your
Physician will do a complete blood test and physical and history and
will improve this condition. There are many meds, natural supplements
and food changes that will help greatly.
10-
Food
Allergies. You may or may not be aware that certain foods make you feel
tired. You may have a mild allergy to them. You may not get hives or
sneezing or congestion but you get tired. See your Physician. Test
certain foods that give you these symptoms and avoid them. This is one
of the most overlooked causes of tiredness because people do not believe
that allergies can make you tired.
It is uncomfortable for some people to accept that they have
certain conditions, so they defy them by actually eating the offending
allergen food. Obviously this is not helpful and may be harmful. Once
the person decides to understand that all body chemistries are
different, they can begin to respect the foods that are compatible or
incompatible with their body.
11-
Anemia.
Blood carries oxygen. If you do not have enough red blood cells you will
not get enough oxygen throughout your body, brain, muscles etc. and you
will be exhausted or sluggish all the time. If it is iron deficiency
anemia your Doctor may prescribe Ferrous Gluconate, but there are many
types of anemia and they are easily treated. B Vitamins may be
prescribed or other treatments once the Dx is made. Have a blood test
and a talk with your Doctor about why your RBCs are low.
12-
Under
eating. This is a big cause of fatigue. If you can fall asleep at the
drop of a hat during the day, one of the major reasons is under-eating.
You must feed your body with the fuel it needs to function.
Billions of cells are waiting for the fuel they need to function.
Filling up on water is not eating. Eat a balanced diet of normal calorie
amount. The results of under-eating are devastating. Organs, especially
the kidneys, will fail.
Hormones will be nonexistent causing infertility. Hair will thin.
Memory will be poor and intermittent. Skin will wrinkle. Aging will
triple because you’re not taking in the antioxidants needed to scavenger
up the free radicals that are ravaging your body. Heart and brain will
become smaller. Vision will fail. Teeth will fall out. It is
devastating.
You cannot drive a car without gasoline and you cannot drive a
healthy body without a balanced diet. It does not have to be a lot of
calories but balanced healthy eating is the best fuel for the body.
“Feed
the machine”
All of these causes of being tired are usually ignored by people
who suffer needlessly. Don’t let that happen to you. You deserve
answers. Take care of yourself day by day. Do not be afraid to find out
your diagnosis. 99% of diagnoses are simple and cured right away with a
pill or a lifestyle change.
Ask your Doctor questions. That is what they are paid for. Then
you can make your own decisions. You never need to be tired or forgetful
or struggle or feel hopeless and inefficient again. Take the first step.
Make the appointment with your Physician for an Annual Physical! Your
insurance covers it and you will become healthy and energetic again. We
can help you if you show up.
Be the healthiest you can be!
Step by step.
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Good Health to You! |
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Medical Advisor |
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This
column is for informational purposes only, and represents the opinion,
and reporting of the author only. Any discussions with the Author should
be presented to your own personal Physician for his/her Professional
opinion. It is not meant to substitute for seeing one's own Medical
Doctor, Psychiatrist, or Psychologist for Professional care. This article is copywrited by the Author. |
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