Health

Do I Suffer from Fatigue?

With physical fatigue, your muscles cannot do things as easily as they used to, for example when climbing stairs or carrying shopping bags. With psychological fatigue, it may be difficult to concentrate for as long as you used to. In severe cases, you might feel depressed and don't get out of bed to do your regular daily activities.

We've all had times when we've felt really tired. It might be due to a long, busy day at home or at work, a late night, a long trip and so on. However this kind of tiredness is usually rectified by a good night's sleep. Fatigue, on the other hand, is a tiredness that does not go away when you've had a chance to rest.

Fatigue may be described as a feeling of extreme tiredness, or exhaustion, which can be a physical and/or a psychological experience. With physical fatigue, your muscles cannot do things as easily as they used to, for example when climbing stairs or carrying shopping bags. With psychological fatigue, it may be difficult to concentrate for as long as you used to. In severe cases, you might feel depressed and don't get out of bed to do your regular daily activities. Fatigue can start and increase very slowly. If you feel extremely tired even after you rest, you should consult your doctor.

Causes:
Fatigue may be due to many causes, including, but not restricted to:
- illness, such as health problems with the heart, lung, and thyroid
- depression,
- joint and muscle pain,
- stress or worry,
- overdoing it,
- poor sleep,
- anaemia,
- nutritional problems
- little or no physical activity.

The causes vary from person to person and the resulting fatigue can last a long or short time. Don't despair! There is much you can do to help decrease the effects of fatigue. Knowing how it affects you will help you manage it better.

Knowing how fatigue affects you and recognising the triggers will help you to manage it in a more effective way. Consider the following tips to help you deal with your fatigue:

* Managing your condition: if you have arthritis or another painful condition, that is causing your fatigue, you need to ascertain the best way to manage it. This may mean working with your doctor to find the best combination of treatments for you.

* Have a blood test: fatigue can be caused by a number of conditions, such as thyroid and anaemia. Confirm that there are no concerns in these areas by taking a blood test.

* Respect pain: coping with pain can drain you of physical and emotional energy, while also disrupting your sleep, resulting in a vicious cycle. Using methods to control the pain will help break this cycle. Try also to find ways to distract yourself from the pain, as research has shown that those who focus on pain tend to experience greater levels of discomfort.

* Improve your sleep: enough sleep is crucial to battling fatigue. To improve your sleep habits, try to avoid coffee and other stimulants late in the day, engage in moderate exercise, listen to soothing music, take a relaxing warm bath, or spend some quiet time by yourself before going to bed.
l Increase your activity level: inactivity can lead to increased feelings of fatigue, so it's important to try doing more activities to raise your energy levels, which will help reduce your fatigue.

* Learn to relax: stress and fatigue often come hand in hand. Managing your stress by exercising and using relaxation techniques.