Why is my girlfriend always tired?

[Anonymous]

she gets enough sleep (7 - 8 hours) every night like myself, but during the day she just looks like she only got about an hour or two of sleep. i can only tell this because she will get dark circles under her eyes, is constantly yawning, talking like she hasn't slept, and just looks like an insomniac.

earlier this morning at about 8:00am she woke up, was fine and had energy. but around lunch she started looking overtired. i was standing by the island in the kitchen just on my phone and she came around the corner, yawned, fell into me as if i was a standing bed, put her arms around me, then said "i've never been more tired than ever" in a jokingly way with a slight grin after i asked if she was fine.
no she's not depressed, emotional, or anything like that. she's just very tired during the day. her sleeping patterns are fine she said, but even after 7 - 8 hours of sleep, she still feels overtired. she also said she's fine in the morning, but by lunch or beginning of the afternoon that's when she starts feeling really tired. i doubt this is something that we would need to take to the doctor because it's not overly serious or urgent where immediate medical attention would be needed. me and her are just curious about this since usually if you get a good amount of undisturbed sleep, you shouldn't be feeling exhausted or tired all day long or at least by lunch.

[Anonymous]

A couple of things...
1. Mattress might not be comfortable or too old leading her to restless nights even though it may appear she's had 7-8 hours of sleep.
2. Low iron, a common thing in women, can lead you to complete energy drain. I know, I had it due to a health condition, and I would sleep 15 hours some days, and still wake up and feel like I had no energy and needed 5 more naps. Consult a doctor, or if she can't do that, try to get her to take a multi-vitamin with iron, or up her spinach intake.
3. Issues with blood sugar/her BP. Pre-diabetes, diabetes, issues with her blood pressure can all cause a person to feel tired when they've had a lot of sleep. Check her diet... if she's eating a lot of carbs/sugar and then immediately is getting sleepy afterwards, cutting back or cutting it out and upping her veg/protein, can help. If it's blood pressure, cut the salt, up the water, and in both cases, get in more day to day exercise.
4. She may be having issues in her sleep that both she and you are unaware of. She would need to see a sleep doctor for that one.

[Asker]

well our bed is only about 3 months old since we got a new one because our other one was really old and it just wasn't comfortable for either of us.

she may have low iron, but I'm not too sure. she tends to eat very healthy as well

she barely eats anything high in trans fat, carbs, calories, and unhealthy things because she's never liked those foods to begin with. if she does eat something a bit high in sugar the odd time, then she's more "alert" and awake rather than tired or sleepy

[Vflores1994]

She could be anemic. Which is something I was diagnosed with and I had the same exact symptoms as you listed. Even slept up to 10 hours at times. And that's because I also ate really healthy and worked out.

It's also a sign of diabetes or at risk of diabetes. It doesn't matter if she's healthy or thin or whatever. Diabetes is known to be genetic. Her great great great (whatever relevative) could've had it and passed it on.

Also, I know you said she isn't depressed. But depression can take forms into lots of emotions. She doesn't generally have to be sad. Not saying she is, just wanted to inform you about the whole "just because you're depressed, doesn't mean you just show symptoms of being down".

But I'd provably recommend she go for blood work, as an RN, Anemia is one of the most common diagnosis in young women. (Healthy or not).

[Vflores1994]

Also, I noticed you said you don't want to go to the doctor because it doesn't seem serious. But that's how most things start off. Her "tiredness" could be a symptom of something bigger. And if you wait too long, it might get worse.

[Asker]

yah she eats extremely healthy too and works out lots as well because that's just how she is as a person. she has been tested for diabetes before a few times throughout her life and she had blood tests done for them with came back negative every time.

i've asked her many times if she feels depressed but is just not showing it and she said "no, not at all. i haven't been depressed in months" , "i told you no many times (my name)" , and similar things to it

can anemia just "develop" my itself? or would there have to be things going on that lead up to it?

[Asker]

sorry...**which came back negative

[Vflores1994]

It can develop out of nowhere. The only other thing that I can think of is that she burns more calories than she consumes? It's pretty common.

[Asker]

wait, anemia is when you have a low amount of red blood cells, right? and yah, she tends to be a workout fanatic because she just likes staying fit and is very athletic

also, how do they treat anemia? with a pill? vitamin? or something different?

[Vflores1994]

Low amount of red blood cells. It depends on what is causing the anemia. Anemia is just a symptom of a problem. Most common though is iron deficiency. A remedy would just be to take iron supplements. Not that expensive. I buy mine at walmart for like $6 a bottle of 70 capsules

[Asker]

oohhh i see. would it be a bad idea for her to buy a container of multivitamins without going to the doctor and to see if that helps first? it's not like taking a multivitamin is going to harm her because they're good for anybody

[Vflores1994]

I would recommend using iron supplements for at least 3 weeks. Keep in mind that they take a while for your body to respond to them, and she won't magically feel better after one pill. But by week 2, maybe 3, if she feels better by then, then anemia was the problem. If not, then it's something else. But iron is something the body naturally needs so she won't experience any problems if she takes them. Even If there's a chance that she doesn't need them.

[Shambala]

I’m not anemic, but I have very low iron levels. My symptoms are pretty much exactly the same as your gf—wake up fine after a good nights sleep, do okay until lunch, then I crash. If her iron store are low, or can cause extreme fatigue, among other things. Does her hair fall out? I ended up going to a hematologist for labs and found that my ferritin level is 16 (normal is 15-150, with optimal being around 100. I had to IV iron infusions and feel **fantastic** now.

[Shambala]

Sorry for the typos. I also wanted to mention that oral iron is very difficult for the body to absorb, and like the other lady said, takes a long tome to see any results. You also can’t take it with calcium, and if she has any underlying digestive issues, she may not be able to absorb it at all.

[Fer-de-lance]

I think whatever you do don't insist she goes to a shrink. Believe in her, which sounds like you already do. I think she needs to have some labs drawn. She could have mono, thyroid issues, chronic fatigue syndrome, Fibromyalgia (if she is having muscle & joint point), Celiac disease (her gut can't process gluten) and low cortisol to name a few. Has anyone in the house checked her blood pressure? A home bp monitor is fairly affordable. Best of luck

[Asker]

thanks, and no she hasn't had her blood pressure taken by anybody in a few months

[Nxtawm]

Can't help much but I just wanna say I relate to your girlfriend so much. Same thing here with me, 7-8 hours of sleep but I wake up with eye bags and red circles under my eyes. I'm okay for the first few hours of morning but I gradually get more tired and by afternoon, my brain is dead because I'm so tired.

[Brandonio]

See a doctor, it could be one of many possible medical conditions. It could be something simple, regardless, early intervention is always best

[HonestGirlAlways]

It's not just about amount of hours, it's also about sleep quality. Maybe her sleep isn't as deep and relaxing as yours, she gets lots of dreams or has apnea or something.

[Asker]

I have asked her about dreams. She told me she has some peaceful dreams, but also some strange and absurd ones too. She said the absurd ones don't last as long but there are frequent ones compared to her having a peaceful dream that lasts long

[HonestGirlAlways]

Not dreaming usually means better sleep than any dreams. Of course stressful dreams are worse but even peaceful ones can mean that her sleep is not deep enough for her to get the rest she needs. But that's just one theory, there might be other stuff wrong. She should probably get her blood tested as this indisposition could mean she's anemic or has hormonal problems.

[Asker]

well technically people dream every night but only remember a selective group of them for whatever neurological and psychological reason

so she should just go to the clinic, ask for a blood test paper, and then go to the hospital and get it done to see why she's so tired during the day?

[HonestGirlAlways]

Yeah that's the smartest thing to do. Low iron is common in women, I had problems with that 2 years ago and no matter how much I slept I always felt absolutely drained of energy.

[Asker]

ok. is low iron a common thing in women because during menstruation, large amounts of iron leave the body through the blood?

[HonestGirlAlways]

If the flow is too heavy then yes. That was my case plus some eating/stress issues because of uni. When I was on my period I'd turn yellowish pale and take naps wherever I could rest my head. A few months later I lost weight and became permanently yellow/weak/nauseous, which was when I found out about the anemia thing. Does she ever get abnormally pale or does she look healthy apart from the tired look?

[Asker]

well, she's naturally pale so i can't answer that honestly. but some days i do notice she looks like a palish white colour... maybe because she's not wearing foundation or whatever she puts on. but other than that, she looks very healthy because she eats really healthy too

[victoriaxoxo]

How old I she? Does she drink coffee or have lots of sugar? What is her diet like overall?

[Asker]

she is 21 like myself. she rarely drinks or eats things high in sugar, fat, sodium, etc because she's just never been a fan of those things. she'll eat things high in fiber, protein, iron (sometimes), and just foods that are healthy.

[Asker]

if she does eat something on the unhealthy side, it's very little and not often

[Anonymous]

I take it you're around the same age?
Besides anemia, she may not be eating properly. Even small children, they will need a lot more sleep if they don't eat as much as they should. Nutritious food, of course.
Exercising regularly will also help.

Easier said than done though.

[Guyofallguys2]

If you get an answer, please, tell me. I'm the exact same way. I have inconsistent sleep cycles but I get enough sleep and drink plenty of water. I find myself lethargic or even falling asleep throughout the day even though I sleep at least 7 hours per night, as many as 12 on a weekend, lol. I haven't tried melatonin supplements yet. That could help if my circadian rhythm is out of beat.

[anmari2001]

maybe it doesn't look like something serious but it could be, better check the doctor
or maybe she is tired because her lack of physical tonisity

[Dinorider]

She needs to see a doctor. Fatigue can be a symptom of a wide range of disorders, like sleep apnea, anaemia, vit D deficiency, right through to autoimmune disease and certain cancers.
Better to be safe than sorry. Get her to the doctor.

[m_voper]

Maybe she spends too much time on her cellphone, that's bad for your health. Or she is depressed? Depressed people are always tired and have no energy or motivation.

[Asker]

Actually she doesn't. She leaves that stuff alone about an hour before going to bed or else she's wide awake.

She's also not depressed like I said in my description because I've asked her multiple times and she's said she doesn't feel depressed at all

[m_voper]

Maybe she's working too much overtime? I mean I don't know maybe she's just lazy lol 😂

[Asker]

but what about days she's not working on? and nah, she's not lazy heheh. if anything, i am lol

[m_voper]

You should take her to a doctor then. She's too young to be feeling that tired overwhelmed all the time. Maybe she needs to take vitamins. Also if she eats a lot of junk food that might be another reason

[Asker]

she barely eats and drinks anything unhealthy because she doesn't like all the bad nutrition in it

[Polarbear97]

Could be a gluten allergy，sleep apnea，anemia or a chemical imbalance. Get her checked out. I am currently having health problems that have similar effects I am always exhausted. Good luck.

[LaurenGrace]

Lol sorry but teaching a load of young children is exhausting my sister is the same.. gett her to take some iron tablets will help her also so pre workout drinks have been working for her too

[Shambala]

She might have an iron deficiency, hypothyroidism, mono, anything really. Maybe she’s depressed? Does she take any medications that cause drowsiness?

[UnicornKitten666]

she could be anemic, or have chronic fatigue syndrome / ME.
go to a doctor. it might not be serious now, but it could be in the future.

[ApplesnPears]

The words 'she is a primary school teacher' really should clear this up for you.

[Anonymous Asker]

She was like that before she was a teacher

[ApplesnPears]

Hmm then:
Low blood pressure?
Depression?
An excuse to not have sex? xD

[Anonymous Asker]

Hahah she's not depressed, probably a excuse not to have etc 😑✊🏼💦

[Anonymous Asker]

Sex s

[Mesonfielde]

I guess she is just generally tired. Kids are taxing.

[Anonymous]

I was just like that then went to the doctor and found out I was anemic

[Asker]

ok, what do they do about anemia? like how do they treat it?

[Opinion Owner]

They will tell you the of anemia you have first of all then give you vitamins (I took vitamins and other pill) and give you a diet. I still feel tired every now and then but now I know that when that happens means I need to take my vitamins and eat better

[Asker]

oohhh i see. so it's nothing majour that would need to be done about it then?

[Anonymous]

Narcolepsy is rare, but maybe she should get tested for it if she falls asleep as often as you say.

[MonaLysa]

I sleep like 12 hours every night. I've been to a sleep specialist and he says it's normal. Some people just need more sleep.

[aphradoit]

its anemia im like this most of the time and i have it

[Missnova_]

Maybe she needs to sleep less.

[Asker]

how? doesn't that seem a bit backwards?

[Missnova_]

It does seem odd, but I've had this happen to me once. I asked around about it and tried sleeping less for a bit. Some people need less sleep like some need more.

[Asker]

so instead of getting 7 - 8 hours of sleep a night, she should maybe get 5 - 7 hours a night?

[Missnova_]

Yeah!

[tattooedhandfet]

It means she's fuckin tired brother.

[Asker]

Uhm... I doubt it. It’s not normal to be that tired that often with that amount of regular sleep...

[tattooedhandfet]

Maybe her body needs more sleep.

[luvstoned4him]

Could be an issue with iron levels