Are you feeling fatigued? Are you getting enough sleep but still dragging yourself to make it through the day? If so you may be suffering from fatigue. Fatigue can come in many different forms. In this week’s article we’ll discuss some of the common symptoms of fatigue, their factors, and how fatigue and chiropractic care are connected.

Symptoms of Fatigue

Common symptoms include:

• Difficulty waking up in the morning even after a full night’s sleep
• Having to rely on caffeine to get going in the mornings
• Feeling a mid-afternoon or post lunch sleepiness
• Decreased sex drive
• Difficulty bouncing back after being sick or having an illness
• Increased energy after 6pm – This demonstrates unbalanced adrenal glands

Fatigue can be caused by a lot of different factors, but if you find these symptoms to be chronic in nature, we have to take a look at your spine/nervous system and your diet.

There are many hormonal factors involved in the energy processes of the body. The most important is the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis which controls how our body adapts to the stressors of our environment through the release of stress hormones. When this system has been taxed by long hours, lack of sleep, too much caffeine, and too much stress your body loses it’s ability to adapt to stress therefore leading to fatigue.

Lifestyle Changes

One of the best ways to help your body adapt to these stresses is to ensure the areas of your spine that correspond to the organs involved are subluxation free. Other lifestyle change that are helpful are to decrease caffeine intake, which can be hard to do when you are already exhausted, but it will help to create a long-term fix to the fatigue problem. Also, you want to eliminate sugars and alcohol as these lead to hormonal disruptions that contribute to the release of more stress hormones. Finally it is important to makes sure you are having some fun! Life is not supposed to be all work and no play. Having fun releases feel good hormones and lessens stress in general.

Nutrition & Fatigue

Nutritionally, there are many options to help support you on your journey to better health and more energy. I don’t give cookie cutter recommendations, as each person and each scenario is different, I can sit down with you and learn more about your goals and concerns to design a specific nutrition program that will help support you and your goals.

If you are feeling fatigued, make the chiropractor be your first stop in getting it corrected without the use of drugs and surgery.

Get Involved

How often do you feel tired? Do you believe that you’re experiencing symptoms of chronic fatigue? Leave comments below!