Tiredness
If you feel tired or often lack energy, you might have fatigue. This means more than just not having enough sleep. Although it can have many causes, it could indicate a gastrointestinal condition.
Our expert gastroenterologists can offer trusted medical advice on the causes of your fatigue. Book an appointment to get a diagnosis, treatment and other tailored recommendations.
What is tiredness?
Tiredness or fatigue is a symptom of several medical conditions, both physical and mental.
Lifestyle choices can cause fatigue, but if your symptoms don’t improve with enough rest and the right nutrition, it might be caused by an underlying condition.
At Digestive Health UK, we can help to diagnose the cause of your tiredness and guide you on the best treatment.
Symptoms
Tiredness and fatigue have more symptoms than being sleepy. You may:
- Feel depressed and uninterested in doing activities you usually enjoy
- Have a low energy level
- Feel unmotivated
- Have trouble focusing on tasks
- Be nervous
- Be irritable
- Be anxious
- Have muscle pain
- Have muscle weakness
If you have fatigue, you may also have symptoms of the underlying conditions that can cause tiredness. For example, you might experience bloating, sickness, vertigo, constipation and heart palpitations.
When to see a doctor
You should see a doctor about tiredness if you’ve tried to change your lifestyle habits combat tiredness without success, and have been fatigued for over two weeks. You can read more about treating fatigue with lifestyle changes below.
You should also make an appointment with your doctor if you are constantly tired and have any of the following symptoms:
- Your body temperature is higher than normal
- You have encountered unexplained weight loss
- You struggle to sleep or can’t stay asleep
- You feel depressed
- You are especially sensitive to cold temperatures
- You can’t think of any reason you might have fatigue
Causes
There are several underlying conditions that may cause fatigue. Once we’ve diagnosed what’s causing your tiredness, we can discuss how best to treat it.
Eating different foods can cause you to temporarily feel fatigued, for example eating rich or salty foods or eating larger meals than usual.
If your fatigue lasts longer and is impacting your day to day life, it might point to conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) or gastroparesis.
IBS is a relatively common digestive condition that can affect people in different ways. Some people find their symptoms are infrequent and can be managed themselves. However, some people find their symptoms are severe and need help from a healthcare professional.
SIBO occurs when there are more bacteria growing in the small intestine than there should be. It can happen as a complication after gastrointestinal surgery but some conditions can also increase your risk of it. Your treatment will depend how severe it is.
Fatigue can be caused by other conditions including COVID, pregnancy (tiredness is most common during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy), allergies, anaemia (when your blood can’t carry enough oxygen to tissues around your body), a bacterial or viral infection, low vitamin levels, and food intolerance.
Treatment
We will recommend treatment plans for tiredness based on your lifestyle, any underlying conditions you may have, and medications that may be contributing to your tiredness.
In order to diagnose underlying conditions, we may suggest that you have a physical exam or blood and urine tests.
We will usually suggest lifestyle changes to help you reduce your fatigue symptoms, such as getting more sleep, eating more fruits, vegetables and whole grains, and drinking more water. Some people find vitamin and mineral supplements, including vitamins A-E, iron, calcium, magnesium and zinc, to help their symptoms.
If stress is contributing to your symptoms, yoga, meditation and muscle relaxation can help reduce them. If you don’t exercise very much, getting regular exercise can help; however, if you exercise lots or have a physically demanding job, we might suggest getting more rest.
[answerpacktv video=”how-do-you-manage-early-morning-nausea” header-only=”yes” single-view-mode=”yes” view-playlist-label=”View more videos” header-link=”/videos/answerpack/symptoms” landing-page-header-text=”View our video library of common questions you may have on gastrointestinal symptoms and conditions” landing-page-header-title=”Information Videos”]
Book an appointment
If you are concerned that you are constantly tired, speak to one of our experienced healthcare professionals.
Call us today or book an appointment online.