How Common Is Tiredness during Pregnancy

Tiredness during pregnancy is extremely common.

In fact, some women first suspect they are pregnant because of how exhausted they suddenly feel.

If you are pregnant, you are most likely to feel tiredness during early pregnancy and late pregnancy, though many women experience fatigue throughout their entire pregnancy.

What Is The Relationship Between Pregnancy And Tiredness?

You will find that you are feeling tired during pregnancy because of changes in hormonal levels, particularly progesterone, which rises sharply during pregnancy.

Progesterone has a relaxing effect that can translate into fatigue when combined with all of the other factors that may cause tiredness during pregnancy.

Obviously, your body does a huge amount of work during pregnancy. After all, you are supporting the growth of a new human being! In addition, as the pregnancy progresses, you will, of course, gain weight.

Carrying extra weight can also cause fatigue. You may also find that you need to urinate more frequently as the baby grows and presses on your bladder.

If you are getting up often during the night to use the bathroom, you may not be getting a good night’s sleep – another factor that can contribute to feeling tired during pregnancy.

Tiredness in Early Pregnancy

Early in pregnancy, your body is undergoing many changes in order to prepare for the needs of your developing baby. Hormonal shifts are most dramatic in this stage so it is very common to feel exhausted throughout the first trimester – or approximately three months – of pregnancy.

During the second trimester, the growth and “work” shifts from the mother’s body to the baby’s body, so tiredness is less common during the middle months of pregnancy.

However, fatigue will usually return at the end of pregnancy when the baby has grown larger and your body is preparing for labor and delivery.

The Emotions of Pregnancy

Many women experience mood swings during pregnancy and some even develop pregnancy-related clinical depression. Both of these conditions can cause lethargy and fatigue.

It is natural to feel an increase in anxiety, especially if this is your first pregnancy or if the pregnancy was not planned. Dealing with the major change that is about to occur can be exhausting.

While these feelings are not uncommon, if you are tired during pregnancy and also feeling sad or experiencing other emotional symptoms, you may want to talk to your doctor about that possibility that you are suffering from prenatal depression.

Other Physical Symptoms and Fatigue during Pregnancy

Pregnancy causes a number of physical changes that can drain your body and cause fatigue. You may experience nausea and vomiting, which can certainly drain you of energy.

In addition, iron-deficiency anemia is common during pregnancy. Depleted iron levels can result in feelings of tiredness during pregnancy because your body needs iron to carry oxygen through the bloodstream to the organs and tissues of the body.

What to Do About Tiredness during Pregnancy

If you are feeling tired during pregnancy, there are many things you can do to increase your energy level. First, take a nap during the day or get to bed earlier than usual so that you have more time to rest.

Involve family members in household tasks or, if you can, hire someone to help with your daily chores.

If you work outside the home while you are pregnant, try to take as much time off as possible during the pregnancy, take frequent breaks throughout the days that you are at work, and make sure not to overload your schedule.

Also, don’t be afraid to say no to social invitations if you are feeling too tired to participate.

Be sure to eat energizing foods and to eat enough to support the increased energy requirements of pregnancy. Pregnant women usually need an extra 300 calories per day.

These calories should be in the form of highly nutritious foods such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lean protein, not junk food that further deplete your energy!

Drink enough fluids to stay hydrated since dehydration is another cause of tiredness during pregnancy. Also ask your doctor to prescribe a prenatal vitamin/mineral supplement to be sure that you are getting all of the nutrients your body needs to stay healthy and energized throughout your pregnancy.

Moderate exercise can also help you keep your energy level up. A twenty-minute walk or a prenatal yoga class or other exercise program for pregnant woman can be very valuable in keeping tiredness during pregnancy at bay.

Breathing properly to increase the flow of oxygen throughout the body will also help you feel more energized. There are simple breathing exercises that you can learn and practice when you feel your energy decreasing.

If you want to find out more about tiredness in general, the “End Tiredness Program” ebook can provide you with the information you need.

The program provides targeted strategies for understanding the causes of tiredness, overcoming fatigue and living an energetic life.

Everyday, more people realize that chronic tiredness and fatigue has left them missing out on the good things in their lives. If you are one of these people, then you already know the impact this kind of energy deficit can have on work, friends, health, and recreation.

However, there is hope for you. Countless people have used the End Tiredness Program to successfully reenergize themselves and this is why.

First, a little bit about the creators of the End Tiredness Program. The program was developed by Peter Novak and Tina Hagen.

Like many, Peter struggled with chronic and extreme tiredness for years. He also struggled with the harmful affect this kind of fatigue had on his life. He tried many different solutions, but could not seem to find the answer to his problem.

He began researching tiredness and began to develop techniques which relieved his fatigue and made him feel younger.

Eventually Peter met Tina, a counselor concentrating on people who work in high stress environments and suffer from continuous tiredness. Tina was constantly researching the latest scientific studies on the topic and had developed her own techniques.

Once the two teamed up, they began study groups of people also suffering from an energy deficit. They tested the methods in this book until they refined the proven End Tiredness Program.

Peter and Tina developed a program that addresses the many different reasons most people suffer from chronic fatigue.

The program starts by addressing the issues related to sleep, especially those causing you to not get the quality rest you need. Naturally, the chapters related to sleep constitute a large portion of the program because sleep is so fundamental to your level of energy.

The information in these sections not only offers many methods to sleep better, but helps you understand the different components to sleep so that you can better identify your unique sleep issues.

It is entirely possible, after using the program’s techniques, that you may be able to get a higher quality of sleep in less time.

After sleep, the program addresses other issues that may be causing your energy deficit. It is very likely that inadequate sleep is not the only reason you are so fatigued.

Poor nutrition, not finding your balance between exercise and rest, light exposure, stress, dehydration, stimulants, and even light exposure all impact your energy levels.

You may be surprised when you learn all of the factors which zap your energy. However, the End Tiredness Program will teach you the methods to master them all.

While the End Tiredness Program does not address the medical conditions which might cause tiredness, the techniques in the program focus on improving your health which can only help you beat any medical issue.

For example, you will not only learn how to balance fats, proteins, and carbs to increase you energy. You will also learn about the vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and other chemicals in foods that rejuvenate your body and keep it functioning in prime condition.

One of the best features of this e-book is the step by step approach to overcoming extreme tiredness. Each part of the program is explained clearly and is easy to follow.

There are examples provided and real world references to answer any questions you might have about each technique.

Additionally, the e-book provides you with the scientific reasons why these techniques work, but in simpler terms.

The End Tiredness Program is based on the principle of making modifications to your life in order to increase your energy. The creators of this program recognize that every person is unique and that some of the techniques may be more applicable to your life than others.

They encourage you to read the book and use the techniques that will best help you restore your liveliness and youthfulness. This means that you can use the program to create your own, personal energy boosting plan.

Take as little or as much information from the book as you need to get yourself back on track. However, every technique in the book is an excellent way to improve your health and get rid of your energy deficit for good.

If you follow the End Tiredness Program, you will soon find yourself feeling better than you have felt in a very long time.

The feeling of constant tiredness can sneak up on you. In fact, you may be in a state of extreme tiredness before you realize that you have a serious situation. If you do not resolve the problem, it can quickly become a dangerous issue.

You may have always felt that you are a driven person who gets things done. You may have convinced yourself a long time ago that tiredness was a trade off for accomplishments. However, at some point, it will not matter how much you get done because you will be too exhausted to enjoy your accomplishments.

Furthermore, you will no longer have the energy to relax and take pleasure in your recreational time spent with friends and family. This can cause depression and even greater fatigue, making each day seem like more of an uphill battle than the day before.

While tiredness can severely impact your quality of life, it is the causes of extreme tiredness that are most concerning. The most common causes of tiredness are related to sleep. This can include not getting enough sleep, not getting the right kind of sleep, and not getting consistent sleep.

Sleep issues are always the first problem you should suspect if you are tired. However, if you are finding that you are always extremely tired this may also be a sign of a severe medical condition.

Adrenal Burn Out

Adrenaline is your body’s own natural energy boosting chemical. When you feel excited, stressed, in danger, or even joy it triggers your adrenal gland to release adrenaline into your system.

This gives you the surge of energy you will need to function at a higher pace during this time. This surge of energy can take a toll on your body, so your adrenal gland also releases cortisol with the adrenaline.

A molecular model of the hormone Hydrocortisone or Cortisol

Cortisol helps your body repair and renew by increasing sugar levels, blood pressure, growth hormones. Once the adrenaline is no longer needed and your body has recovered, your adrenal gland releases DHEA. This normalizes your body from the affects of the cortisol, enabling your body to function as usual.

As you can imagine, this is a complicated process that can only work if your adrenal gland is functioning properly. Normally, your body only needs adrenaline every now and then. This gives your adrenal gland plenty of time to repair itself from the strain of releasing adrenaline.

Sometimes, people demand too much of their adrenal gland. Many times, these are the people you consider “driven” or “perfectionists”. However, it can be people who are forced to be in stressful or exciting situations continuously.

In many cases, people have often worked past the point of exhaustion and ignored opportunities for relaxation. No matter the reason, these people’s bodies demand more adrenaline more often. This constant strain can lead to many health problems, including a condition called adrenal burn out.

Adrenal burnout is one of the worst extreme tiredness causes because it leaves your body without the ability to make energy. Not only will you not have adrenaline when you need it, but you will not be able to convert your food to energy in order to perform normal body functions.

In addition to a total lack of energy, adrenal burnout can cause depression, body aches, excessive thirst, and heart problems.

Furthermore, the long term need for adrenalin that led to the adrenal burn out causes large quantities of cortisol to be released into your system without DHEA to counteract it. This can cause weight gain, diabetes, high blood pressure, and other health problems that can lead to further fatigue.

Adrenal burnout is a very critical concern and can be what causes tiredness to be very extreme and possibly dangerous.

Malnutrition

Feeling tiredness after eating can be very common when you do not eat the right kind of food. Eating too many carbohydrates, more than 15 total grams, in your meal can make you feel lethargic for several hours.

Not eating enough protein does not give your body the energy boost it needs to feel awake and alert. Sugary foods can spike your energy followed by a quick and severe crash.

Sometimes it may even be your eating habits that make you feel tired after your meal. If you eat very large portions, it can be difficult for your body to digest it all. This naturally slows down the digestive process and you are not able to receive energy from food as quickly as normal.

If you skip meals or eat starved portions, it can cause your body to begin storing energy. In this case, your body will not release the energy you need to feel awake.

People with good diet habits will typically only feel this tiredness on the rare occasion that they eat a low quality meal. People who are very active, overly stressed, or always “on the go” tend to not eat right and have bad eating habits. Furthermore, they are more likely to do this for many months or even years at a time.

Unfortunately, when you consume a poor diet over a long period you starve your body of the nutrients it needs to function and this can cause chronic, extreme tiredness. A poor diet leads to malnutrition which can result in many severe medical conditions that will zap your energy.

A very common malnutrition based condition that causes severe tiredness is anemia. Put simply, anemia is a lack of iron in your blood which causes a reduction in red blood cells.

Red Blood Cells

Red blood cells carry oxygen and the other vital nutrients your body needs to thrive.

When you have a low red blood cell count and not enough oxygen in your blood, your body is not able to distribute energy and nutrients appropriately.

The energy you need to stay alert is simply not available.

Your muscles will become weaker and weaker, increasing the feeling of fatigue.

A major problem with anemia is that your heart compensates for the lack of red blood cells by increasing output. Your heart must work harder and this can lead to heart failure and other organ problems.

Malnutrition leads to other serious problems that are concerning tiredness causes. People with poor diets are more prone to diabetes. When the blood sugar does not remain constant it can dip and give you that “crashed” feeling.

Diabetics often complain of feeling constantly lethargic, especially when they are not eating right. Malnutrition also deprives your body of vital nutrients needed to keep your organs functioning properly.

For example, when you do not get enough vitamins and minerals in your diet it can cause your thyroid function to become sluggish, resulting in a state of hypothyroidism.

Hypothyroidism can cause severe tiredness that is very difficult to overcome without correcting the thyroid function. There are many other medical conditions which cause extreme tiredness and are the result of malnutrition.

The best way to make sure your tiredness is not caused by malnutrition is to begin regularly eating well balanced meals every day.

Next Steps

As stated in the beginning of this article, tiredness can be caused by very simple things like a lack of adequate sleep. It can be caused by your daily lifestyle, such as not relaxing enough or not getting enough time outside.

In these situations, you can typically study your lifestyle and identify the cause of your fatigue. However, if you have addressed these issues and you are still feeling extremely tired then it may be time to examine your health.

The e-book End Tiredness Program can help you understand more about the many things that cause severe fatigue and how to overcome them. It will help you identify issues you may have with sleeping and lifestyle that are tiredness causes.

More importantly, the End Tiredness Program will teach you techniques and give you advice on improving your overall health to overcome extreme tiredness. You will learn relaxation, organization, and anti stress techniques to help prevent adrenal burnout. You will also learn eating and nutrition tips to help prevent malnutrition related fatigue.

This kind of severe tiredness can very easily be a symptom of a deeper, more troubling health problem. These health problems can cause greater complications as they progress and can even be fatal.

Your excessive fatigue may be your body’s way of sending you a warning that you are in peril. If you want to start feeling alert and wakeful, it is time to make sure your body is as healthy as possible.