Overcome Obesity-Related Fatigue

When you are feeling fatigued, regular activities become a challenge. Simple tasks like walking, driving, cleaning and running errands become exhausting. It becomes more difficult to pay attention to conversations, your work or anything else you put your mind to. Your limbs may grow sore, your eyes likely grow heavy and all you want to do is find a comfortable place to sit, and maybe take a nap.

The feelings of weariness and extreme tiredness might be brought on by a long and stressful day at work, a missed night of sleep or even a fun-filled day with close friends. This is something that everyone experiences time to time, but for some people fatigue is a constant nuisance. Among those who struggle with obesity, chronic fatigue is especially common.

Weight loss surgery may reduce feelings of fatigue, helping you feel more energized and able to adapt to a healthier way of life. As you lose weight, there are healthy habits you can adopt to increase feelings of vitality and strength even more.

Here are several ways you can naturally increase energy levels as you lose weight:

• Drink plenty of water in between meals
• Exercise every day
• Manage sleeping habits more efficiently
• Reduce caffeine consumption
• Try to manage sources of stress more efficiently

Obesity and Chronic Fatigue

Being overweight increases your risk of experiencing chronic fatigue, as well as excessive daytime sleepiness or EDS, a similar condition that makes it physically difficult to stay awake, despite a full night of rest the night before.

There are several factors that contribute to the link between obesity and chronic fatigue:

• Obesity increases your risk of sleep apnea, which interrupts breathing and disrupts sleep.
• Insulin resistance, which can lead to diabetes if left untreated, is common with obesity and can prompt fatigue.
• Obesity increases your risk of depression, which increases your risk for fatigue and EDS.
• Excess weight may influence hormone production, which can decrease energy levels.
• Obesity increases your risk of joint pain and arthritis, which can interfere with sleep.

In 2006, researches from Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine found that metabolic and psychological factors are chiefly to blame for the association between obesity and chronic fatigue, and that sleep disruptions from weight-related disorders like sleep apnea are a secondary cause of fatigue.

This indicates that even those who have not been found to have sleep apnea or any other obesity-related disease may experience a rise in energy levels following weight loss surgery simply by losing weight.