Why can’t I sleep when exhausted?

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Many people have had the unfortunate experience of not being able to sleep despite total exhaustion. If you are too tired, falling asleep or staying asleep can be paradoxically difficult for many reasons. Stress, lack of proper nutrition and lack of care for your body can affect your sleep pattern, especially when you are too tired.
It’s important to understand why you’re so tired to begin with. If you’re having a stressful time at work or in your life, your exhausted brain may seem unable to shut down and let you sleep. Being tired from stress is common, if you are experiencing emotional or mental trauma, you may temporarily lose control of yourself to relax.

Fatigue can also lead to an inability to sleep because you are trying too hard. If you’ve ever had a night where you lay awake thinking, “I have to go to sleep. Why can’t I sleep?” then you could maintain consciousness through your efforts to force yourself to sleep. This can also be related to anxiety about not getting enough sleep, knowing you have to be up in a few hours and need as much sleep as you can handle.

In some situations where you are too tired, it is likely that you have neglected to take proper care of your body. While you may not feel hungry or thirsty, a lack of good, wholesome food or sufficient hydration can be enough to keep you awake. If you’re in a busy or stressful time, try to secure at least one healthy dinner and be sure to drink plenty of water. Stress on the body can lead to stress on the mind, which in turn could keep you from getting sleep when you need it most.

Many people who are too tired try to make up for it during the day by drinking drinks containing caffeine such as coffee. While this can get you through the day, it can actually backfire as it can cause you to waste another night of rest and leave you even more exhausted the next day. If you’re too tired, try to stop drinking caffeine in the early afternoon, to make sure it’s out of your system by bedtime. Drink water or cold low-sugar drinks to wake you up if needed.

Fatigue can also lead you to neglect good exercise habits. You can certainly get tired sitting at a computer all day, but this is not the same as fatigue from physical exertion. If your body doesn’t maintain an adequate pace of physical activity, it may not feel the need to shut down and rest, even though you really would like to. Even if you’re too tired, try going for a thirty-minute walk after work or whenever you have time. Make sure you don’t do highly aerobic activity just before bed, however, as it can be counterproductive.

To help you sleep when you’re too tired, take time for targeted relaxation before bed. Instead of collapsing in front of the television, try reading an old favorite book, doing some light yoga or meditation, or taking a long bath. It helps make your bedroom a sleep-inducing place by keeping it clean, tidy and peaceful. Dairy products like milk are high in tryptophan, which can help make you sleepy. Having a cup of warm milk with a little cinnamon as a nighttime habit can be a great way to get calcium and help you fall asleep.

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