There’s truly nothing worse than waking up in the morning after a full night of sleep feeling tired. Especially if you’re putting in the effort to go to bed early and exercising good sleep hygiene – waking up tired can feel incredibly frustrating.

More than that, it’s confusing. You’re thinking, “But I got at least a solid 8 hours of sleep!” And while this is the case, it’s not a cause for concern if it happens once in a while, bad dreams and waking up periodically can make us feel more sluggish in the morning. But if you find that this is a persistent issue, it’s time to address it head on.

In this article we get into some of the main reasons that could be contributing to your daytime drowsiness and what you can do about it. Our goal is to give you information so that you can once again wake up bright-eyed and bushy tailed!

10 Potential Reasons You’re Waking Up Tired

1. Adrenal fatigue

Not an official medical diagnosis, however, adrenal fatigue is when the adrenal glands are not keeping up with the body’s needs for hormones such as cortisol. This is a common occurrence with people who are affected by long-term stress or following chronic infections like pneumonia.

2. Chronic fatigue syndrome

This is a condition similar to adrenal fatigue. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is marked by extreme fatigue and tiredness that is not caused by any underlying medical reason. Some signs include: unrefreshing sleep, headaches, lack of concentration, sore throat or muscle and joint pain. Treatment for CFS is based on symptom relief.

3. Thyroid disease

Waking up tired could be a result of an underactive thyroid. It’s not the typical drowsiness one might experience from just a poor night’s sleep. It’s an impairing exhaustion due to a decrease of the thyroid hormone thyroxine. Extreme tiredness, fatigue, depression, memory problems and a slowed heart rate are several common symptoms.

4. Poor sleep hygiene

Our sleep habits and environment have a huge impact on the quality of our sleep. For starters, an uncomfortable mattress or pillow could be the culprit. Then think about what you do in the evening. Are you getting too much screen time right before bed? Are you exposed to light and/or noise in your bedroom? Or are you consuming too much sugar or alcohol on a regular basis before bed? These are all plausible reasons for waking up tired.

5. Inconsistent sleep

If you’re on a sleep schedule that’s unbalanced and not working for you, it could be cause for feeling lethargic in the mornings. Aim for a consistent 8 hours and going to bed/waking up at the same time. Additionally, hitting snooze several times is not conducive because your brain is going back and forth between waking up and fragmented sleep – which makes us more exhausted.

6. Anemia

If you have iron deficiency in your blood, you’re going to feel sleepy and drowsy regardless of the amount of sleep you get. Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of iron deficiency anemia; it can make you feel exhausted and overtired. This is because your body is working harder to transport oxygen around. As a result, your red blood cell production is struggling and your energy is deprived.

7. Dehydration

We already know that dehydration affects us during the day, so it goes as no shock that it can contribute to waking up tired. Mild dehydration can bring on symptoms of fatigue, sleepiness and mood disruptions.

8. Anxiety and Depression

Anxiety makes it hard to fall asleep and depression results in reduced energy. As such, both these mental health conditions bring on feelings of persistent tiredness and exhaustion, whether you’ve gotten a full night’s sleep or not.

9. Sleep disorders

An underlying sleep disorder could be why you’re waking up feeling tired. Sleep disorders frequently impact sleep quality. This is confirmed with a diagnosis from a medical professional. Here are a few common sleep disorders:

  • Insomnia: Insomnia is a well-known, common sleep disorder that signals the inability to get sleep at night. Sometimes it may be more acute and short-term, while other times it is long-term and lasts for months. It may be the cause of medications, underlying health conditions or even caffeine.
  • Sleep Apnea: This condition causes your breathing to temporarily stop while you’re sleeping, resulting in waking up several times throughout the night. You won’t remember these awakenings but may notice symptoms such as headaches in the morning or irritability and depression during the day.
  • Restless Leg Syndrome: This causes uncomfortable, tingling sensations in the legs with the urge to constantly move them. Unfortunately, this is more common at night.
  • Narcolepsy: This involves excessive, uncontrollable daytime sleepiness and sudden “attacks” of sleep. It’s challenging to stay awake for long periods.

10. An unhealthy lifestyle

We can go back and forth through various health conditions and symptoms, but consistently waking up tired could be the result of an overall unhealthy lifestyle. When we’re not taking care of our bodies, we just feel sluggish. An unhealthy lifestyle is typically marked by poor diet choices, overconsumption of drugs and alcohol and lack of exercise.

Morning Supercharge Tips: How to Refresh After Waking Up Tired

PSA: It doesn’t have to involve chugging a cup of coffee.

Wake up right at your alarm

The hardest part is getting up and out of bed! But the longer you hit snooze, the more you’re going to feel tired. Instead of setting multiple alarms, set one alarm close enough to the time you want to wake up. Then count to five out loud and get out of bed. Don’t delay!

Drink a glass of water

Remember dehydration being a cause of waking up tired? Combat this from the get-go by waking up and drinking a tall glass of room temperature water. It will wake up your senses.

Have a morning stretch

There’s nothing like movement to wake the body up naturally. You don’t have to jump right into pounding the pavement for a morning run, but take 25 minutes or so to engage in some easy-going stretches. It’s been proven to boost brain function and energy.

Take a cold shower

A cold shower or splashing your face with water is a good hack to implement into your morning routine. You’ll feel a burst of energy and be ready to start your day.

Eat a healthy breakfast

Okay, so we’re not here to 100% say that breakfast is the most important meal, but skipping breakfast is too common. There is research that backs breakfast as a critical way to boost productivity and fuel mental focus.

Go for a walk

The combination of going outside and getting in some light cardo will supercharge your energy and mood. If you have the time to fit in a short walk it will do wonders for your energy throughout the day.

No More Waking Up Tired

It’s time to take back control of your sleep quality and energy levels. This certainly isn’t an exhaustive list of causes and good practices. Implement needed lifestyle changes along with seeing a doctor – you may need additional medical support and treatment for underlying medical conditions.

Here’s to putting an end to waking up tired!