Feeling exhausted is so common that it has its own acronym, TATT, which stands for tired all the

time. Dr Rupal Shah, a GP in south London, says tiredness is one of the most common complaints she sees in her surgery. I see loads and loads of patients who complain of feeling exhausted, e en though they!re sleeping well. "ften it!s #een going on for se eral months.$ %t any gi en time, one in fi e people feels unusually tired, and one in &' ha e prolonged fatigue, according to the Royal (ollege of Psychiatrists. )omen tend to feel tired more than men. It!s unusual to find anything physically wrong. *ost of the time, fatigue is lin+ed with mood and the accumulation of lots of little stresses in life,$ says Dr Shah. Dr Shah says she routinely ta+es a #lood test from patients complaining of tiredness to rule out a medical cause, such asanaemia or an underacti e thyroid gland. ,here!s more chance of a medical reason for tiredness if there are other symptoms as well, such as hea y periods, weight loss, a change in #owel ha#its, hair loss, extreme thirst and so on.$ If you want to wor+ out how you #ecame tired in the first place, it can help to thin+ a#out parts of your life, such as wor+ and family, that might #e particularly tiring any e ents that may ha e triggered your tiredness, for instance, a #erea ement or relationship #rea+.up how your lifestyle may #e ma+ing you tired.

Physical causes of tiredness

,here are lots of health complaints that can ma+e you feel tired. /ot 0ust the well.recognised ones li+e anaemia and thyroid pro#lems, #ut also more surprising ailments, such as dia#etes and food intolerance. Read more a#out the medical causes of tiredness. 1eing o erweight or underweight can cause tiredness. ,hat!s #ecause your #ody has to wor+ harder than normal to do e eryday acti ities. If you!re underweight, you ha e less muscle strength, and you may feel tired more 2uic+ly. Pregnancy, especially in the first &3 wee+s, can also sap your energy.

Psychological causes of tiredness

Psychological tiredness is far more common than tiredness that4s caused #y a physical pro#lem. "ne +ey reason is anxiety, which can cause insomnia and in turn lead to persistent fatigue. % sur ey #y the *ental 5ealth 6oundation found that nearly a third of the population are se erely sleep. depri ed, often #ecause of 0o# and money worries. ,he 6oundation!s report, Sleep *atters, suggests a lin+ #etween insomnia and low energy le els.

,he worries and strains of daily life can #e exhausting, e en positi e e ents, such as mo ing house or getting married. %nd emotional shoc+, such as #ad news, #erea ement or the #rea+.up of a relationship, can ma+e you feel drained. *ental health pro#lems such as depression or anxiety can ma+e you feel more tired. ,hey can also pre ent you from getting a proper night4s sleep. If you thin+ your tiredness may #e rooted in low mood, try this short audio.guide to dealing with your sleep pro#lems.

Lifestyle causes of tiredness

,iredness can often #e attri#uted to lifestyle factors, such as drin+ing too much alcohol, or ha ing a #ad diet. If you drin+ alcohol in the e ening, it tends to wa+e you in the middle of the night. %nd if you drin+ a lot regularly, it can ma+e you depressed and affect your sleep. I!m always surprised to find how often patients who complain of tiredness are drin+ing far too much,$ says Dr Shah. If you ha e a distur#ed sleep pattern 7 for instance if you wor+ night shifts, sleep in the day or loo+ after young children 7 it can #e difficult to get a good night!s sleep, and you!ll feel tired during the day. Read more a#out how to change your lifestyle to #oost your energy.

How to tackle tiredness

It may #e common to feel tired all the time #ut it isn!t normal. If you!re worried, see your doctor for ad ice and reassurance. )e can rule out anything serious,$ says Dr Shah. 8ust +nowing there!s nothing wrong can #e reassuring in itself.$