Afternoon Fatigue

We’ve all felt it.  An hour or so after lunch the over powering desire to have a deep sleep.

But for many of us at work, looking after children or grandchildren or dealing with health issues a nap is often out of the question.  So we thought it might be useful to offer a few suggestions as to how you can avoid the 3 o’clock drop and see off fatigue in the afternoon.

The aim of this blog is to provide a few practical tips which we can all use rather than suggesting, say “three hours in the gym at lunchtime” or “a gallon of espresso coffee”.   Both of which are pretty impractical let’s be honest.

So what do scientists recommend?

a)      Well this is pretty obvious but don’t drink alcohol at lunchtime.  Few do these days, of course, but it does cause fatigue.  Also best not to drink on a weekday evening as this can alter sleep patterns leading to fatigue.

b)      Use your lunch break properly.  Rather than a load of carbs at your desk, if you are working, try and take a proper lunch break at a regular time.  Get away from your desk; eat a proper lunch and maybe do some simple exercise like walking round the block a couple of times.

c)       If you fancy a snack when the slump appears or you think it might then why not have one.  But make sure that it is something healthy like vegetables and hummus rather than a chocolate bar.

d)      Tea or coffee.  Yes they do work as a short term thing (and so do energy drinks).  But they are not to be recommended as the caffeine wears off and you may find yourself back to square one.

e)      Can you take a cat nap?  Well 15 minutes can help if you do have the opportunity and I’m very jealous.

f)       Vitamin D.  Make sure you keep up your Vitamin D levels.  Check out our previous blog on the subject https://patienttalk.org/?p=300.

If you do have a slump as  many of us do, however hard we try to avoid it, then try and carry on and ignore it.  Fatigue has many causes and sometimes just working through it can help.

It is worth noting that fatigue can be a sign of a serious medical condition.  Indeed it can be the first sign of, say, diabetes.  If you are in any way concerned please see a medical practioner.

Finally over to you.  Do you have any tips on how to beat tiredness in the afternoon?  If so we would love to hear from you.  Feel free to use the comments box below to share your suggestions or links with other readers.

Thanks very much in advance.