Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome
Tired of always being tired? You’re not alone. We live in a fast-paced world where many of us embrace fatigue as a part of life. But when you are a woman with PCOS, fatigue can take a whole new meaning. For many women living with PCOS, fatigue sets in even before the day can begin. You’re too tired to get out of bed….you’re too tired for your morning jog…you’re too tired to even make a healthy breakfast. And you tiredness only worsens as the day progresses. So what’s going on? Let’s find out the connection between PCOS and fatigue, and can you do something about it?
Hormonal imbalance lies at the very heart of PCOS. It also makes you more vulnerable to physical, mental and environmental stressors like a poor diet, lack of exercise, sleep deprivation and building up stress.
Learn about the underlying causes and get a practical approach for managing PCOS fatigue. If you suffer from PCOS, neglecting your own needs can manifest itself in the form of fatigue. That’s when your afternoon slump is more than just feeling sluggish. The hormonal imbalances going on in your body, coupled with stress, cause rapid changes in blood sugar and insulin levels.
PCOS and fatigue may make you feel:
Studies have found that approximately 50-70% of all women with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) may have some degree of insulin resistance. With insulin dysfunction comes hyperinsulinemia wherein the body pumps out more and more insulin in an effort to normalize blood glucose levels. It’s this hyperinsulinemia and fluctuations in blood sugar that is the primary reason behind periods of profound fatigue in women with PCOS.
What you need is a PCOS plan to beat fatigue! With a couple of minor lifestyle changes, you can boost your energy levels and start to feel more human.
Always running on empty? If you’re perpetually tired and the very sight of your to-do list makes you want to crawl back into bed, you’re probably dealing with one (or more!) of these problems:
Untreated insulin resistance can cause spiking and plummeting blood sugar levels that worsen fatigue. You may feel your fatigue rise and drop in waves, and always feel a bit better right after you eat.
What Can You Do About It?
The key to correcting imbalanced blood sugar levels is to eat a balanced diet. Make sure you’re getting good fats, complex carbohydrates and healthy proteins in every meal. Don’t worry about calculating the exact macronutrient profile if that simply adds to your stress levels. Instead, try this simple 4-step approach:
To keep your blood sugar levels balanced, what you eat is just as important as when you eat. It’s important to eat regularly. Ensure you eat your breakfast within 1.5 hours of waking up. If you’re feeling fatigued, it’s a good idea to eat mini-meals every 4 hours. I simply divide my lunch and dinner each into two individual boxes – 1 meal turns into 2 portions. And that simplifies my life! I just have to eat a portion of food every 3-4 hours post breakfast.
Along with regularized meals, you can also try cinnamon and inositol to help balance blood sugar levels.
Lying in bed for 8 hours every night doesn’t ensure a good night’s sleep. If you’re spending a lot of those hours tossing and turning in bed or worrying about next day’s to-do list, your fatigue could be caused by lack of sleep.
Your sleep affects your blood sugar levels. Lack of sleep can lead to insulin resistance, increased fatigue as well as weight gain. If you aren’t getting 7-8 hours of shut-eye, or have trouble falling asleep at night and waking up in the morning, you need to prioritize sleep.
What Can You Do About It?
One of life’s great certainties, you’re not the only one who takes a good night’s sleep for granted. Sleep is not a luxury. Your body needs it to repair, recover and regenerate. So it’s crucial that you prioritize sleep over all else for a minimum of 7 to 9 hours a day. Here are some things we recommend:
If your sleep rhythm has been thrown off due to PCOS and fatigue, and you’re looking for ways to ensure a good night’s sleep, try natural sleep remedies.
Nothing will worsen PCOS and fatigue like being stressed out. While we would all like to avoid stress altogether, that’s a rather unrealistic expectation. Physical, emotional and environmental stress can’t simply be eliminated from our modern lifestyle, but they sure can be managed.
What Can You Do About It?
You can also try Ashwagandha as a natural remedy to manage stress.
It’s not surprising that the wrong diet will worsen PCOS and fatigue. After all, your diet is closely linked to the blood sugar regulation. Your diet could be the reason your blood sugar levels fluctuate wildly through the day, making you more tired.
What Can You Do About It?
We have discussed the right PCOS diet in great detail in another article, but we here are a few tips to ensure adequate nutrition:
We advise you add more Omega 3 to your PCOS diet as it can bring relief from a variety of PCOS symptoms including fatigue. We also recommend you try a sugar cleanse for PCOS and fatigue. When you break those sugar cravings and beat that sugar-caused fatigue, you will feel more active, energized and positive.
A simple reason you’re so tired may be that you’re not drinking enough water. Dehydration causes fatigue and the toxin build-up in the body contributes to sluggishness. Drink more water, and your kidneys and liver will start to flush out all toxins from your body.
What Can You Do About It?
Aim for around 3-4 liters of water in a day to stay hydrated. You may need lesser or more water based on your activity levels.
If your chronic fatigue is not caused by any of the above reasons because you’re already eating well and living a very healthy lifestyle, you could be suffering from another underlying medical condition. Some of the conditions commonly seen in women with PCOS women include:
Hormonal imbalances are the reason you feel exhausted, tired and a bit anxious. So go easy on yourself. Once you start making these small changes to your life, you’ll find that your vitality, health, and energy levels return back to normal. But until then, take it easy and be kind to yourself.
Blue light has a dark side – https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side