Tired all the time

You do need to speak to you Doctor. Ask for a blood test to check if you have any vitamin deficiencies.

Mine's not so much sleepiness as physical exhaustion. Find it hard to drag myself around sometimes. Is it worth fighting it?

Why not make an appointment with your doctor - ask if you can have a full physical so that you can have your bloodwork done, he can listen to your heart, take your blood pressure etc. Something is going on - even if it’s discovered that you have a low blood count and just need iron tablets. It’s normal to slow down as you get older, but not normal to be constantly so tired. Your body is trying to tell you something - so take notice!

I get sleepy even after breakfast! In the afternoon, I just have to close my eyes and I'm off for an hour or so. I'm also 79 at the end of the year, but don't think the doziness is just a matter of age. Last year, I had to take iron pills and think I might be in need of another blood test.

Get yourself checked out for Hypothyroidism (under-active thyroid). I went for years feeling the same way as you , along with brain fog and joint pain) and I thought it was just part of getting older. The menopause can play havoc with your metabolism too and if you’ve got hypothyroidism it’s even worse. I’m on levothyroxine and, although I do get tired still, it’s not so bad now. Hope this helps.

get GP to do a blood test and check for B12. Mine was so low 2 years ago I had to have injections 3 times a week for quite a few weeks. My symptoms are now returning, so blood test is booked for next week. It feels like exhaustion, not just tired. I have always been a night person, but now i am going to bed at 8.30pm many nights, sleeping most of the night, getting up about 7am but wanting (and sometimes do) to go back to sleep by 10am. I told my GP I feel I need to sleep 24/7

Food for thought! Thanks everyone.
I do go to carbs rather than fat, from habit I suppose.
I will make an appointment for bloods.
I am vegetarian but have been for so long that maybe I am lazy about making sure I get a properly balanced diet

Maybe have your doctor check your B12 levels

I had the blood tests when I first started feeling like this. The doc said they were all very good. So, in my case, it's old age.

I had my bloods checked in 2011 and was found to be very low on B12. I started on injections three times a week but now only need them every 12 weeks. One of the symptoms was feeling cold.

Hope the Dr will do some comprehensive tests and put your mind at rest. It's wretched when you feel tired all the time, especially when GC want a lively granny to play with.

I find that if I eat too many carbs I get tired, so no sandwich lunches. Most of the time I have lots of energy and can keep going on very little sleep. Not every day, possibly twice a week, I take a multi vitamin with my lunch. I don't eat red meat so have to be sure I get iron in vegetables.

Tiredoldwoman are you going to change your name now?

Please don’t leave it. Go to your GP, ask for comprehensive blood tests, including an “iron panel” including ferritin not just haemoglobin. You can feel exhausted if you have too much iron, as well as too little! Check it all out, thyroid, vitamin levels, iron levels. You may “just” be a bit low but good to check all the physical symptoms before assuming that. If a bit low, what may cheer you up?

Two things strike me: I used to have this problem (afternoon sleepiness) but I now have a big breakfast, and then a lighter sugar & carb-free lunch (otherwise I nod off - it's caused by an insulin spike after eating sugars/carbs) so, for example, rather than having a sandwich, I'll have a cheese or ham salad, with a big dollop of mayonnaise (the fat keeps you fuller). No biscuits or crackers or bread with it. Keeps me awake all afternoon! (I'm in my 60s). Secondly, I would also say get your thyroid checked. If GP says that your thyroid is normal, I would ask for the score and then seek a second opinion. The scale that the GPs use is low, and also what's normal for one person may not be normal for you - especially if you're only just in the "normal range". (I was told my thyroid was normal but then I saw a private doctor who prescribed thyroid supplement and that really helped - as well as cutting down on sugar & carbs!)

I got bloods taken 2 weeks ago to check things before surgery . It revealed that I'm anaemic so have been given iron tablets . 10 days later I feel fantastic , blues have gone and life feels sunny ! hurrah ! Hope you have a simple solution too, Grammaretto. x

Also ask them to check iron levels

I was always tired - still working full time and I had no energy to do anything other than work and sleep. Had blood tests, diagnosed as pre-diabetic, have changed my diet and after just a few weeks I have energy again - it's great! Go get some blood tests done

Have your ‘bloods’ done. Under active thyroid, type 2 diabetes, low iron levels, all sorts of reasons.

Hi, have a check up just to make sure, but I feel cold after lunch too, takes about an hour you warm up, then I feel like a nap.I'm in my early 60s and still working, so don't think disappearing for a nap would go down well

Grammareto, do have your thyroid checked. I was feeling exhausted, had to pull myself up stairs. Tests revealed my thyroid was very over active. When I asked the doctor why I felt so tired and weak rather than full of energy, he said it is because the body is working at overdrive and the tiredness is the result, so it could be an over or an under active one in your case.

I am with you Gram and fight fatigue on a daily basis. I have an under active thyroid and they have decreased my tablets, when I want them to increase them ?

I sleep for at least an hour after lunch. I often want to go to sleep at about 8.30 at night and do all I can to keep myself awake, mainly on my IPad.

I take Vit D, walk every day, eat sensibly and am still tired. The doctor said to me the majority of her patients complain of tiredness.

I am a fairly energetic person but I often find myself putting on a jumper when we sit down for a snack lunch. Even if the weather is warm I feel cold shortly after I've eaten. It takes about an hour for my energy levels to get back to normal and then I'm good to go again.

There was a documentary about Prince Charles around the time of his seventieth birthday where he stated he never eats lunch because if he does he immediately feels tired so wouldn't be able to cope with any afternoon commitments.

Nice to know we're in good company.

It must be a seventy something age thing.

I don't take any medication. I do seem to worry a lot so I wonder if anxiety can cause tiredness.

I like your useful doctor's response Katy
Night night. Off to bed now.

I think a lot might be to do with whatever medication you take too.

Very helpful.

Last time I went to the GP and told him I was tired all the time, he said 'me too'.