Have you ever felt so drowsy and sleepy in the morning? Many people have already experienced it in their lifetime since those sleepy and drowsy feeling in the morning could be caused by various disorders and disease. People will tend to feel so sleepy in the morning when they are experiencing some sleeping disorder during the night before.
Most people occassionally experience the sleepiness in the morning due to excess stress and anxiety, and this is truly right based on the medical researh and experiments. So, you might wonder what makes you become so sleepy in the morning? Let’s check through this article and you’ll find various reasons on why you feel sleepy in the morning.
1. Hypersomnia
The most obvious thing why you’re feeling so sleepy in the morning is because you’re suffering from hypersomnia. Hypersomnia is a disease that can make you feel so sleepy and drowsy in the morning and throughout the day. When you’re having this disorder, you’ll be so struggle to maintain your productivity during the day because you always feel tired.
Hypersomnia commonly occurs because there are some problems with the brain, which is the most fundamental organs that will control your sleep function. Meanwhile, hypersomnia also could occur because of the medical treatment such as taking on drugs and alcohol excessively.
You could possibly have the hypersomnia disorder if you’re feeling the following symptoms:
- Restlessness
- Loss of appetite
- Anxiety
- Slow thinking
Well, to prevent yourself from this disease, you need to reduce the consumption of alcohol. Also, just put your phone away from you when you’re about to sleep, because you don’t need to play games or check the social media in the bed from your phone before going to bed, since it will make you stay awake throughout the night.
If you’re already having this disorder, taking some narcolepsy drugs like amphetamine and modafinil could be helpful to reduce the symptoms of this disorder.
2. Restless Leg Syndrome
The other disease that you might have when you feel so sleepy in the morning is restless leg syndrome. Restless leg syndrome is a disorder that occurs when you’re feeling some discomfort in the leg and thus, you will feel the need to move your leg over-frequently.
This disorder is very disturbing, especially in the night when you want to sleep. When you want to sleep at night and you’re having this disorder, you will feel the need to move the leg over and over again, which without a doubt will affect your sleeping habit into the negative way and could interrupt your sleep. The urgent need of moving your leg will keep you awake throughout the night and thus, you’ll be more likely to feel drowsy and sleepy in the morning.
According to some expert, this restless leg syndrome commonly occurs because of the low levels of neurotransmitter called dopamine in your body. So, if you want to protect yourself from this disease, you need to:
- Consuming foods that contain high amounts of iron and Vitamin B12 on a daily routine.
- Stay away from the drugs, alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine.
- Exercising regularly and make sure that you have some physical activities everyday.
If you’re already having this disorder, the first thing that you must do is massaging your leg. But if the symptoms still occur, taking some medications like antidepressant might be useful to cure it.
3. Central Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is one of the sleeping disorder that occur when you stop breathing when you sleep in the night. This is could happen because your brain fails to send signals to the muscle that control breathing. This is why you feel very sleepy in the morning, have a headache, and have a difficulty to concentrate throughout the day because when you’re sleeping at night, your breath is interrupted and the lack of oxygen will make you awake several times in the night.
Since this disorder is occurring because of the brainstream failed to send the signal to the breathing muscle to function properly, the main cause of this central sleep apnea is that you might have some medical conditions that affect your spinal cord and heart like:
- Heart attack
- Stroke
- Parkinson disease
- Inflammation of the brain
- Surgery on the spine.
If you’re already having this disorder, consult with your doctor immediately since then your doctor will give you some oxygen supplementation and regulate the air pressure. Those ways are very effective to cure this central sleep apnea disorder.
4. Mouth breating and Snoring
Do you know that mouth breathing and snoring when you’re sleeping in the night is one of the main cause why you’re feeling so sleepy in the morning? This disorder can make you feel sleepy in the morning because snoring and mouth breathing will make you unable to get the proper oxygen to make you feel relax. This problem is also could be the sign that you’re having other sleep disordera such as central sleep apnea and other problems like obesity.
When you wake up in the morning and you see some drools on the pillow or in the corners of your mouth, that is the symptoms that you’re snoring at night. The other symptoms of this problem are the dry mouth and horrible breath that you feel suddenly after wake up.
If you’re having this disease, here are the several ways to cure your snoring habits:
- Avoid alcohol at all cost. Alcohol is a sedative which then make your nose muscle become more relaxed than before. Also, you need to avoid all types of sedation.
- You need to maintain your weight and eating some healthy foods that contain low-calories since obesity is one of the major problem of this disorder.
5. Insomnia
This is the most common reason on why you’re feeling so sleepy at the night. You’re suffering from the insomnia. Insomnia is a sleeping disorder, which make the people who are suffering from it find it very difficult to fall asleep. Because of the difficulty of fall asleep, they will not have a refreshing morning, which then without a doubt will lead to fatigue throughout the day.
You’re considered to suffer from insomnia if you have these symptoms:
- Difficulty to Falling Asleep
- Awakening During the Night
- Early Waking
- Sleepines in the Morning
Well, it turns out that insomnia can cause by several problems that happens in your daily life. The major factors that make you become very prone to suffer from insomnia are stress, anxiety, depression, age, unhealthy weight, and medical conditions.
To prevent yourself from insomnia, there are several ways that you must do in your daily life such as exercise, quit smoking, healthy diet, and reduce the consumption of alcohol and caffeine, especially in the night when you’re about to sleep. If you’re already suffering from insomnia, go for a therapy might be the best way to solve your problem.
6. Narcolepsy
Narcolepsy is kind of nervous disorder which can make the drowsiness and also sleep attack. While this disease is not deadly at all, you still need to give it an extra attention whenever this disorder happens to you. So, if you have some symptoms like feeling sleepy in the morning, alongside with the loss of the muscle tone, and suffering some hallucination when you’re sleeping, you probably have this disorder.
However, the main cause of narcolepsy is still remains a mystery at the moment. But, some experts found out that people with narcolepsy have low amount of a brain protein called hypocretin, which caused by the autoimmune response.
Narcolepsy has no potent cure. In fact, it will be lost in the entire time of your life if you already have it. Taking some stimulants like armodafinil, and some norepinephrine and serotonin will be beneficial to reduce the symptom of narcolepsy.
7. Morning Depression
The morning depression can be occuring because of your cardian rhythms is disrupted. Cardian rhythms have the responsibility to regulate your body runs in 24 hours per day, which make you feel sleepy at the night, and stay alert during the day. In the people who are suffering from morning depression, their cardian rhythms is not functioning properly and thus, they have some difficulty to fall asleep at night and they also will feel so sleepy in the morning.
If you’re having the following symptoms, you probably suffer from morning depression:
- Find it difficult to wake up and get out from bed.
- Lack of energy during the day
- Find it difficult to think and concentrate during the day
- Changes in appetite
- The feeling of emptiness
- Hypersomnia
If you’re suffering from this disorder, you need to go to the doctor immediately since they will give you some medical therapy. Electroconvulsive therapy is believed to be very effective to cure you from this disorder.
If you want to prevent yourself from this disorder, you need to take the following steps:
- Sleep and wake up in the same time everyday.
- Don’t take a long nap.
- Avoid caffeine and alcohol in the night at all cost.
- Sleep in the silent, dark, and friendly-environment room. Read some books before sleeping will increase your sleepiness.
8. Bruxism
Bruxism is also a disorder that will make you feel so sleepy in the morning. Bruxism is a disorder that occurs when grinding your teeth or clenching the jaw become a habit without you being aware of it. Bruxism can interrupt your sleep since the need to tense the jaw muscle commonly happens and thus, you will always tense the jaw muscle which will affect the necessary relaxation that you need when you’re sleeping.
The main cause of bruxism is from stress and anxiety. According to a study, more than 70 percent of bruxism commonly occurs because of the stress and anxiety. If you left it untreated, it can lead to severe tooth pain and jaw pain. So you need to treat it when you see that you’re having the exact habit that already described above. So, here are several steps that you can do if you’re having a habit of grinding the teeth.
- See the dentist, which then they will be likely to give a prescription of a mouthguard and a protective dental appliance.
- Chewing gum will also be beneficial to treat your habit to grind the teeth.
9. Acid Reflux
Acid reflux is a disorder when the stomach content moves backwards into the esophagus. If you have “morning mouth”, or when you wake up and suddenly feel the bad taste in your mouth, there is possibility that you’re suffering from acid reflux. In fact, recent studies shown that 25 percent of people who report a sleeping disorder have sleep-related acid reflux. Acid reflux usually causes burning sensation in your chest, which commonly known as heartburn.
So, this acid reflux could make you feel sleepy during the night because of this disease could make the partial of your body to stay awake during your sleep. This disorder is mainly caused by obesity, stress, and consuming too much caffeine in your body.
To protect yourself from this disorder, you need to do the following tips:
- Don’t eat any food at least 2 hour before you’re sleeping.
- Sleep studies evidence that you’re better sleeping on the left side of your body, rather that on the right side of your body. But, may expert say that sleep on your back is the best position to protect you from this disorder
10. Nocturia
Nocturia is a disorder when you’re feeling the need to go to bathroom over-frequently in the night to have urination. But, the normal people commonly produce less urine that is more concentrated, which make normal people don’t need to wake up in their sleep to have urination. If you have a symptom that you feel very tired in the morning just because you keep awake in the night to go the bathroom over-frequently, you might have disorders associated with nocturia.
The main cause of nocturia is related to age. The elderly are commonly suffering from this disease. But, people at the young age will also have possibility to suffer from it because of the medical conditions like diabetes, anxiety, prostate infection, kidney infection, edema, and neurological disorders. Also, nocturia could happen because of your lifestyle like taking fluids excessively, or drinking caffeine and alcohol excessively, since they are diuretics which will stimulate the body to produce more urine.
So, you can protect yourself from this disease by taking less fluids before you go to bed, avoid drinking alcohol and caffeine will also be beneficial. You can also protect yourself from this disease by exercising your pelvic muscles and improve the bladder control, which commonly known as Kegel exercise.
11. Malfunction of Circadian Rhythms
As already mentioned above at the morning depression section, this disorder is commonly occurs when you’re having an irregular sleep session, which then will disrupt your sleep cycle. This disruption without a doubt will make you feel very sleepy and unproductive during the next day.
Basically, there are several factors that influence the quality of your sleep, such as the lights in your room, the levels of physical activity, social activities, and the levels of melatonin hormone in the body. The disruption of one or two of those factors will lead you to the cardian rhythms disorder. Also, people who have some problems with their brain will be susceptible to suffer from this disorder. If you have some symptoms like have a difficulty to falling asleep, feeling unrefreshed in the morning, also have a difficulty to stay asleep, you’re probably having this disorder.
There are some steps that you can do to cure yourself from this disorder. Here are some tips that you can do:
- You can take medication if you want. With the prescription, you can purchase the melatonin supplement that will help you to fall asleep at the night.
- You should try to do a quiet activity like reading the book before going to bed. This activity will increase the sleepiness in the night. But, avoid mobile phone or other gadget at all cost.
- Avoid bright light when you’re going to bed. Have a clean bedroom also will be beneficial to improve your ability to sleep.
12. Irregular Sleep-Wake Syndrome
When you’re experiencing some irregular sleep-wake syndrome, you’ll be most likely to have a disrupted sleep. This syndrome could occur when the cardian rhythm doesn’t work properly. The cardian rhythm has a responsibilty to regulate the periods between rest and wakefulness which will stimulate the brain to release the melatonin hormone to make you feel sleepy during the night.
The main cause of this disorder is related to age, which means that the elderly people will be more susceptible to suffer from this disease. The other thing that makes you become prone to this disorder is when you have an uncommon work time, for example if you’re working often in the night shift, and also when you’re traveling a lot to the other country which have different time zones.
However, this syndrome basically doesn’t need the medical treatment, but if you feel discomfort about this syndrome, you need to go to the doctor immediately. This syndrome is also can be cured and you also can prevent yourself from this disease with the following tips:
- Sleep in the quite, dark, and clean bedroom.
- Taking melatonin supplement.
- Controlling the schedule of your activity in a daily routine. Make sure that you sleep and wake up in the same day.
13. Allergies and Shortness of Breath
Allergies and respiratory problems like the shortness of breath would make you become very sleepy in the morning since it will affect your sleep quality during the night. When you’re experiencing the shortness of breath in the night, you’ll find it really difficult to sleep tight due to its discomfort.
This shortness of breath commonly can occur because of the accumulated stress and anxiety that you feel. In addition, the shortness of breath could be the signs of various medical problem like heart disease. But, the main cause of the shortness of breath is because the stress and anxiety feeling. So, everyone of you that have constant stress, or have chronic heart conditions will be very susceptible of having this disease.
Meanwhile, this disease is totally preventable. You can protect yourself from the shortness of breath by changing your lifestyle. You need to quit smoking and controlling your body weight as the obesity will make you at higher risk of having chronic heart condition. Also, you need to ensure that you have physical activity everyday to make your lungs work properly. Remember, when you feel the shortness of breath constantly, you can’t just let it untreated, and go to the doctor immediately since it might be the signs of serious health problems
14. REM Sleep Behavior Disorder
The other reasons on why you feel so sleepy in the morning is because of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder. You’re considered having this disorder if you act out your dream while you’re sleeping. Because you act out your dream, you will move most of the parts of your body, which make you feel tired and sleepy when you wake up in the morning. Interestingly, after you wake up, you can recall and remember everything that happen in your dream. However, this disorder is very rare to happen, since just less than 1 percent of people around the world already experienced it.
So, what can make this disorder happen? When we’re sleeping, there are two stages, both non-REM stage and the other one is REM sleep. REM sleep is widely known for the dreaming activity. It has commonly happened in between 90 minutes and 2 hours every night. During this REM sleep, your brain is still remains active for dreaming activity, while your muscle become temporarily paralyzed. In the case of REM sleep behavior disorder, your muscles aren’t temporarily paralyzed like they should be and still remains active which will enable your body to react with your dream. The people who are having some neurological disorder like Parkinson disease or multiple system athropy will be more likely to suffer from this disorder.
If you’re suspected of having this disease, go for medication would be the perfect way for the treatment for this disorder. Your doctor will be more likely to give you Clonazepam to reduce the symptoms of this disorder. Melatonin supplement and dietary supplement may also reduce the symptom of this disorder.
15. Chronic Pain
The last thing on why you feel so drowsy and sleepy in the morning is because you have chronic pain. This chronic pain including heart conditions, lung conditions, arthritis, continual back pain, inflammatory bowel disease, and many more. So, the chronic pain is very disturbing for you when you’re about to sleep since this chronic pain will make you find it difficult to fall asleep. And even when you have already fallen asleep, the chance of you will be waking up in the middle of the night is very high.
To prevent you from the chronic pain, the one and only way to do is living the healthy lifestyle like consuming healthy food, have enough sleep everyday, exercising regularly, and also reducing the stress and anxiety.
So, now you already know every reason on why you feel so sleepy in the morning. Just remember that almost all of the disorder that already mentioned above is commonly occuring because of the unhealthy lifestyle and excessive stress. Although you’re already suffering from one or more of those disorders, please take a notice that most of the sleeping disorder that can cause the sleepiness in the morning is totally preventable. You can protect yourself and stay away from those disorders if you want to. So, it all depends on you and your lifestyle. Stay healthy.