4 Ways to Get Rid of Mom Fatigue

Are you past the newborn stage and still finding yourself dragging throughout the day? Have you felt dismissed if you brought these topics up to another practitioner or are afraid you will only be offered medication to fix the issue?  There are multiple factors that could play a role in the reason you are having fatigue.  Keep reading below to learn about 4 of those factors that you could start addressing today! 

1. Minimize sugar

a. Many moms are living very busy lives.  Often we struggle with prioritizing healthy snacks and meals for ourselves, resulting in fueling our bodies with food that is highly processed or contains a lot of added sugar. Some snacks that you may believe to be “healthy” for you may actually be driving further imbalances or sugar cravings. Added sugars can affect your overall energy levels by 2 main reasons:

i. Sugar creates a spike in blood sugar levels with an eventual crash.  This results in the body further craving to get a similar quick energy burst.  Overtime this can lead to a vicious cycle of growing sugar cravings leading to low energy levels and fatigue

ii. Recent evidence suggests that sugar affects the production of a hormone called Orexin. This hormone is involved in regulating energy metabolism.  Decreased Orexin activity can result in overeating and feelings of tiredness

b. To manage daily blood sugar levels we recommend eating whole foods 30-60 minutes after waking, limit added sugars to <25 grams, and eat a well balanced meal/snack every 4 - 6 hours which includes a clean protein + healthy fat + fiber.

2. Optimize Sleep

a. As a mom do you find yourself staying up too late in order to get last minute work done, binge watching tv or to spend time with your significant other?  Time can be difficult to manage as a mom but sleep is ESSENTIAL!  Many critical body processes occur during our sleeping hours to help us restore, rejuvenate and heal.  It is also the easiest way to recover from our daily stressors.  The amount of sleep per night can fluctuate per individual, however it is generally recommended to get at least 7 hours of sleep to reduce the feelings of fatigue.  To enhance your sleeping environment we suggest:

i. Keeping your bedroom cool (below 70 degrees) and dark

ii. Expose yourself to outdoor light for 30-60 minutes a day to restore your circadian rhythm

iii. Set an electronic curfew to 1.5 hours prior to bedtime

3. Adjust Daily Movement

a. You may not want to let go of your pre-mom work out routine for many reasons. Working out may be a chance to feel like your old self, have alone time or it’s part of your self care routine.  Exercise is good, but consistent intense forms may be too demanding on the body to adequately recover. Especially if your stress levels are high, you don’t have adequate calorie intake or sleep and recovery time.  

b. Consistently intense exercise can lead to chronically elevated cortisol levels which could be doing more harm than good.  If you are a mom that is suffering from daily fatigue you may want to adjust your workout to a gentle form of movement such as walking, stretching or yoga.  Once your fatigue symptoms are better managed you can slowly integrate more intense workouts. 

4. Work with a Women’s Health Expert

a. If you are finding this topic to be overwhelming, there are practitioners that can create an individualized plan to address fatigue.  At Revitalize we are trained pelvic health therapists, but also address functional health topics to resolve your symptoms. 

b. We have unique offerings to analyze your stress response with our Heart Rate Variability Test (HRV) to measure the balance between stress and recovery. Also, we have the opportunity to take a deep look into your hormone levels with our Dutch test offering.  This is a valuable tool to address hormone related symptoms including fatigue and optimize hormone health.

You do not need to live with constant fatigue symptoms.  There are natural ways to address fatigue and we can help you get started with that today!  As mentioned above, hormone imbalance can play a role in constant fatigue, so we have created a FREE download with 10 ways to naturally balance your hormones.  Click HERE to start reading today and get back the energy you deserve!