Tis the season to be jolly!
The holidays are around the corner and many of us are running around buying gifts and celebrating with loved ones. Although it is supposed to be a joyous time of year it can also be a hectic one. Planning can often cause a lot of stress and finding joy in the holidays can sometimes allude us. It can also be a mentally and physically draining time,  leaving you too tired to even celebrate with family and friends. But, why do the holidays always make us feel tired?
There can be many different reasons why you’re tired around the holidays. That is why AFC Urgent Care Danbury is here to help you uncover why fatigue or tiredness can be at your doorstep this season with 3 reasons why the holidays can make you tired.

     1. Not getting enough Vitamin D

Daylight savings turned our clocks back an hour and caused our days to become shorter in the autumn and winter. As we lose sunlight and it becomes too cold to go outside, we often find ourselves stuck indoors.
 Vitamin D is a special vitamin that helps us heat up and use energy for muscle and bone strength. We also use Vitamin D to help our immune system fight off infections. Without natural sunlight aiding our body’s Vitamin D production some of us can develop a deficiency. Some of us don’t have a normal diet that consists of foods that contain Vitamin D. In fact, there’s actually only a few foods that contain Vitamin D like fish or orange juice. The main source is sunlight, and these days, we’ve got a shortage of that.  If you find yourself feeling weak or tired, having your Vitamin D levels checked could help you determine if you need to use supplements to combat this deficiency.

     2. Alcohol and Sugary treats can make you tired

The holidays mean vacation time and celebrating with family and friends. However, these celebrations often involve alcohol and holiday foods and snacks. Both combined can happen in excess and cause someone to feel tired all of the time. Alcohol is a depressant that can make someone feel tired if they’re consuming a lot of it. Some alcoholic cocktails even contain sugar, which may cause someone to have difficulty sleeping if taken before bed. In addition to this, foods that have a lot of carbs and sugary treats before bed can make sleeping much more difficult as blood sugar levels can spike.
TIP: Reduce your intake or substitute sugar and alcohol with more water and vegetables and you’ll find that this may help boost your energy levels.

     3. Winter SADness can lead to tiredness

Some of us get sad when the seasons change and it becomes too cold to go outside. But, some of us can develop an actual disorder like seasonal affective disorder that can make the holidays dark and gloomy for an individual. SAD is the seasonal “blues” that can cause many to feel tired, depressed and moody all throughout the winter. Symptoms usually manifest in the late fall and then worsen into the winter, when weight gain, oversleeping and low energy can impact anyone’s normal day to day activity.
Don’t let the winter holiday get you down and blue. If you have any of the symptoms for Seasonal Affective Disorder that last for days it is best to seek medical help to properly diagnose and treat the disorder.

But, what if I’m still tired after ruling out the other reasons?

Then you need to get lab work done! TSH with reflex FT4, CBC, and CMP are common blood tests that can help determine what could be causing you to be tired.
TSH with reflex FT4 is often used to check your thyroid and its production of the thyroid hormone. Not producing enough or too much could possibly lead to someone developing hypo or hyperthyroidism. Someone who has issues with thyroid production often have symptoms of tiredness.
CBC and CMP are other tests performed to help determine your blood count numbers and substances that are in your blood. Altogether they both can check for any chemical imbalances in your blood and other organs like the kidneys and liver. Your kidneys and liver are vital organs for hormone production and they both act as a filter for blood regulation. If they both don’t perform,  then your other organs won’t perform as well either.

AFC Danbury is here to help diagnose your tiredness

At AFC Urgent Care Danbury we will not only check your blood levels but will help answer any questions and will point you in the right direction based on your lifestyle needs. You can walk right in, with no appointment necessary, to any of our Danbury walk-in clinics. We are located at 2 Main Street, 100 Mill Plain Road, and  76c Newtown Road. All 3 of our locations are open 7 days a week and ready to treat you. We accept most insurances.