Do you get out of bed feeling un-refreshed and still sleepy? Do you feel like nodding off during the day when you should ideally be at your productive best? Are you not able to manage your daily tasks and schedules because you seem to accomplish less?
If so you could be having Excessive Daytime Sleepiness a symptom of sleep disorders such as hypersomnia and narcolepsy. The symptoms of Excessive Daytime Sleepiness are:
Feeling the need to take daytime naps more than once on a regular basis (chronically and not just occasionally).- There could be the urge to sleep at inappropriate times such as while driving, during a meal, while speaking to someone and so on.
- Productivity may decline.
- There could be the feeling of being intoxicated.
A useful method of seeing whether you suffer from Excessive Daytime Sleepiness is to take the Epworth Sleepiness Scale test.
This test poses a series of scenarios such as reading, watching TV, sitting in a car as a passenger, chatting with someone, and requires you to score yourself on your likelihood of falling asleep during these activities.
Scoring more than 10 on the test means that you need some evaluation of the problem.
There could be many reasons for Excessive Daytime Sleepiness:
It could be a simple case of not getting enough sleep at night that makes you sleepy during the day. You may simply need more sleep than you thought. It could also be that your sleep is restless and interrupted; that you’re not getting the quality of sleep you require. There could also be a genetic predisposition to daytime sleepiness.
Sleep disorders such as sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, hypersomnia or narcolepsy could be the underlying reason for feeling sleepy at odd times.
Sometimes conditions such as diabetes, or chronic pain could be behind the feeling of sleepiness during the day. Hypothyroidism could also cause one to feel more tired and sleepy during the day.
Also a condition called hypercalcemia (where there is excess calcium in the blood) could be the cause. Anemia could also cause daytime sleepiness at times.
Women who have to work in shifts, who travel frequently across time zones or who have uncertain sleep hours may experience day time sleepiness.
Those who are on some types of medications such as anti allergic medicines (anti histamines), sleeping pills or tranquilizers may also have daytime sleepiness.
Depression, anxiety and unmanaged stress may also feel sleepy during the day. Trauma to the central nervous system or certain tumors could also be responsible.
