The solution to this problem begins by using “two Q’s” to assess your sleep, says Raj Dasgupta, Ph. “If you’re getting enough sleep, the next question is, ‘Am I sleeping well?’ »
1. Fatigue
“There are a lot of conditions that can cause fatigue, but they don’t necessarily make people feel like they’re ready to go to sleep,” said Jennifer Martin, professor of medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles, president of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. .
These may include chronic pain conditions, metabolic or thyroid conditions, anemia, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
If you’re feeling unexplained fatigue, “an important first step may be to have a routine check-up with your GP,” says Martin.
2. A sedentary lifestyle
If you’re sedentary, your body gets used to using very little energy — so when you’re trying to do basic daily activities, you may feel more tired than you should, Martin says.
The World Health Organization recommends at least 150 minutes (2 1/2 hours) of moderate to vigorous physical activity per week for adults and at least 150 minutes per week of aerobic and moderately intensive physical activity for pregnant women.
3. Anxiety or depression
Anxiety or depression can be energizing, Dasgupta said. These conditions can also negatively affect how long it takes to fall asleep and whether (and how often) you wake up through the night, he adds.
Sometimes drugs used to treat depression or anxiety can have side effects, such as insomnia or blocking deeper sleep, Dasgupta said.
4. Irregular sleep
Sometimes our schedules are different on weekdays and weekends, Barnes said. For those who work shifts, schedules may also fluctuate.
“A very common practice is to say, ‘Okay, it’s Friday night. I don’t have to work tomorrow morning, so I can stay up a bit,'” Barnes said. Maybe you’re staying up late Saturday night because you don’t have to work on Sunday either, and then go to bed early on the Sunday before the work week.
But at this point, you’ve adjusted your sleep schedule by a few hours in a short period of time. “It’s a lot like jet lag,” Barnes said. “This quick reset doesn’t work very well. »
5. Dehydration
6. Bad sleep environment or routine
Good sleep hygiene involves keeping your bedroom dark, quiet, and cool at night — and only using it for sleep and sex.
Avoid caffeinated beverages within six hours of bedtime; and limit alcohol and heavy or spicy food intake at least two hours before bedtime. Alcohol can prevent deeper sleep, and these foods can cause digestive problems and interfere with restful sleep.
7. Sleep partner problems
“The person (or animal) you sleep with has a huge impact on your sleep,” says Martin.
Maybe your bed is accompanied by sleep disturbance, snoring or tossing and turning. Or, maybe they have a different schedule that disrupts your sleep. Pets can also disrupt your sleep schedule because their sleep patterns are different from humans, she added.
8. Sleep Disorders
At this point, sleep disturbance is another factor that can significantly reduce sleep quality, Barnes said.
People with sleep apnea may wake up 50, 100 or more times during the night, he added.
“Once you wake up, you’re no longer in deep sleep, and you don’t usually go into the deepest sleep right away,” Barnes said. “By waking people out of deep sleep, the time spent in the deepest stages of sleep is often reduced. »
The ideal way to track sleep quality and quantity — especially if you think you may have been diagnosed with a sleep disorder — is to get a polysomnogram at a sleep clinic, Barnes said.
Apps and wearable electronics, such as watches or rings, that measure sleep are less accurate than clinical tests, but still provide enough information for healthy adults, Barnes said. “I want to know that it has been developed and then validated against another device that is more precise. »
CNN’s Lisa Drayer and Sandee LaMotte contributed to this story.