A snoozing epidemic is creeping into American workspaces. According to the CDC, over 30 percent of Americans sleep less than six hours per night, well short of the prescribed eight or more hours. Not only does this have an immediate impact on employee performance, but the long-term repercussions of lack of sleep can literally cut years off your life. Although tiredness during the workday is practically ubiquitous, our behaviors rarely break. Caffeine fuels more than 85 percent of the population each day, yet it just alleviates the symptoms of exhaustion.

At work, do you feel lost, bewildered, or exhausted? There's a possibility that there's more to this problem if this is a common occurrence. Consultation with a doctor may appear to be the logical alternative; yet, you may need to address some unhealthy behaviors to see whether a few minor modifications will make things better, rather than stumbling through life as a blurry-eyed zombie, learn why sleep is important, what may be causing you to feel drowsy, and how to stay aware and awake.

Importance of sleep

It was widely assumed that when we sleep, our bodies just shut down. Sleep effectively replenishes and revitalizes our bodies and brains, as we now know. While you sleep, your brain organizes and analyses your recent experiences; many people believe that dreams are your brain's attempt to describe this processing. Enabling your brain to rest results in better memory, thinking, and overall cognition.

During sleep, your body also replenishes itself by creating a more significant amount of protein molecules. This process improves your ability to fend off illness and even modulates hormones that affect your body weight. The most considerable advantage of sleeping is minimizing the negative consequences of not sleeping, including heart attack, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and many other things. Regular, sufficient sleep is critical for living a long, healthy life.

Sleeping too much

Oversleeping does have its own set of consequences for a person's mental and physical health. Oversleeping will not make you exhausted, but it will undoubtedly cause a slew of other health conditions, such as obesity, migraines, diabetes, back pain, heart disease, and depression. If you have any of these concerns resulting from oversleeping, your mind is likely to go into overdrive, prompting you to stress about a variety of things aside from exhaustion.

Causes of fatigue

While exhaustion is one of the most likely reasons for being drowsy at work, most of us also struggle with sleep deprivation. Sleep is undeniably vital, but what if you sleep pretty well but feel sluggish during the day? You're not on your own! Regardless of how much sleep you get, everybody has a natural drop in energy around 2 p.m. Some tiredness is inevitable, but here are a few reasons that could be triggering that awful midday slump:

Anemia

Because red blood cells transport oxygenated blood, the body must have the proper quantity of iron for these cells to function effectively. Anemia can affect both men and women, but women are more susceptible to it due to heavy menstruation and pregnancy.

Bad posture

When the joints are misaligned, the entire body needs to work significantly more difficult. Poor posture forces you to expend more energy on minor tasks, which causes you to tire faster.

Being sedentary

Because your body associates prolonged immobility with getting ready to go to bed, sitting at your desk or on your sofa all day will cause you to feel strangely exhausted.

Caffeine

For a while, your body will start to anticipate a caffeine injection, which will travel through the bloodstream and attach to your adenosine receptors, making you unnaturally attentive and stimulated. While coffee has some advantages, it also produces a certain level of dependency.

Dehydration

Dehydration can cause your blood to thicken, which forces your heart to pump because water makes up a large portion of your body fluid. You will become fatigued and thirsty if you do not drink enough water.

Depression

If you are depressed at nighttime, it is evident that you'll never get enough sleep, which again will leave you exhausted and sluggish at work. Seek medical assistance as soon as possible so that depression does not take over your life.

Poor diet

A diet deficient in iron or heavy in fat will diminish your energy. There's a reason why a Quarter Pounder lunch makes you want to take a nap.

Sleep deprivation

Exhaustion from work overload or sleep deprivation can result in acute fatigue, causing you to slow down and think of your bed throughout the day. If you have insomnia or simply have a hyperactive mind, chances are you are not enjoying the essential 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night.

What you can do

You don't have to be sleepy all the time, drifting through life sluggish and oblivious. Adopting these easy behaviors might help you stay awake and alert throughout the day.

Coffee + Power Nap

According to studies, a cup of joe followed by a 20-minute power sleep provides workers with a greater surge of energy than each can deliver separately. Consider rearranging your lunchtime to fit in some coffee and a little nap.

Get More Sleep

Breaking habits like checking your phone or watching Netflix while you get ready for bed will help you fall asleep faster and sleep much better.

Stay Hydrated

Instead of reaching for your nth cup of coffee or some other energy drink, sip a few glasses of water. It makes your blood nourished while also making it much easier for your heart to pump blood.

Lose the Extra Pounds

If you are on the verge of obesity, it is time to reduce some weight. Exercise may be an excellent method to accomplish this, and you'll also be able to incorporate some of your favorite physical activities if your schedule permits.

MOVE!

After a whole night's rest, exercise the next day so that your head feels fatigued when it's time to go to bed. A sedentary lifestyle and bad posture are essential factors to sleepiness, so find methods to get up, stretch, move, and break up the physical monotony of tasks all through the day. Moving your workstation from sitting to standing will have a more significant impact than you anticipate.

Using standing desks to your advantage is a brilliant example of exercising at work. Did you know that simply standing for a few hours throughout the day can help you burn more calories than just sitting? You could avoid all of the health risks described above by just standing for a few hours each day. Standing desks provide a natural boost of energy by improving posture and keeping your body active. Select a suitable sit-stand desk from FlexiSpot and get down to business!

Conclusion

Being fatigued at work and without a drive to do much of anything can be a frustrating circumstance. You may simply alter how your body functions and herald a whole new way of life for yourself by modifying your habits and making a few minor tweaks.