Can being tired make you feel physically ill?

[missVN]

So my 9 month old hasn't ever slept through the night, on a good night he wakes twice, more often he's awake more or for an hour or more each time and up for the day at 6am. I'm feeling so so tired and just generally feel pretty rubbish. Feeling nauseous, headaches, aches, hot flushes or feeling freezing. Can this be from tiredness??
I just can't seem to catch up on any decent quality sleep, even going to bed early, he's awake usually from 12am. Any tips on how to combat the tiredness? I'm back at work on Monday 😦

 

[Left wonderin]

I feel your pain . 11 month old here and I don't think ive slept more than 2 hours unbroken in 11 months . I'm a wreck !! I've gone beyond exhausted !! I'm back to work too and so all ove the place. I feel and look like crap . I have zero energy to do anything about it !!!
But I now it won't last forever and I will sleep again some day .... Please be soon !!! Till then I've stopped clock watching , it is what it is and I just have to get on with it !!!

 

[wifey2013]

Definitely yes. Lacking in sleep can bring your immunity down which can lead to feeling more sickly. It happened to me when I was lacking sleep and that is what the doctor told me! Our bodies need sleep to heal.

 

[jessmke]

Yes that's how I felt for the first year of my DD's life. She was a really bad sleeper too and then suddenly a few days before her first birthday she started sleeping through the night. I got a few weeks of sleep before I had to start waking up to pee a million times a night. I worry it'll be another year and a half before I sleep through the night again.

 

[noon_child]

Yes it can. However it could be made worse by something like iron, folic acid or B12 deficiency. Worth asking for a blood test as any help you can get during this tough time is worth it.

 

[xdxxtx]

Definitely. Any way you can start taking naps when your baby naps? If your baby naps? Hah, I've had my fair share of babies who refused naps... and for that, I suggest long walks outside. It makes babies sleepy, and if it doesn't work for baby, it at least helps with your mood and energy level.

 

[missVN]

Thanks for the replies. Definately going to make an appointment at the doctors and see what they say. I was on iron during my pregnancy and have never had it rechecked so will ask for some bloods to be taken. I do try and nap when I can though I find it often makes me feel worse as I generally only manage an hour. Back to work next week though so no chance of a nap then! Husband does let me sleep in at the weekend if he's home but it's just not quite the same as getting a good stretch of quality sleep. No more than 3 hours at a time at the moment.
This tiredness feels so much worse than the newborn stage and so disheartening that there isn't a quick fix.

 

[lilesMom]

Would u try a multivitamin or as my mom calls it a tonic.
Couldn't hurt I think?
Hugs
It can def make u feel sick
It does to me
When I'm over tired I usually come down with someth

 

[noon_child]

Thanks for the replies. Definately going to make an appointment at the doctors and see what they say. I was on iron during my pregnancy and have never had it rechecked so will ask for some bloods to be taken. I do try and nap when I can though I find it often makes me feel worse as I generally only manage an hour. Back to work next week though so no chance of a nap then! Husband does let me sleep in at the weekend if he's home but it's just not quite the same as getting a good stretch of quality sleep. No more than 3 hours at a time at the moment.
This tiredness feels so much worse than the newborn stage and so disheartening that there isn't a quick fix.

Certain amounts of sleep give you what I think is called sleep lag (feeling sick, more tired, out of it) when you wake up. It depends where you get interrupted in your sleep cycle. I think anything between an hour and just under 3rs will give you lag. I think you still get the long term benefit of having had some sleep but you just feel horrid for a while after. To avoid lag you can aim for around 45mins as this should mean you wake while in light sleep rather than deep sleep, however I know the idea of limiting a nap when you are so tired must sound like madness.

 

[Ganton]

I'm I a very similar position at the moment. My 10 month old still wakes at least once a night, and my 4 year old is often up in the night too now. Back when she was 7 months old, she was taking 6-8 times a night and I was exhausted. I ended up with tonsillitis and then developed a peritonsillar abscess so was admitted to hospital for 2 days on IV antibiotics and steroids. It was actually nice to get some rest and I'm sure that helped me recover.

Since then though, I've been getting lots of mouth ulcers, and I've had nipple thrush that just isn't clearing up. I had blood tests for anaemia, B12 and thyroid function about 6 weeks a go but all came back fine. Since then, I've been feeling nauseous and have lost quite a bit of weight as a result. I feel ok when I wake to feed around 3am, but then feel really sick when I get woken again by my 4 year old (normally around 5-6am) so the sleep lag thing makes sense. I just can't face food for a good few hours after waking.

I went back to the doctors today and she took more blood to check liver function and various other things so I'll get the results on Monday. Her feeling though is that it isn't anything serious and is a result of lack of sleep, a bit of anxiety and general stress of having young children, and maybe a bit hormonal re breastfeeding. I hope she's right and I also hope I can get done decent sleep and feel much better very soon.

 

[rebeccalouise]

I'd say it is, yes. I find I get really bad headaches when I don't get enough sleep - Poppy keeps waking in the night at the moment too!

 

[missVN]

Had an appointment with a doctor today. She wasn't particularly helpful but has booked me in for blood samples to check for anaemia, thyroid etc. I got the impression she thinks it's all down to poor sleep with the baby waking so often but have to see her again in a few weeks for a review and to get the results.
I was feeling a little better this week, may have been distracted by being back at work as been off today and feel dreadful again.