Fatigue/ Tiredness

Between 4 and 5 is when DH and I sit down and have a cup of tea!

I think we have to pace ourselves more as we get older and it all sounds pretty normal, however, given the issues you have had with cancer it might be a good idea to chat things through with your doctor.
Low Vitamin D levels could be at least part of it as we don't make as much as we need as we get older. Your doctor can arrange a simple blood test to find out and /or you can take a supplement. Vitamin D deficiency can cause many problems so do a search on it. I hope that is all it is and you feel better soon.

My period of exhaustion tends to be around 3-5pm and if I sit will nod off.
I am woken grudgingly at 5.30 by OH getiing ready for work,and getting up at 6.45 to drive to the bus stop in the town as we are in a village and buses do not leave that early.
I do tire a lot more easily than I used to,I was 63 end of December,all recent blood tests have come back ok.

I'm permanently tired. I don't sleep as well as I used too. I work four long days so I can look after grandchildren one day a week. we occasionally take three youngest on an outing on sat or Sunday. We travel a four hundred round trip to visit MIL once every six weeks. There's still everyday housework. I expect this is a familiar week for most of us. I just put it down to getting a little bit older and probably doing more and not coping as well with a faster moving technological world. I'm whacked but worse still I think I look it. I do miss being able to shop for hours and hours.

I am due for a check up next week, so will definitely bring up the subject of tiredness and fatigue, and will also look at Vitamin D, thanks

Oh, I know re shopping! I do food shop mainly online these days, but used to love going browsing shopping. After 'doing' M n S/ Next these days I feel shattered and have to go and have a coffee or sit down. Another shop and that's my limit. I don't think the arthritis pain helps at all. Nothing to moan about really, and morethan2, I admire you as you are working 4 long days and grandchild looking after etc. You don't state your age, but I understand how you feel whacked!

Get your thyroid checked while your there.

opeless , ask for a thyroid function check as well as Vit D levels, although it is highly likely your GP will ask for those. But just in case ....

Oh err oplessgran15 ( love the name) I had to think about that question I'm only 63

Maybe it's the time of the year too.
When the days are short and the nights are long most animals tend to sleep more, many hibernate.
I once had a week off work in February and I spent most of the time asleep, day and night.

I am only 51 and I can't do very much at all now. I have a sleep in the afternoon/early evening or else I couldn't manage, I would make myself more ill than I am. I went to docs and he said my vitamin D levels are low so prescribed a holiday, yeah! I think I will rust though in Morecambe but a break will do me good and there is a bed in the living room apartment so very cosy.

Today I am on a complete rest day, I have some pains (more than normal) so I am on strike work wise, nothing will happen, the world won't implode just because I have put my feet up for a day or two. I have to do it. I have even had to get a taxi to the post office a few blocks away, it's shocking but I am not going to beat myself up about it, it is what it is. I used to shop for hours on end, loved every minute but do it all online now, even just ordered my Mother's Day presents off the doggie for me just now, some lovely books.

Just get checked out and if everything is ok, try not to worry, just start to take it easier. Who have you got to impress with flying around all the time? Who would benefit if you became ill because you do too much at once?
No-one, that's who, so chill, take it easy, look after yourself.

I am 64 and couldn`t do half the things some do ie working 4 long days / grandchildren and a day out at the weekend! . I do have health problems though and think that has a lot to do with my lethargy . When I retired a few years ago I was working part time and was so exhausted by the time I got home I would often sit in the car for 10 mins to gather enough energy to get out .

All you can do is mention it when you go to your check up and hopefully your Doc will check Vit D and thyroid function . I am sure having the cancer scare would make anyone more worried so it may put your mind at rest to have some blood tests . xx

Thank you all for your stories and messages of comfort, and good sense. I will get checked out when I get a docs appt, and will certainly mention fatigue at my next check up at the clinic.Gransnet members always make me feel better, or make me laugh, or make me realise that I am lucky on the whole.

Opelessgran & rubylady and for everyone feeling whacked!

Do go and get a blood test though, please.

I have one day when I feel lively and frisky and can do everything without a problem but I am so hyped I can't sleep and then the next day i am exhausted and can't stay awake! Don't know what causes it or what I can do about it, but have a doctor's appointment lined up to talk about it.

I have felt permanently tired since I was 16, even though I sleep well. You are very fortunate that you wake up feeling refreshed.

Since DH and I have got older, we have tried all sorts of expensive beds and mattresses, but back problems haven't improved either. So, finding the right bed to give you a good night's rest is not easy either.

Can't offer any solutions, more than have already been done, and thanks to synonymous for reminding us about Vitamin D. Thyroid has also been mentioned - you may also have some kind of food intolerance or allergy (dairy or wheat perhaps) that is dragging you down.

You need to watch your energy levels. These days I have to curb my energy spurts, if I overdo it I feel shattered for days. Painful limbs can also be debilitating, also toothache. My dentist made me wait three painful weeks before he removed it and it was exhausting. When I told the doctor at my annual review I was tired his reply was "we're all tired" so what can you do?

I'll be 69 in a few weeks, still very much involved with various clubs, committees and activities. All goo, but after about 3pm, my brain seems to switch to a sort of neutral mode. So if anything remotely complex needs attention, it has to wait till the next morning.

I do find I get tired much more easily now I'm an OAP, and I'm yawning by 9.00 pm, despite being lucky enough to have good health. I guess it must just be age. But then, what about people like the gentleman of 100 who ran the London Marathon last year!

Good, not goo...

I find that keeping active for the first part of the day is essential i believe that is when we have most of our energy. I am nearly 64 and this morning i have done a three mile run, showered and washed my hair, vacuumed & dusted the bedrooms and along the landing cleaned my bathroom and hung out a line of washing. I am now taking a coffee break hence being on the computer. I will find something else to do till lunchtime, probably prep this evening's meal then my plan is to walk to town and the library then when i get home i will then put my feet up and apart from dealing with dinner and the washing up etc i will then become a couch potato for the rest of the day. If i have filled my day with purposeful things and achieved all i want to do then i dont feel guilty about resting, surely that is what retirement is all about. I am lucky that currently i have no health issues and the people that do, rest is probably the best thing as it gives your body time to heal and recoup, dont feel guilty!!!!

Carer that sounds great, apart from the 3 mile run... Like you, I tend to get stuff done in the mornings, and take it easy later in the day. You do start to feel your age, but I expect that's pretty normal. I enjoy playing bridge, rambles in the country (2 days in the week), and meeting up with friends for lunch or coffee. So far, no complaints!

Well I am 78 and this morning I have, with H's help, turned my mattress along with changing the bed ,put the washing machine on, thought about tonight's meal and I am k******d and am sitting with a coffee summoning the energy to think about a sandwich for lunch which we have about 12.30. No guilt at all, I will read for a couple of hours this afternoon.

I have a blood test once a year and make sure that everything gets checked - liver function, kidney function, osteoporosis, cholesterol, B12, thyroid, Vit D etc. i always come back to discuss it with the GP not just accept the outcomes. Then if we find something is out I make sure I get a prescription. Two years running I have been short of Vit D and even 70 days in Australia before Christmas did not sort it. If I feel very apathetic I take St Johns Wort for 2 weeks. Boots sell it as mood relief. At the moment I am on my first of 4 courses of Vit D with a blood test form for 4 months time. I found the pills they gave me last year had calcium in them and they were far too large and gave me stomach ache. I did not finish the course. This year the GP has prescribed smaller ones in capsule form just Vit D.

All the best.