Why am I always tired?

[WV Mountaineer]

I started t therapy in 2014. The doc said mine was low. They called me in for 4 weeks. Every week for a shot. To get my testosterone to a “maintenance” level.

By the third week, I could pick up a house. I simply did not get tired. I might get winded when I was working out or working hard. But, 30 seconds later I was back at it. It was incredible.

I was happy. They weren’t. Told me my levels needed to be higher. So, over the course of three months I went from felling tired, to feeling like I was 20 again, to feeling even more tired.

This yo yo went on for four years. But, the problem I was having was my blood pressure. I had started bp meds based on my doc’s advice. I didn’t want to do it. But, I did.

Shortly after starting them I was reflecting on my personal health, how I felt, etc…. And it spurred my curiosity. So, I dove into the T therapy research whole heartedly. It didn’t take long before I realized a lot of the negative side affects from T therapy were symptoms I was experiencing first hand. I addressed this with my doctor and she didn’t think it was relevant.

On my own, I started going every two to three weeks getting my shots. Then along comes Covid. By that time I realized I was feeling much better and after missing a month with no shots due to Covid protocol, I realized I was feeling really good again.

I have been back to the doctor one time since then. To get advice on weening off the bp medicine. Today I don’t take a single pill by prescription. Nothing. I feel great. I’ve always taken my health seriously. And, I’ve had some speed bumps along the way.

But, since 2011 I’ve laid in a bed with a BP as low as 58/43. I had just finished over 100 chemo treatments. I’d had 13 surgeries upto that point. Been run over by a vehicle. Fell off a house. Fell through trusses to the floor, 3 acl surgeries. Had to have a broken septum fixed. Etc…. So, trust me when I say I know what feeling bad feels like.

While I agree, I’m sure t therapy can be great. As long as your doctor knows how to treat you. If not, it’s nothing more than a fast track to a pine box in my experience.

 

[Tobe_B]

I'm a farrier. The standing desk thing might be tough.

How long have you been full time shoeing, and what’s your average number you get under in a week? What’s your typical liquid intake per day?


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[Lil-Rokslider]

How long have you been full time shoeing? What’s your typical liquid intake per day?


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Full time for 13 years. Drink about a gallon of water per day through the winter, 2 gallons in the summer.

 

[Tobe_B]

Full time for 13 years. Drink about a gallon of water per day through the winter, 2 gallons in the summer.

I know for myself I try and mix some electrolytes and extra vitamin D in during the winter shoeing months. It helps my body recover faster with drinking less fluids.

Shoeing full time is tough on a body. Most guys here have no idea. Definitely get blood work, but I know a little what you’re going though. The winter is always harder on me than the summer is.

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[Lil-Rokslider]

I know for myself I try and mix some electrolytes and extra vitamin D in during the winter shoeing months. It helps my body recover faster with drinking less fluids.

Shoeing full time is tough on a body. Most guys here have no idea. Definitely get blood work, but I know a little what you’re going though. The winter is always harder on me than the summer is.

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I'm pretty consistent with Redmond electrolyte powder. You a full time shoer? Where are you based out of?

 

[Tobe_B]

Southwest Colorado. I went down to part time last year and took a full time job managing a ranch down here. The other thing that always got me exhausted was more the mental aspect of dealing with a constant barrage of people. I had to set some serious boundaries and operating hours.


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[goathunter]

For me, good sleep hygiene made all the difference. Biggest change for me was only drinking coffee in the morning. I swore I could sleep fine even after drinking coffee all day. However, caffeine messes up sleep quality and one does not get restorative sleep. I'll drink 4 to 8 cups in the morning, but stop about noon. Turn on bright lights in the morning, dim lights in the evening. Avoid alcohol within a few hours of bed (also destroys sleep quality), avoid Benadryl for the same reason. Keep the temp in your room on the cool side and use blankets to stay warm. Delta wave music can help with deep sleep. If I cannot sleep, I get up and do something productive, don't nap, and get a good nights sleep the next night.

There can be medical issues that cause it, worth talking to a healthcare provider about it.

4-8 Cups? Good lord man

 

[Lil-Rokslider]

Southwest Colorado. I went down to part time last year and took a full time job managing a ranch down here. The other thing that always got me exhausted was more the mental aspect of dealing with a constant barrage of people. I had to set some serious boundaries and operating hours.


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Nice, smart move. I'd love to figure out going to part time.

Ya, people are exhausting, especially horse ladies. I've been pretty good at setting boundaries though, so most of my clients have learned what's appropriate.

Do you do much hunting in that part of the state? Can I DM you some hunting questions for that area?

 

[5MilesBack]

Oats, potatoes, carrots, beans, greens, turnips, beets, squash, peas, etc..

FWIW, incorporate a quart of tomatoes juice into your diet daily.

Drink a quart with your mixing bowl of veggie salad with supper.

Minus all those veggies and the tomato juice........what are the other options? Asking for a friend. Ok.......it's me. I absolutely hate veggies and especially tomatoes. Also, allergic to beets.

 

[Tobe_B]

Nice, smart move. I'd love to figure out going to part time.

Ya, people are exhausting, especially horse ladies. I've been pretty good at setting boundaries though, so most of my clients have learned what's appropriate.

Do you do much hunting in that part of the state? Can I DM you some hunting questions for that area?

I hunt as much as I can. You’re more than welcome to message me.


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[SWOHTR]

An aside, have “they” (the medical community) recently redefined sleep apnea?

2017 - sleep test 1 reveals I have mild OSA
2023 - sleep test 2 reveals “you don’t have sleep apnea!”

Even though I can’t sleep worth a damn w/o the machine…

 

[fngTony]

Full time for 13 years. Drink about a gallon of water per day through the winter, 2 gallons in the summer.

You might be flushing vitamins out of your system and/or your not actually absorbing what you’re drinking, it’s just passing through giving you a false sense of water intake.

 

[Marbles]

An aside, have “they” (the medical community) recently redefined sleep apnea?

2017 - sleep test 1 reveals I have mild OSA
2023 - sleep test 2 reveals “you don’t have sleep apnea!”

Even though I can’t sleep worth a damn w/o the machine…

Not that I know of, though I'm not in sleep medicine. It could be different tests, some are better than others, it could be different interpreters (many diagnoses and test interpretations require skill and forming a clinical pictures, mild variations of a diagnosis are generally more subject interpretation), it could be that the apnea resolved, though your report of not being able to sleep well without the machine makes me think that is not the case.

 

[WV Mountaineer]

Minus all those veggies and the tomato juice........what are the other options? Asking for a friend. Ok.......it's me. I absolutely hate veggies and especially tomatoes. Also, allergic to beets.

Any vegetable is going to have carbs. Choose what you like.


Allergies you can’t help. But, veggies are good man. Something has got to be wrong with you not liking veggies. lol.

 

[Wyoming Hart]

I got my lab results back last Tuesday and I am deficient in Vitamin D. I have taken a 5,000 IU Vitamin D tablet each day since and I have been gaining strength each day, even getting a nice hike in yesterday on a beautiful, sunny day. I haven't gotten the testosterone result back yet. I'll get them taken again in 2 months to see where I'm at then. Not sure if Lyme's is a factor in my or the OP case, but I hope to see the infectious disease doctor to determine if Lyme's is a factor in my recent health. Things just don't seem to add up that something else isn't going on.

 

[5MilesBack]

Allergies you can’t help. But, veggies are good man. Something has got to be wrong with you not liking veggies. lol.

About 7 or 8 years ago I decided to try and go more healthy. I figured I could throw some stuff in the Vitamix and then try to choke down a glassful in one swift swallow. I called it my green slime. Some grape juice, apples, kale, spinach, carrots, and a few other things I can't remember now, along with a little protein powder. It actually wasn't horrible, but it stopped me up bad. I didn't even know what constipation was until I experienced that. Sure seemed counter-intuitive to me, but I couldn't deal with that long term so now still pretty much veggie free. I grew up on a farm and I had a large garden. Loved growing them, but just couldn't eat them. Had like 100 tomato plants every year, used to sell most of the veggies to some local markets. The rest of my family had no problem with them.

There was something else about the kale too that I can't remember now, but seemed to point to an allergy or sensitivity to it from my experiences. Oh well, life goes on......until it doesn't.

 

[Idaboy]

For the guys talking about sleep apnea. Outside of being fat, i want to say the issue comes from the collapse of the soft tissue, which obstructs your airway and also causes snoring. I think i have heard people on podcasts talking about this being able to be improved/corrected by doing some kind of tongue exercise against the roof of your mouth. And maybe even using those dumb jawsercize things you bite on to strengthen the muscles in your face. I can't remember. But sleeping with a contraption strapped to your face does not seem like an acceptable solution to me. I would be willing to try a lot before it got to that. Apparently lack of jaw exercise is why we now commonly don't have room for our wisdom teeth. We don't chew tough food any more and our mandibles and maxillas are shrinking as a result. I don't think any wildlife have the dental crowding issues that humans commonly have.

I'm not sure that works, when you fall asleep your muscles lose tone.....so aside from someone having a neurologic condition or a stroke where therapy may help the upper pharynx, I am not sure I would take the advice of tongue exercises. This is the basis for such things like the "Inspire" device. If you have mild OSA you can probably improve with weight loss, sleeping on side etc....if you have more severe OSA, intervention is warranted

 

[WV Mountaineer]

About 7 or 8 years ago I decided to try and go more healthy. I figured I could throw some stuff in the Vitamix and then try to choke down a glassful in one swift swallow. I called it my green slime. Some grape juice, apples, kale, spinach, carrots, and a few other things I can't remember now, along with a little protein powder. It actually wasn't horrible, but it stopped me up bad. I didn't even know what constipation was until I experienced that. Sure seemed counter-intuitive to me, but I couldn't deal with that long term so now still pretty much veggie free. I grew up on a farm and I had a large garden. Loved growing them, but just couldn't eat them. Had like 100 tomato plants every year, used to sell most of the veggies to some local markets. The rest of my family had no problem with them.

There was something else about the kale too that I can't remember now, but seemed to point to an allergy or sensitivity to it from my experiences. Oh well, life goes on......until it doesn't.

You must be miserable. lol.

I’m a huge veggie fan. One rid bit of a tip. Buy some spinach, arugula, tomatoes, cucumber, sweet onion. Dice them into desired coarseness, salt and pepper then toss. Taste for seasoning. Cover and let it set in the bowl and let the salad come to room temp. Then eat it. If you don’t like that something is definitely medically wrong with you.

 

[5MilesBack]

You must be miserable. lol.

Not anymore........I stopped those smoothies.

I will eat arugula, but raw tomatoes are never a "go".

 

[Bluegrassvw]

There are some obvious reasons. I've got 5 kids under 8. I'm a farrier. I crossfit at 6 AM most days. And I understand that those are generally good reasons for a person to be tired. However, I need a better answer.

I'm 36 years old. I eat healthy and balanced meals. I usually get 7-8 hours of good sleep per night. I drink tons of water. I'm happy and satisfied with life and marriage (not depression). But I'm exhausted every dang day. Even on a Saturday, when I sleep in and don't workout, I'm ready for a nap by 11 AM. And if I do nap, which is rare, I can sleep for like 2 hours, and then be ready for bed by 8:30 that night.

I've had people tell me that it's just part of getting older, or part of raising kids. But I want a better answer. I have lots of friends in the same stage of life, with a similar lifestyle, that aren't as tired as me.

Anybody else out there that's extra sleepy? Better yet, anybody that used to be and has discovered some solutions or lifestyle changes that helped?

Buddy of mine had this exact issue…

Low T or shit hormones are generally environmental… you are what you eat and you are whatever you eat eats… as I always say, if you are what you eat, and you eat tilapia and tilapia eat shit, then by proxy are shit.

He fully corrected all the tiredness buy changing his diet.

He went to eating a grass fed/grass finished high animal fat/red meat diet. He also eats wild caught fish, and organic Avacados and fruit w/ bit of in season vegetables.

No sugar, no seed oils, no bread.

Changed his whole life, he is more shredded, happy and energetic than he has ever been, going on two years… he is also 34.