11.1 “Why am I so Tired?”
Picture This:
You open your eyes on a Tuesday morning. Groggily, you reach for your phone and check the time—9:43 a.m. You are exhausted. Again.
Your 8 a.m. class? Missed. And there is no way you’ll make it to your 10 a.m. lecture on time. So, you hit snooze a few more times before finally dragging yourself out of bed.
By noon, you shuffle onto campus, clutching an overpriced energy drink like it is the only thing keeping you alive. In your lecture, your head bobs forward, your eyes are heavy, and you are half-asleep but try to look engaged.
At the end of the school day, you complain to your friends. “I’m always so tired. I am definitely not a morning person.” But it’s not your fault. You blame genetics. After all, your Mom is a terrible sleeper, too.
Never mind the fact that every night, you choose to stay up. Maybe it’s Netflix, maybe scrolling TikTok, maybe just lying in bed overthinking every awkward interaction you have had since the seventh grade. Midnight rolls around, and you are still wide awake, scrolling.
And let’s talk about your diet. Breakfast? You never have time. Lunch? Whatever is cheap and fast—usually something greasy. Dinner? Pizza rolls at 11 p.m. don’t really count as a meal, but you convince yourself they do.
Yet somehow, you are still confused. “I don’t get it. I slept for about five hours last night. Why am I so exhausted?”
The next day, the cycle repeats. This time, your professor catches you nodding off in class. Your roommate rolls their eyes when you complain again about being tired. Even the barista at your usual coffee shop recognizes the look of sleep deprivation in your eyes.
At what point do you admit that the problem is not some great mystery—it is you?
They say you are what you eat. There is truth to this. Proper nutrition and adequate sleep are fundamental components that contribute to optimal well-being. Despite this, many individuals fail to connect their constant fatigue and lack of energy to their own lifestyle choices. In this chapter, we explore the critical role of sleep and how not getting enough of it impacts the body and mind. The basics of proper nutrition are also discussed, as well as why what you eat plays a direct role in your energy levels, cognitive function, and overall physical well-being. Other key variables related to self-care will also be touched on.
