Tired of Being Tired? Best Fatigue Buster is Balance

By Susan Maltby

Women who are too weary for words need a wake-up call to get more rest. “My doctor says I’m doing too much,” says Karen Wander, a 45-year-old Burbank, CA mother of three. Recently, at her annual physical exam, Wander talked to her doctor about fatigue. “I’m always tired’ says Wander. Besides fulfilling her duties as a wife and mother, she attends college and works 20 hours a week as a teacher’s assistant. “Trying to get the kids to their activities and studying and keeping your house up only works in a 21-hour day,” says Wander. “But that leaves you with only three hours of sleep.”

Why Am I SO Tired?

Science hasn’t yet discovered a way to bypass the space-time continuum and add more hours to our day. The most common and most obvious cause of fatigue is lack of sleep. Annette Besnilian, a registered dietitian and associate director of the Marilyn Magaram health center at California State University, Northridge, explains that women need to get more sleep. “As a parent I know how often children interfere with our ability to get a good night’s sleep,” Besnilian says. “Most people need at least six hours of sleep to function, but eight hours is best.”