Having Problems with Oversleeping?

Oversleeping can seem like a great thing when your schedule allows for it, but this is actually a lot worse for your health and wellness than you might think. Both inadequate sleep and too much sleep are not good for you. In general, the best thing to do for your health is getting a normal amount of sleep, without getting too much or too little.

What are some of the signs you are oversleeping? Here are some of the more common signs.

Wake Up Tired

It is normal to be a little tired in the morning, especially when woken up by an alarm or going to sleep a little later than normal. However, there is a difference between being sleepy because you just woke up, and being exhausted and severely fatigued. People who are oversleeping have similar effects to waking up after not sleeping much at all. It might feel similar to having jet lag or a bad hangover. When this keeps happening, it could be a sign that you might be sleeping too much.

Brain Fog

You might also be oversleeping if you are experiencing brain fog. Of course, brain fog can occur from many different situations and conditions (like fibromyalgia), but oversleeping is definitely one of them. When you have brain fog, you feel out of it; almost like you are walking around like a zombie without being able to really focus or concentrate on anything much. There are different levels of brain fog, but typically you just feel like your brain can’t quite focus on any one thing at a time.

Wake Up with a Headache

If you find that you are waking up with headaches, that might be a sign that you have slept too much. Before assuming your headaches are from oversleeping, consider other potential causes, including sleep deprivation, stress, hormones, or clenching or grinding your teeth while sleeping.

Unusual Weight Gain

Any time you gain weight without changing your diet or habits, it is something you should look into. You might be gaining weight for any number of reasons, including medical conditions like thyroid disease, so it is not something you should ignore.

However, your weight gain might actually be from oversleeping. People who sleep too much have a tendency to gain weight due to lack of energy throughout the day, a poor diet, and less time spent with physical activity during the day. Oversleeping can also be linked to changes in your appetite, so without realizing it, you might be eating more than usual.

Physical Discomfort

Lastly, consider if you are experiencing more body pain than normal. This might include arm and shoulder aching, hips hurting, or legs aching. These types of body pains could come from laying for too long in one position, or just because you are not stretching out your muscles and joints enough. If the physical pain has come on after you started sleeping a little more than usual, it is often linked to oversleeping.

Sleeping too much might seem like a blessing if you have struggled with insomnia in the past, but it can be detrimental to your health just like lack of sleep can.

Following a routine would be helpful to ensure the appropriate amount of sleep. This routine needs to be specific to you and your needs.

Getting to bed at the same time each night and waking up at the same time each morning is a key component to this routine.

Looking for help with sleep? Check out our blog post: 17 Products to Help You Sleep