Sure, you work hard and you don’t always have time for a good night’s sleep. But you used to be able to power through your days, no problem, and still had enough energy to wrestle with the kids or play a few rounds of handball at the gym.
But these days, your normal activities take extra effort, and sometimes you just don’t get to them. Your sex drive is down. Your workouts have fizzled, and you never really feel rested.
While everyone feels tired or misses sleep from time to time, if you battle fatigue on a daily basis, chemical imbalances in your body could be the culprit. A work-up at the Men’s T Clinic® — with seven convenient locations in Dallas, Frisco, The Colony, Houston, Cypress, Pearland, and Pasadena, Texas — gets you the answers and the treatments you need to feel like yourself again.
The hormone testosterone (T) is responsible for triggering the changes during puberty that masculinized your appearance and voice. As an adult, testosterone maintains your dense bones and muscle mass, keeps your body lean, and fuels your sex drive.
After age 30, though, testosterone levels drop. Other causes of low T levels include head injuries that affect your pituitary gland, injuries to your testicles, and underlying medical conditions.
A blood work-up at the Men’s T Clinic® determines if your T levels are low or on the low end of the normal range. Therapies may include testosterone injections that get your T levels working for you again.
Although fatigue caused by low levels of thyroid hormones is more common in women, thyroid levels that skew low or high affect men’s energy, too. And when your thyroid gland produces too little thyroid hormone, you may have low testosterone, too.
On the other hand, high levels of thyroid hormones can wear you out, too, and cause your heart to beat too rapidly, interfere with sleep, and raise your blood pressure.
The most common cause of low thyroid is Hashimoto’s disease, which is an inflammation in your thyroid that’s caused by an overactive immune system. Your T specialist normalizes your thyroids levels with dietary recommendations and synthetic thyroid hormone, if necessary. Your doctor recommends getting your thyroid levels tested regularly to be sure your therapy is working.
More than six million men in the United States suffer from clinical depression each year, according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Depression isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s a medical condition that has physical, medical, and environmental causes. Your doctor may recommend counseling, medications, or cognitive therapies that help your brain process information more productively.
Sleep disorders — including insomnia and sleep apnea — rob your body of needed, rest so that you don’t fully regenerate at night. You may feel tired or groggy throughout the day, and have difficulty focusing or completing tasks. Untreated sleep disorders can lead to serious complications, including heart disease and stroke.
Your doctors may treat sleep apnea with a simple oral appliance. They may also help you alleviate insomnia with new sleep-hygiene habits, or refer you to a sleep specialist.
Fatigue and low energy can also be caused by something as benign as low levels of iron or by a serious underlying medical condition, including cancer. Catching low T, low thyroid hormones, and other possible causes of low energy early minimizes the risk for developing serious complications over time.
The journey to get back on track and feel like yourself again starts with a consultation at Men’s T Clinic®. Call our helpful staff at the office closest to you, or book an appointment online.
