Why do I get mid-day "crash"?

Question

I get a minimum of 8 hrs of sleep every night. I eat a light breakfast when I get up. I take vitamins everyday. I eat lunch every day.

For some reason, I "crash" everyday around 2 pm. I feel really tired and drained like I need a nap. Sometimes, I will take a 60-90 minute nap and that helps, but I'd just prefer to prevent the "crash" altogether. I don't eat a lot of sugar or caffiene. I'm not on any medications.

I don't understand why I have mid-day crash. Anyone else have the same problem? Anyone have ideas how to prevent mid-day crash?

Answer 1

Sure, happens often. Are you careful about what you eat for lunch. Try to stick with protein and not go too heavy on the carbs. Also, don't stuff yourself. At 2 when you usually start crashing eat a protein bar or some yogurt, fruit, veggies whatever. Just some good fuel to keep you going.
If that doesn't work, as others have suggested, see a doctor.

Answer 2

could 60-90 day minute nap mean you've reached middle age? Cause a 15 minute power nap should be good enough. Maybe you're missing something in your diet like minerals. Maybe it's the fluorescent or blinking lights that toy with your mind and make you tired. Maybe you need more carbs (anything with a tad bit of sugar) or some caffeine to keep going Or just try a power bar or some raisins.

I used to take my lunchtime at 1PM, and then around 3PM I used to drink a can of pepsi, have a small package of chips and an occasional candy bar with almonds to keep going (and I didn't eat breakfast or lunch...the junk food snack kept me going)..So maybe changing your lunch hour would help.

If you can't get the problem with your system solved, do what I did when I began to have metabolism problems because of age. I have my own business now, I start work later so I crash (sleep) around "news" time instead of 2PM. I miss all the scary stuff on tv, and I even miss all the parking lot traffic. So it's easier on the body and mind. Then I eat vegetarian around 7PM and sleep well.

Answer 3

Sounds like you're not getting enough good sleep. Many people need more than eight hours. I need nine or more; I knew someone who needs ten.

You might be sleeping long enough but not sleeping well. If you have a lot of stress or anxiety, you might look into stress management, and try relaxation techniques before bed.

Sleep apnea is another possibility. That's a medical condition where you stop breathing for up to a minute at a time in your sleep, then you wake up just enough to take a deep breath (but not enough to remember waking up). Then you fall asleep again, and stop breathing again within a few minutes. The constant waking means you're not getting restful sleep. Have someone observe you sleeping and see if you occasionally stop breathing. You can also ask your doctor about it.

Lots of people are emphasizing diet and blood sugar. In my experience, low blood sugar can amplify sleepiness (by making me lethargic), but if I've had enough sleep, I don't get sleepy no matter what I do or don't eat.

Answer 4

It has nothing to do with blood sugar or food, and only incidentally to do with sleep. It's due to BRAC, your Basic Rest and Activity Cycle, which everyone has. It affects some people more than others, and exact times for each person may vary, since it runs on a 24.3 hour cycle instead of exactly 24.

Your level of awareness also corresponds to your levels of optimism and pessimism, interestingly. You feel the happiest when you are the most awake.

Here's a bit of information about it, though this page doesn't mention much about the afternoon nap urge:
http://www.catalystmagazine.net/issues/story.cfm?story=761

I really wanted to find you a chart, but can't seem to find one online. So here it is verbally:

The lowest point of the day is around 4am. Your levels rise gradually until they get near 4pm, at which point there is a moderate dip. Then they continue to rise -- you may have noticed that you feel the best all day around 10pm. Then the levels drop down again as you sleep, to their lowest point at 4am.

Again, the times you choose to sleep, and where your 24.3 hour cycle is on the calendar, will affect what time your afternoon slump is.

Answer 5

Ha, I relate to you! I used to get the midday crash all the time. I realized it was because I would drink 3-4 cups of coffee in the morning, which would boost me up for a while, until the afternoon, and I would crash. Cut down on your caffine dramatically. If you drink one cup of coffee in the morning, switch to tea. Tea has saved my life.

And if you really do have to take a nap, thats okay. Don't go over 20 minutes though, or when you wake up, you will be even more tired that you were went you decided to take that capnap.

Hope this isn't too rambling, and helps a bit. Good luck!

Answer 6

If your lunch is heavy you will have a crash about 1 hr to 2 hrs after eating. Analyze what you are eating for lunch and what you are drinking during the day.

Answer 7

Could be a lot of things, but one possibility is sleep apnea. Even though you are getting what you think is 8 hours of sleep, it might be a lousy 8 hours of sleep. Signs of sleep apnea are snoring, varying periods of time where you stop breathing because the nose or throat passages close off and you don't take a breath, and waking up many times during the night. You need to have a deep sleep and apnea might keep you from getting that deep sleep. I used to have sleep apnea and it was fixed by having my tonsils removed.

Answer 8

I think the answer is in the question. You mentioned you eat a light breakfast. Don't. Eat a large healthy breakfast. That helps me. Also even though you don't eat a lot of sugar, cut down even more. A lot of the sugar we eat comes from food we would never expect, like pasta.
That is my 2 cents worth of advice.

Answer 9

This is why they invented the siesta in Spain. They take off from around 1-3 in the afternoon so they can go home and eat and take a nap and then go back to work.

Answer 10

What are you eating for lunch? Some foods make you sleepy(turkey), and carb's give you a charge and then a let down. And, of course, if you're eating a big meal at lunch, then you're likely to crash 'cause your body wants to use its energy for digestion.