I have struggled for many years with this mid-afternoon crash, which usually requires a good kick of coffee to help me get over. I used to just think that this was normal but having done a little more research into it I have discovered that it is in fact far from normal. I found a fabulous man online who works with people on this issue, the brilliant Dr. Cletus Georges MD. Thanks to the teachings and the suggestions of Dr Georges, I have managed to eventually identify what the issue is in my case.
If this is something that you are struggling with too, then here are the reasons which could be causing that dip in energy that you are having.
Sleep Quality
The first thing to say about sleep is that if you are not getting enough, this is a good place to start. If however you feel that you are sleeping for enough hours, it could very well be that you simply are not getting enough quality sleep. At least 60% of your sleep should be spent in what is called REM sleep, which is that deep sleep which helps the body so much. Things that impact that can be noises, lights and bad habits like consuming alcohol.
Large Lunch
Whilst food is certainly energy, many of us take on a lunch which is just too big and that can give us a big crash during the afternoon. This can happen for one of two reasons. The first is that you have consumed a lot of sugar or caffeine at lunchtime and then there is an inevitable crash in the afternoon. The second possible outcome is that your body is simply tired from digesting such a large lunch, and that is again why you may crash in the afternoon.
Dehydrated
Some people think that we consume enough water in the foods we eat each day to keep us going, but this is just not the case. We have to ensure that we are doing all that we can to keep our bodies hydrated all day long, because if we don’t, that crash is coming. When the body is dehydrated it needs to give hydration to the vital organs before anything else, this will see the body draw fluids from other areas of the body, leaving you lacking energy and leaving you thinking that little bit slower.
Ultimately if you are facing the crash in the middle of the afternoon you have to make sure that you are addressing your daily habits. This means looking at how you are sleeping, how you are eating, what you are eating and how much fluid you are taking in. The reality is that rescuing yourself with coffee in the mid-afternoon may be one thing, but this is a short term fix for a long term problem, so you need to make sure that you find out what the source of the problem is.
