Waking Up to Wellness: Understanding Oversleeping

Oversleeping: What Is It, Why Is It Happening and How Do I Make It Stop?

We’ve all been there: You’re getting over the flu or launching a rigorous workout routine or recovering from a nasty surgery. Or you simply had a long, hard, crummy week. And now you. Just. Can’t. Get out of bed.

What counts as oversleeping?

Adults generally need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night. For teens, ages 13 to 18, the sleep requirement is a little longer: The CDC recommends between eight and 10 hours a night.

But there’s room for individual variation within these estimates. We all know people who feel just fine after six hours of sleep. And there are also those folks (officially known as “long sleepers”) who make a habit of hitting the hay at 9 p.m. so they can wake up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 7 a.m. Whatever works for you is probably OK.

Unless your sleep habits are impacting your daily functioning. That could mean you’re having problems getting to work, attending classes, making it to appointments, and keeping up with the routine demands of daily living, like eating, maintaining personal hygiene, paying bills, and caring for children or other dependents. At that point, it’s reasonable to be concerned.

How to tell if you’re oversleeping?

In most cases, people who oversleep (hypersomnia) are getting nine or more hours of sleep a night, for weeks at a time, and are still waking up feeling tired and out of sorts. A common experience with oversleeping."Is that the more you sleep, the worse you feel.”

Here are some other possible signs of oversleeping:

1. You sleep right through your alarm.

2. You wake up with the alarm but you turn it off and go back to sleep.

3. You wake up but can’t get out of bed.

4. You wake up most days with a headache. (This can also be a symptom of sleep apnea.)

5. You always feel sleepy, no matter how much sleep you get.

6. You never feel refreshed.

If these behaviors continue for more than six to eight weeks, consider talking to a healthcare provider.

Common causes of oversleeping

Routinely oversleeping is a symptom of an underlying disorder, not a disorder in and of itself. So, determining the underlying cause is an important part of getting effective treatment.

1. Untreated sleep apnea

2. Certain medication

3. Hypothyroidism

4. Narcolepsy

Tips to stop oversleeping

1. Establish a consistent wake-up time — and stick to it.

2. Place your alarm clock on the other side of the room. Once you’re on your feet, maybe you can keep moving.

3. Give yourself a reason to get up.

4. Once you’re up, go straight into the bathroom, wash your face, and brush your teeth. By that point, you might find you’re awake enough to keep moving.

5. Aim for some physical activity as soon as you wake up.