Excessive Sleeping, Headaches Post Sleep, Depression. Am I Having Sleep Disorders?

Posted on Sat, 17 Dec 2011

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sat, 17 Dec 2011 Answered on

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 Last reviewed on

Question : Hello
I am 20 year old female.Height 158 cm weight 57 kg.I have been having excessive day time sleeping habits for the past 5 years.At one point I was depressed but I slowly came out of depression and was fine for the past 3 years.But the sleeping habits havent changed at all.How much ever I sleep I feel like sleeping more even though I know I have had more than enough.At times I have headaches after sleeping too much,I wake up and go back to sleep in a few hours again.During exams If I am interested in the subject I do an night out and score well or else I just scrape through,Am I suffering from any sleep disorder?Due I have to consult a sleep doctor? .I seem to love sleep and am not even scared I would flunk my exam.It's like I feel very positive during sleep.When I wake up I do panic at times about what I am doing but then go back to sleep,feeling I would start studying once I wake up,But I dont!

Follow up: Dr. Rakesh Madhyastha (12 minutes later)

Recently I have started eating too much junk,I have put on weight and have tummy fat which I never had till recently.I have pimples on my back,shoulders ,scalp and face,with bad dandruff too.I have been diagnosed with sebhoric dermatitis and have used many shampoos,face washes etc but with not much improvement.And now I have marks on my shoulders.Are all these conditions related? What should I do?

Answered by Dr. Rakesh Madhyastha (2 hours later)

Thanks for the query anuhya

The first thing that came into my mind is sleep apnea syndrome which causes the exact same symptoms including the headache after sleep but it is less likely in your case because you are not really that overweight to cause this

The other main condition which causes similar symptom is hypothyroidism which can also explain the pimples. Please get your thyroid profile done. It is a treatable disease with medications. It has a fast and easy recovery

The third possibility is that your circadian rhythm is grossly disturbed and you will have to discipline your sleep habits. In the mean time please do the following things

Use your bed only to sleep. Donot eat, read, listen to music on it
Make it a habit not to sleep immediately after food
Go out, plan an outing or start a new hobby or a course
Exercise regularly

If there is anything else I could help you with, please let me know. I'll be happy to help

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Raju A.T

Follow up: Dr. Rakesh Madhyastha (7 hours later)

Thank you sir.
Should I visit a sleep clinic to get it properly diagnosed?
I have had thyroid profile done 6 months ago and it's normal.

Answered by Dr. Rakesh Madhyastha (1 minute later)

Hi and thanks again,

I am happy you got back.

Sleep clinic will tell you if your brain is getting adequate rest by measuring the different stages of sleep. It will also tell you if you are having disturbed sleep.

In your case it will definitely be useful.

Hope I have provided you with an useful answer. Please accept my answer if you do not have any further queries.

Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad