How Fatigue Affects Us

- By Gwen Randall-Young

March 19, 2025

key points from this story:

• Scientists compare fatigue to alcohol impairment.
• Fatigue is a side effect of modern lifestyles.
• Biological instincts are disrupted by technology.
• Screen time affects sleep quality negatively.
• Stressful minds hinder restful sleep.
• Good sleep improves daily functioning.

Scientists now tell us that fatigue can create as much impairment as alcohol. Fatigue seems to be a side effect of busy lifestyles. In earlier times, people rose with the sun and slept when it got dark. Sure, they had candles and lanterns, but there was just not that much to do after dark. Biologically we are not that different from our ancestors, but our environment has changed drastically. With television and computers, we can find entertainment twenty-four hours of the day. All this stimulation distracts us from our biological instincts.

Students have extracurricular activities and homework to keep them stimulated right up until bedtime. Many adults, and children I suppose, have television sets in the bedroom which are turned on until its time to turn out the lights. The mind is activated right up until sleep time. This is quite different from the days when the time after supper was spent quietly reading or doing a craft, the family together slowing down, perhaps reflecting on the day. This time allowed the mind to slow down, and the body to relax, all in preparation for a restful sleep.

What happens in the hours before bedtime does affect the quality of sleep. Neurologists say bright screens stimulate the part of the brain designed to keep us awake. Screen time prior to sleep can lead to a restless sleep. Scientists say that two or more hours of screen time in the evening can seriously disrupt the melatonin surge from the pineal gland secretes. Even without screen time, a busy, stressed mind will not allow for the deep restoring sleep our bodies require. Fatigue can result from insufficient sleep, or from poor quality sleep. Fatigue then affects the quality of our waking lives in ways which may create further stress, and so the cycle continues.

We would not go to school or work in an inebriated state, yet fatigue makes us just as dysfunctional. Wisdom, then, would dictate that we place greater importance on the amount and quality of sleep we are getting. A good night’s sleep makes almost everything go better.