There are some health issues that can sneak up on you because they present few symptoms. That doesn’t lessen their ability to cause you to slow down. Let’s take a look at a few of these pesky issues:
UTIs
A UTI (urinary tract infection) can really slow you down. Your urinary tract is a system that makes the urine and then allows it to make its way out of you. The urinary system includes your kidneys, bladder, and the various tubes that connect them.
If germs make their way into the urinary system, they can lead to an infection. Most of the time, UTIs are actually bladder infections. This isn’t too serious, so fear not, but you do need to see your doctor as soon as possible to get a UTI prescription.
While more annoying than anything at first, UTIs have the potential to spread to your kidneys if left untreated which can lead to permanent damage.
Stress
Stress is one of the more common health issues that can interrupt your day in a variety of ways. Your stress levels can actually make you sick. It can exacerbate nearly any health condition that you might already have too.
Stress can worsen things like asthma, depression, diabetes, heart disease, cause you to slow down and more. Before you let stress, stress you out, there are a few simple techniques designed to reduce stress that you can incorporate into your daily routine.
Simple habits like deep breathing, less screen time and increased levels of activity all have the potential to lower your stress levels and your risk for stress-related health conditions.
Bradycardia
If you have bradycardia, it basically means that your heart beats at a slower rate than what it is supposed to beat at. Most people have a heart rate that falls between 60 and 100 beats every minute when they are resting. If your heart beats begins to slow down, you potentially have bradycardia.
This might be healthy and normal, or it might mean that there is an issue with the electrical system of your heart. If the heart is beating too slow and there is an issue with the electrical system, it can get to where the heart isn’t pumping enough blood to satisfy the needs of the body.
This can lead to a variety of symptoms and can actually be life threatening. Some of the symptoms can include feeling lightheaded or dizzy, feeling like you can’t get enough air and find it difficult to exercise, fatigue, chest pain, palpitations, difficulty concentrating or feel confused, and a drop in blood pressure.
Fatigue
Fighting low levels of energy can seem to be a normal part of life. Not always, though. When fatigue gets to chronic levels, it might be a sign of some sort of health issue that is lurking. Things like sleep apnea, diabetes, a Vitamin D deficiency, hypothyroidism, and even depression might be causing this fatigue. Sleep apnea, in particular, can be worrisome because if you don’t get it treated, it can increase your risk of a heart attack, stroke, or hypertension. For more tips consider reading How to Have More Energy.
Vitamin D Deficiency
With this condition, you might not exhibit any symptoms at all, but low levels of this vitamin can lead to the development of things like diabetes, heart disease, some types of cancer, and even various autoimmune conditions such as multiple sclerosis.
This vitamin is also useful when it comes to digesting calcium, so a lack of it can be bad for all of the bones in your body. It is easy to check and correct though. All it takes is a simple blood test. If there is a deficiency, you will just need to take a supplement and then get rechecked in a few months.
Hypothyroidism
Your thyroid glands are responsible for the regulation of your metabolism as well as a few other critical processes and systems. When you have one that slows down, it doesn’t produce enough of something called TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) and this means that your body won’t be able to function as it should.
Symptoms are subtle and easy to miss – they can include things like intolerance to cold and fatigue. This can lead to things like birth defects, nerve damage, depression, infertility, high cholesterol, heart disease, and weight gain.
Written by Natalie Bracco for Working Mother and legally licensed through the Matcha publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@getmatcha.com