Why More People Are Waking Up Feeling Tired

Introduction

About ten years before I left Japan, I was already seeing a number of clients who would say things like:

“I feel exhausted the moment I wake up. I end up sleeping all day on Saturday, and it is not until Sunday afternoon that I finally feel able to enjoy my weekend.”

When I examined people with this kind of fatigue, one common feature was a stiff spine. But there were other characteristic signs as well, such as stiffness around the solar plexus and a tight scalp.

What was it like in the Netherlands?

The Netherlands is one of the countries where people sleep the most in the world, so I often heard comments such as:

“I only slept for seven hours last night, so I feel exhausted this morning.”

I would think to myself, “Isn't that enough?” and reply, “Oh, that's bad.” But once again, I found that many people had considerable tension around the solar plexus and the area of the stomach's nerve plexus.

I have now returned to Japan, and I am still getting a feel for recent changes in the physical condition of people here. However, there seems to have been such an increase in morning fatigue that a new expression, asa-bate, has even emerged in Japan. It seems that many more people are now waking up already feeling unwell or exhausted.

The Causes from the Perspective of Jintai Rikigaku

When we think about the cause, the first thing that probably comes to mind is “poor-quality sleep”. But then the question becomes: why does our sleep become so shallow?

There seem to be all sorts of explanations: the temperature, the weather, hormonal balance, nutritional deficiencies, shallow breathing, looking at your phone before bed, and so on. In a sense, all of these explanations make perfect sense, and I do not disagree with them.

But then what about the people who sleep deeply and wake up full of energy, whether it is a change of season, menopause, a typhoon approaching, being on a diet, or even falling asleep in bed while looking at their phone?

What is different about them?

From the perspective of Seitai and Jintai Rikigaku (Human Body Mechanics), we believe the difference can be summed up quite simply:

Does the spine have elasticity?

When you hold a kitten, you may notice that it feels round and warm, almost like a little ball of fur that is breathing. With an old cat, however, you may feel its bones much more clearly.

The same can be said of the human body. Children and young people tend to have a soft, supple quality even in their spines. As we age, however, the spine can become stiff, with the vertebrae becoming more prominent and uneven, sometimes resembling the ridges along a dinosaur's back. In more advanced cases, it can become like a hard, rigid bamboo stick.

Yet some people have a spine that feels surprisingly “old” even though they are still young.

In such people, the ligaments, tendons and muscles surrounding the spine can become stiff. This can affect the nerves running through and alongside the spine, making their function less efficient. As a result, the body may become less responsive to signals from the brain, almost as though the brain has to “speak louder” to get the body to respond.

The autonomic nervous system may also have difficulty switching between its different states. You may want to sleep but find it difficult to fall asleep, or want to get up but find it surprisingly difficult to wake up.

The nerves connected to the spine do not only affect the muscles; they also extend to the internal organs. When the spine becomes stiff and these nerve pathways are not functioning well, the digestive system may also be affected.

This can lead to a lack of appetite in the morning, or diarrhoea after eating. As a result, even if you are eating, you may not absorb nutrients efficiently.

When the effects extend to the reproductive system, hormonal balance may be affected. When the urinary system is involved, you may find yourself needing to use the toilet more frequently.

Why Are More People Developing Stiff Spines?

This brings us to the question of why more people seem to have stiff spines.

Considering the apparent increase since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, from the perspective of Seitai, I believe one important factor may be that:

People are no longer developing fevers as often.

Before the pandemic, people generally had more close contact with one another. This meant that cold and influenza viruses circulated more widely, and people experienced fevers more frequently.

This is a different way of looking at the body from conventional Western medicine, so I hesitate to write about it. However, it is central to the philosophy of Seitai, and I feel it is something I cannot avoid explaining.

For more than 100 years, Seitai practitioners have maintained the view that fever can be an extremely beneficial process for the body.

Even from a Western medical perspective, fever is understood as part of the body's natural immune response, and there is growing recognition that it is not always necessary to suppress a fever unnecessarily. The number of white blood cells can also increase significantly following a fever.

Seitai goes a step further, describing fever as a kind of “shedding” or renewal of the body.

Fortunately, heat shock proteins have been discovered in modern science, and there is now widespread interest in their potential role in processes such as cellular repair, stress recovery and protection against various forms of cellular damage.

In my own many years of clinical experience, when I carefully examine a client's body, I often find that after a substantial fever, the spine feels more supple, the muscles feel fuller, and the skin looks more vibrant.

The change can sometimes be so striking that, in my mind, it is almost as if:

an old, dry, rock-hard loaf of bread has become a freshly baked loaf.

However, COVID-19 is a virus unlike anything humanity had previously encountered, and the body cannot necessarily respond to it in the same way that it responds to familiar infections.

The risks are simply too great to say, “It's good to have a fever,” and I believe appropriate protection, including the use of masks when necessary, is important.

But this also means that we are less likely to catch ordinary colds and influenza.

From a medical perspective, this is certainly something to be welcomed. Yet from the perspective of Seitai, it also means that we may be living in an age in which the body has fewer opportunities to refresh and reset itself.

There are other modern factors as well.

As computer-based work has increased, fatigue in the eyes and fingertips can place the nervous system under strain, sometimes contributing to tension that extends all the way to the scalp.

Spending long periods on smartphones can also fatigue the arms and neck, which may increase tension around the ribs and restrict breathing, making it shallower.

These modern lifestyle factors, combined with the other factors described above, may help explain why more people are saying:

“I slept properly, so why do I still feel exhausted from the moment I wake up?”

What Can You Do? — Approaches from Seitai

So, what can we do?

Here are some approaches from the perspective of Seitai.

Release Tension in the Spine

As mentioned above, major nerve pathways run through and alongside the spine. Restoring its natural elasticity is therefore considered a priority.

By helping the spine regain its flexibility, we aim to support healthy nerve function, restore balance in the autonomic nervous system, and help signals regulating the internal organs reach their destinations more effectively.

For this purpose, Jintai Rikigaku exercises are ideal.

If you are not sure which exercises are right for you, you are welcome to visit my treatment room. I can examine your spine directly and teach you personalised exercises after your treatment, based on your individual condition.

Release Tension in the Abdomen

Traditional Chinese medicine has long emphasised the importance of the abdomen, and Hippocrates is often associated with the idea that “all disease begins in the gut.”

The abdomen contains several important nerve plexuses and has such an extensive network of nerves that the gut is sometimes described as a “second brain”.

The diaphragm is also important. If it becomes stiff, it can restrict deep breathing.

For these reasons, helping the abdomen become soft and relaxed is also an important part of maintaining the body's overall balance.

Allow the Fever to Run Its Course

When the spine and abdomen regain their natural elasticity, the body may become better able to respond to viruses, seasonal changes and other challenges.

In the philosophy of Seitai, this may include allowing the body to develop a fever and sweat at an appropriate time, completing what we describe as a process of renewal or “shedding”.

Rather than being frightened by every fever and immediately trying to suppress it with medication, the Seitai perspective encourages us to see it as an opportunity for the body to recover and renew itself.

You might even think:

“Perhaps this is how my body gets stronger and renews itself.”

For children, you might think of it as a time when growth and development take place.

When approached in this way, many people find that the course of a fever can be surprisingly manageable.

(For more about how to approach the course of a fever, please see this article, where I explain the subject in more detail.)

Conclusion

This has turned into quite a long article, but I hope it has given you something to think about.

If you often wake up feeling heavy and sluggish, or if you find that even a full night's sleep does not seem to relieve your fatigue, please feel free to contact me.

I will carefully examine your physical condition and suggest an approach suited to your individual condition and constitution.

I cannot promise that your energy can be restored all at once, like replacing the battery in a smartphone.

But step by step, I hope I can help you rediscover the feeling of waking up refreshed and ready for the day.