Get her checked for Lyme, too.

How much does she actually sleep at night?

I was like this as a teen. I had a terrible diet, low iron, b2, b12, IBS (not a thing back then, but now that we know more about it, that's what I had), and I had form of sleep apnea that was undiagnosed.

Be sure the doctor tests for ferritin in addition to red blood cell count (RBC).

I suffered for many years with iron deficiency that was not anemia, and doctors usually only test for anemia and say you're fine if you don't ask specifically for a ferritin test to determine the STORED iron.

Def could be antidepressants. All SSRIs turn me into a zombie.

I was like this in college and wish I knew what I know now about vitamins and protein. I ate way too much sugar and processed food and was always tired.

Anonymous wrote:My daughter, 18 years old, is ALWAYS tired. She would sleep all day if she could.
I thought it was a symptom of depression--she's on anti-depressants--but now I think it's something more.
Trying to get her to a doctor soon, but what should we be braced to hear? I'm working on diet and exercise, but I'm the mom, so who cares what I think...

My guess is it has a lot to do with these two things.

Could be anemia or thyroid. Definitely get blood work done.

My teen son has sleep apnea and my teen daughter has an auto-immune disease. So they're both tired, for different reasons. We live a low-key life to accommodate their needs.

Get her tested for sleep apnea (there is a home test they can do to start with, before the full night's test at a sleep clinic), and do bloodwork.

DO NOT supplement before the bloodwork! If whatever you give her is a high enough dose, it will mask the problem.

I don't know what other symptoms of narcolepsy are.
She just comes home from school and sleeps. She sleeps all weekend, too.
I'll buy her a vitamin before a doctor's appointment--anemia runs in the family.

Besides the excessive sleeping are there any other symptoms of narcolepsy?

Some anti-depressants are sedating. We had to try a few before we found one that worked for teenage DS, and I think it was Celexa that made him very tired.

My 17 yo is like this (and I was too. My friends used to call me Rip Van Winkle). She’ll nap for 2-3 hrs after school. Had a battery of tests at the pediatrician last year and found nothing. When I took her to the appt and talked to the ped she said “this is the most common complaint we get here - tired teens.”
I think growing is hard work - and tiring!

Has she had bloodwork done? I found out in my twenties that I was anemic, and in hindsight I’m convinced I was anemic through most of my teenage years. Young women with heavy periods can easily have that problem.

My daughter, 18 years old, is ALWAYS tired. She would sleep all day if she could.
I thought it was a symptom of depression--she's on anti-depressants--but now I think it's something more.
Trying to get her to a doctor soon, but what should we be braced to hear? I'm working on diet and exercise, but I'm the mom, so who cares what I think...