2. Information and Advice
  3. Symptoms
  4. Fatigue

What is fatigue?

Fatigue is an overwhelming sense of tiredness, a feeling of exhaustion and lack of energy. Up to 50% of people with Parkinson’s experience fatigue.
There are lots of features of Parkinson’s that can cause fatigue or worsen the symptoms including:

  • Tremor, stiffness and involuntary movements putting stress on muscles. Where muscles work hard (often against each other) to move, they tire quickly.
  • Slowness of movement means that tasks take longer to complete.
  • Stress can build up because of the symptoms of Parkinson’s and worsen fatigue.
  • Sleep problems including insomnia or disturbed night time sleep.
  • Depression and low mood.

There are also lots of other health problems (e.g., thyroid problems, anaemia, vitamin deficiencies) that can cause fatigue and it is important to remember that there might be another cause for your symptoms.  Talk to your GP if you have these symptoms.

What can help?

  • If your fatigue is related to symptoms such as tremor, stiffness or involuntary movements then Parkinson’s medication adjustments might help to alleviate this.
  • If you are experiencing sleep problems then addressing these may also help. See section on SLEEP.
  • If your GP thinks that low mood is contributing then they may suggest talking therapies like Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) or sometimes medication. Sometimes mindfulness or relaxation activities can also help. (See the Clinical Psychology section)
  • Fatigue symptoms will vary daily. Try keeping a diary of your symptoms to look for a pattern. This will help you monitor the activities which make you tired, and identify times of day when a rest would be most beneficial so you can plan them into your day. An activity diary can support you planning and pacing activities which are essential, and those which are desirable. Discuss your symptom diary with your Occupational Therapist or Parkinson’s team. There is more information on energy conservation in the Occupational Therapy section.

Adapted from Parkinson’s UK information leaflet on fatigue available here: FS72 2020 Fatigue and Parkinson’s WEB.pdf or here in Welsh: FS72W Fatigue and Parkinson’s_FINAL_BILINGUAL_WEB.pdf