Episode 103: Why You Still Feel Exhausted (Even After 8 Hours of Sleep)
“Why am I tired after sleeping?” You’re doing all the “right” things: going to bed on time, sleeping eight hours, drinking your greens… yet you still wake up tired. In this episode, Functional Medicine Practitioner Nicole Goode explains why exhaustion isn’t just about hours of sleep, it’s about the quality of your rest and the biology behind it.
Through a functional medicine lens, Nicole uncovers what’s really happening when your body feels wired at night and tired in the morning. You’ll learn how your circadian rhythm, hormones, and mitochondria interact while you sleep, and how modern habits like late-night screens, stress, and poor timing quietly disrupt your body’s repair cycles.
This episode answers questions like:
“What is circadian rhythm and how do I reset it?”
“How does poor sleep affect hormones?”
“How does sleep detoxify the brain?”
“What supplements help deep sleep naturally?”
“Can magnesium help me sleep better?”
“How is sleep linked to gut health?”
“How much deep and REM sleep do I need?”
“How to build a nighttime routine for better sleep?”
If you’ve been stuck in a cycle of burnout, brain fog, or hormonal imbalance, this episode will help you understand what your fatigue is trying to tell you. Learn how to sleep better naturally and finally wake up energized, focused, and calm. Because feeling rested isn’t about doing more, it’s about letting your body do what it was designed to do.
DISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast and related website is not intended to be a substitute for medical advice. It is not intended to be used to diagnose or treat, instead it is designed to help educate and inspire. Always seek the advice of a professional medical practitioner or qualified health practitioner. Never ignore or disregard advice given to you based on information in this podcast or related website and do not delay in seeking medical advice.
Timestamps:
[02:00] - The Physiology of Sleep
Learn how your body moves through deep and REM sleep cycles, how the circadian rhythm regulates hormones and energy, and why restorative sleep is your body’s natural healing mechanism.
[05:50] - How Sleep Influences Every System in Your Body
Discover how poor sleep affects your brain, mitochondria, hormones, gut, and immune system, and how deep sleep repairs these systems at a cellular level.
[15:50] - How Lifestyle Habits Impact Sleep Quality
Understand how stress, light exposure, meal timing, and evening routines influence your melatonin–cortisol balance and sleep architecture.
[19:10] - Practical Sleep Optimization
Nutrition and supplements for better sleep with nutrients like magnesium, glycine, and reishi. And how to build a restorative nighttime routine that calms your nervous system, regulates hormones, and promotes long-term energy and longevity.
“You can sleep for eight hours and still feel exhausted if your body never enters deep, restorative sleep. True rest isn’t measured in time, it’s measured in repair. When your circadian rhythm is out of sync, your hormones misfire, your energy dips, and your brain can’t fully reset. It’s why so many of us wake up wired, foggy, and craving caffeine. Rebuilding your rhythm is the missing piece that no supplement or morning routine can replace.”
Essential learnings from this episode…
Sleep is your body’s most powerful form of medicine. It repairs DNA, balances hormones, detoxifies the brain, and regenerates energy-producing mitochondria every night.
Quality matters more than quantity. You can sleep eight hours and still wake up exhausted if your deep and REM cycles are disrupted.
Circadian rhythm is the foundation of energy. Morning light exposure and consistent sleep-wake times regulate cortisol and melatonin, helping you feel alert by day and calm by night.
Your mitochondria repair while you sleep. Deep sleep triggers mitochondrial biogenesis, the process that restores cellular energy and slows ageing.
Sleep affects every system: brain, gut, and hormones. Poor sleep leads to inflammation, hormonal imbalance, and impaired digestion, creating fatigue and burnout.
Functional medicine offers real solutions. Simple changes like stress reduction, mineral-rich nutrition, and adaptogenic support can reset your sleep, energy, and overall health naturally.
EPISODE 103
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