You yawn again, and yet you don’t feel exhausted. This automatic gesture, so banal that we no longer pay attention to it, accompanies the transitions of the day, from waking up to going to bed. On average, we yawn around 250,000 times in our lifetime. But when yawning keeps happening, the question arises: is it still normal?
For sleep specialists, excessive yawning may reflect chronic sleep debt, an anxiety disorder, a medication side effect or, more rarely, a serious illness. Kristen Knutson, a sleep expert at Northwestern University in Chicago, sums it up: “A perfectly rested person will not fall asleep even during a boring meeting. If this happens, it is because the body is asking for rest.“Enough to look at this symptom a little more closely.
Excessive yawning: fatigue, lack of sleep and vital reflex
Yawning remains primarily a useful reflex: it is accompanied by a wide opening of the mouth, a deep inspiration then a deep exhalation which stimulates alertness. “Yawning helps stimulate alertness and promote oxygenation of the body, because the bronchi will open under the effect of stretching.“, explains Dr Faïza Bossy, quoted by TF1 Info. Normally, an adult yawns 5 to 10 times a day; beyond that, especially in bursts, we are talking about excess.
Fatigue remains the most common cause. Repeated lack of sleep, insomnia or sleep apnea syndrome leads to daytime sleepiness, difficulty concentrating, slower reflexes, irritability or muscle weakness. For the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, this drowsiness is far from commonplace: “A serious health problem with far-reaching consequences“, warns Dr. Eric Olson, president of the AASM, due to the risks of accidents and cardiovascular diseases.
Stress, medications, depression: other causes of excessive yawning
Stress and anxiety are also major triggers. When the nervous system is racing, the heart beats faster, breathing becomes disrupted and energy levels fluctuate, leading to shortness of breath, repeated yawning and feelings of tension. Yawning has been linked to an increase in the stress hormone cortisol, shedding light on the link between
excessive yawninganxiety and fatigue. In depression, intense exhaustion but also certain antidepressants can increase yawning.
Many medications can also trigger excessive yawning. A French pharmacovigilance report has identified 63 cases since 1985, with a median age of 47 years and a median onset time of 24 hours after the introduction of treatment, and an evolution most often favorable after stopping or reducing the dose. Specialists cite mainly serotonergic antidepressants, dopamine agonists, opiates and their withdrawal, certain antiarrhythmics, anesthetics, antiepileptics such as valproate or even caffeine withdrawal.
Excessive yawning: when to worry and consult urgently
In some cases, frequent yawning reveals a serious pathology. Doctors describe them in intracranial hypertension, brain tumors, strokes, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, but also in infections of the nervous system or liver failure. Dr. Faïza Bossy also recalls that “Yawning can alert you to certain digestive pathologies.and that they are sometimes seen in patients with migraine or exposed to carbon monoxide. Sudden headaches, confusion or high fever should therefore be a warning. Certain signals then require immediate consultation:
- Signs of stroke: distorted face, weak arm, difficulty speaking;
- Squeezing chest pain, shortness of breath, nausea, or upper body pain.
In the majority of cases, excessive yawning is benign and lifestyle-related. But if they are accompanied by unusual or persistent symptoms, they deserve medical advice, because the body sometimes sends signals that are more serious than they seem.