Why do I yawn so much? I sleep 7-8 hours a night which apparently is sufficient?
922965
THE TRUTH IS that we don’t completely understand why people, or animals for that matter, yawn. It’s widely assumed that yawning occurs because we are tired or bored or because we see someone else doing it, but there isn’t any hard evidence to support these beliefs.\n\nThe most plausible explanation, and the one that is taught in medical school, is that we yawn because oxygen levels in our lungs are low. Studies have shown that during normal, at-rest breathing, we don’t use anywhere near our lung capacity; for the most part, we just use the air sacs at the bottom of the lungs. If the air sacs, called alveoli, don’t get fresh air, they partially collapse and the lungs stiffen a bit. As a result, it’s believed, our brain prompts the body to either sigh or take a yawn to get more air into the lungs\nalso when we someone else yawn if someone else yawns, we are naturally competitive so if someone else is getting more oxygen, our body wants more.
337700
From a lack of oxygen. Yawning is when your blood circulation slows down i.e at high altitude average people yawns at least 7 times per minutes.\n\nAlso a sign that adrenaline is slowing down and if inactive, the body will shut down.  Involuntary but necessary, seeing people doing so reminds us that the body needs it...
945586
if it is chronic and not just a lack of sleep one night, you should see a doctor.  It can be thyroid levels, chronic fatigue, depression, or a number of other reasons for it.  It is possible that some medication will make life much better for  you.\nNoone here is qualified to give an answer without knowing your conditions.  See a doctor if it is ongoing.\nGood luck, and good night :)
261121
I find it is lack of sleep or stress.  Maybe both.  It can take a long time to get rid of them or reduce them.  More often than not, one good night sleep does not make up for a week of late nights
38672
i sleep about 6 hrs at night. if you look into it people who sleep all day dont have much of a life. there wasting there day but about 7-8 hrs a day. scussful people dont sleeep all day their also more healthy than those who do sleep alll day
819136
There is such a thing as too much sleep.  Your body is remarkably good at self-regulating most of the time, but some times your "sleep barometer" gets thrown off for any number of reasons -- like cold/flu, minor depression, drinking too much alcohol, use of prescription/illegal drugs, the list goes on and on.  Best thing to do is to try and listen to your body.  If your body is telling you that you've had enough rest, then drag yourself out of bed (even if it feels like you're getting up too early).  If you're not feeling well or if you're just plain worn out for whatever reason, stay in bed and don't try to do too much or you'll get sicker or even more worn out.  Might take a little while, but you'll get used to listening to your body soon enough.
899029
if you go sleep at 9 pm, and wake up at 6 am, you are getting 9 hours of sleep, which is plenty. If you are still feeling tired, think about why. Are you eating healthy food? enough iron? enough excercise?
632459
Causes of yawning\n1.An indication of tiredness, stress, over-work or boredom. \n2.An action indicating psychological decompression after a state of high alert. \n3.A means of expressing powerful emotions like anger, rejection or apathy. \n4.A sign that one is not breathing deeply, and not receiving enough oxygen through the body. \nA yawn can express strong anti-social messages, and so in some cultures people try to mute or mask them by placing a concealing hand over the yawning mouth.\n\nA long-standing hypothesis is that yawning is caused by an excess of carbon dioxide and lack of oxygen in the blood. The brain stem detects this and triggers the yawn reflex. The mouth stretches wide and the lungs inhale deeply, bringing oxygen into the lungs and hence to the bloodstream. It is almost certain however, that this hypothesis is not correct. One study documented that this effect does not exist ("Yawning" by Robert R. Provine, pages 532-539, American Scientist, November-December 2005, Vol 93, No. 6). A more recent hypothesis is that yawning is used for regulation of body temperature. Another hypothesis is that yawns are caused by the same chemicals (neurotransmitters) in the brain that affect emotions, mood, appetite and other phenomena. These chemicals include serotonin, dopamine, glutamic acid and nitric oxide. As more of these compounds are activated in the brain, the frequency of yawning increases. Conversely, a greater presence in the brain of opiate neurotransmitters such as endorphins, reduces the frequency of yawning. Patients taking the serotonin reuptake inhibitor Paxil (Paroxetine HCl) have been observed yawning abnormally often.\n\nAnother theory is that yawning is similar to stretching. Yawning, like stretching, increases blood pressure and heart rate while also flexing many muscles and joints. Some have observed that if you try to stifle or prevent a yawn by clenching your jaws shut, the yawn is unsatisfying. As such, the stretching of jaw and face muscles seems to be necessary for a good yawn.\n\nThe yawn reflex is often described as contagious: if one person yawns, this will cause another person to "sympathetically" yawn.[2] The reasons for this are unclear; however, recent research suggests that yawning might be a herd instinct.[3] Other theories suggest that the yawn serves to synchronize mood behavior among gregarious animals, similar to the howling of the wolf pack during a full moon. It signals tiredness to other members of the group in order to synchronize sleeping patterns and periods of activity. It can serve as a warning in displaying large, canine teeth, thus proclaiming, "don't attack while I am sleeping..." The contagion of yawning is interspecific (i.e., try yawning in front of your dog). Yawning in public is generally regarded as impolite in the West, but came into fashion in polite French society for a brief period in the late 18th century. Oddly, sometimes sympathetic yawning may be caused by simply looking at a picture of a person or animal yawning, or even seeing the word "yawn".\n\nAdelie Penguins employ yawning as part of their courtship ritual. Penguin couples face off and the males engage in what is described as an "ecstatic display," their beaks open wide and their faces pointed skyward.
1174829
because our bodies are low on oxygen... we yawn to take in a big gulpl of fresh oxygen to awaken our sleepy oxygen deprived brain... you know it does a body good.
571157
The truth of the matter is that nothing may be wrong with you!  The amount of sleep needed varies from person to person with the average needed being 8 hours.  Some can get by on 5, others need 10 or more.  Since you have no symptoms of illness, are not depressed and you've always required a lot of sleep, this must be your "normal".  Nothing to worry about!
1150295
You may need to have a consistent sleeping schedule with the same amount of hours each night. Your body may be confused.
638006
I don't know. Maybe it reminds us of how tired we actually still are. Most of the folks out there never get enough sleep. To quote my Best Beloved "I'll sleep when I'm dead." All I know is that I like to nap....and even writing about yawns has me yawning!! Nap time!
839775
See a medical sleep specialist . . .it might be related to sleep apnea . .
947896
to much sleep is not good for you
123342
This might help\n\nhttp://www.world-science.net/exclusives/050309_yawnfrm.htm
217186
In humans, and probably in all those organisms that yawn, yawning is caused by a lack of oxygen. When we are tired, we breathe less often as well as less deeply, so our bodies have evolved a way to fix that problem: forced deep breathe.
56870
The dictionary tells us that yawning is caused by being fatigued, drowsy or bored, scientists are discovering that there is more to yawning than what most people think. Not much is known about why we yawn or if it serves any useful function, and very little research has been done on the subject. However, there are several theories about why we yawn.\nThe Physiological Theory -- Our bodies induce yawning to drawn in more oxygen or remove a build-up of carbon dioxide. This theory helps explain why we yawn in groups. Larger groups produce more carbon dioxide, which means our bodies would act to draw in more oxygen and get rid of the excess carbon dioxide. However, if our bodies make us yawn to drawn in needed oxygen, wouldn't we yawn during exercise? Robert Provine, a psychologist at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and a leading expert on yawning, has tested this theory. Giving people additional oxygen didn't decrease yawning and decreasing the amount of carbon dioxide in a subject's environment also didn't prevent yawning. \nThe Evolution Theory -- Some think that yawning is something that began with our ancestors, who used yawning to show their teeth and intimidate others. An offshoot of this theory is the idea that yawning developed from early man as a signal for us to change activities. \nThe Boredom Theory -- In the dictionary, yawning is said to be caused by boredom, fatigue or drowsiness. Although we do tend to yawn when bored or tired.