Adrenal fatigue is thought to be one of the many health issues that can be attributed to our high-stress lifestyles.
Stressed? Tired? Craving sugar? Can’t sleep?
These symptoms can be related to the constant stress we feel in our lives. We know that stress can have a huge impact on our health and wellness. The adrenal glands produce hormones in response to any type of stress so that we can respond appropriately. Adrenal fatigue or “HPA (Hypothalamus, Pituitary, Adrenal) Axis Dysregulation,” is a popular topic due to the ever-increasing stressors in our lives.
The adrenal glands look like walnuts that are located on top of the kidneys. These important glands produce many hormones, including the stress hormones, Cortisol, DHEA and Adrenaline to name a few.
Adrenaline and Cortisol are the stress hormones that give you the commonly known “adrenaline rush”. This feeling is known as your body’s “fight or flight” response. The release of hormones in the fight or flight response is your body’s normal reaction to stress. Stress can sometimes be positive, like when it helps you to swerve your car and prevent a crash. Once the stress is removed or resolved, the fight or flight response dissipates and your body goes back to normal.
Unfortunately, for many people the stressors do not get resolved and they often become chronic. The adrenal glands do not differentiate between “types” of stress. They respond equally to all forms of stress including mental and emotional stress as well as pain, inflammation, blood sugar imbalances, environmental, digestive and toxic stress.
Do You Have Adrenal Fatigue?
Your adrenal glands can become depleted from over-secreting stress hormones on such a regular basis and dysfunction can occur. In the case of adrenal fatigue, the level of Cortisol that is produced is much less than optimal. Many symptoms like fatigue, difficulty sleeping, mood swings, weight gain, joint pain, allergies, anxiety, sugar cravings, frequent infections such as colds and flus are signs that your adrenals are overworked. The following questionnaire will help to determine your adrenal health status.
Download my FREE Adrenal Health Questionnaire1 and Action Guide
1Fundamentals of Naturopathic Endocrinology Michael Friedman, MD pg. 218-220.
The following action steps are essential for achieving optimal adrenal health and stress management:
Action Steps for Optimal Adrenal Health
- Get tested – Salivary Adrenal testing will help to determine your level of adrenal fatigue. Purchase your Adrenal Stress Kit here.
- Find an outlet for your stress – exercise, dance, art, music etc.
- Recognize your stress – learn to identify your stress before it consumes you.
- List all your stress and eliminate the stress that you can change.
- Balance your blood sugar by eating every 3-4 hours. Download one of my healthy eating menu plans here.
- Eliminate the top dietary stressors – gluten, sugar, alcohol, caffeine and dairy.
- Get adequate rest, sleep and gentle exercise – walking, stretching, swimming etc.
- Take adrenal restoring herbs like Licorice root, Ashwagandha, Relora, Rhodiola, Siberian ginseng and Schisandra – Adrenomend, Exhilarin
- Take supportive nutrients such as Vitamin B-complex, Vitamin C, Magnesium, Fish Oils and Vitamin D3.
- Take adrenal cell extracts to boost adrenal function – Cortrex, Adrenplus 300
Check out my Stress Management Guide for self-care tips and tools to manage your stress!