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Balance Your Adrenal Glands Naturally
How to naturally balance your adrenal glands (Stress Management glands)
These walnut sized glands manage stress from all sources
"Adrenal Fatigue". Proper adrenal function determines how energetic you feel and your ability to
cope with the physical demands of life. Fatigued (Worn out) adrenals cause you
to feel exhausted and yet although a common problem, is very often misdiagnosed
in the U.S.
Wilson, James. "Adrenal Fatigue: The 21st Century Stress Syndrome."Smart
Publications, p. 6, 2002.
Adrenal glands are part of the endocrine system
You have 2 adrenal glands (One on top of each kidney)
which secrete 50+ hormones
(many essential for life). They include:
Glucocorticoids -
including
CORTISOL ; help body convert food into energy,
normalize blood sugar, respond to stress and maintain your immune system's
inflammatory response. Mineralocorticoids - including
ALDOSTERONE ; by
maintaining a proper balance of sodium, potassium and water in the body, they
help normalize blood volume and thus your blood pressure.ADRENALINE (EPINEPHRINE)
-
this hormone increases heart rate and controls blood flow to muscles and brain. Also helps liver convert
its store of
glycogen to glucose.
Body functions controlled by adrenal
hormones:
Maintain metabolic processes. E.g. blood sugar level management,
regulating inflammation
Regulating your body's balance of salt and
water
Controlling your "fight or flight"
response to stress
Maintaining pregnancy
Initiating and controlling sexual
maturation during childhood and puberty
Producing sex steroids -
such as estrogen
and TESTOSTERONE . Using bioidentical
hormone therapy in an attempt to normalize male or female sex hormones, without
FIRST normalizing adrenal function, will virtually guarantee failure because the
weakened adrenals will never allow the
hormones to find proper equilibrium.
Adrenals handle "fight or flight"
situations, but prolonged stress can cause their function failure
By increasing adrenaline and other hormones, prolonged stress increases heart rate and blood
pressure and slows digestion enabling body to divert all its energies to the
present potential threat or challenge. Prolonged stressors overwork the adrenals
causing their fatigue, these stressors include:
Anger, fear, anxiety, guilt, depression, worry,
relationship problems and other negative emotions
Overwork, including physical or mental strain
Excessive exercise
Sleep deprivation
Light-cycle disruption
(such as working the night shift or often going to sleep late)
Surgery, trauma or injury
Chronic inflammation, infection, illness or pain
Temperature extremes
Toxic exposure
Nutritional deficiencies and/or severe allergies
Signs and symptoms of adrenal fatigue
Decreased adrenal hormones, notably CORTISOL. Deficiencies in
certain adrenal hormones will vary from case to case, ranging from mild to
severe.
Addison's Disease. Mainly due to autoimmune disease, is adrenal fatigue In its most extreme form
experienced by 4 out of 100,000 people. It causes muscle weakness, weight loss, low blood pressure and low blood
sugar, and is potentially life threatening.
Hypoadrenia/Adrenal
Fatigue symptoms can be debilitating :
Unrelenting fatigue and weakness, especially in
the morning and afternoon - unable to keep up
with daily demands
A suppressed immune system
Increased allergies
Muscle and bone loss and muscular weakness
Depression and other mental disturbances, such as
increased fears and anxiety
Cravings for foods high in salt, sugar or fat
Hormonal imbalance
Skin problems
Autoimmune disorders
Increased PMS or menopausal symptoms
Low sex drive
Lightheadedness when getting up from sitting or
lying down /abnormal blood sugar levels
Decreased ability to handle stress
Trouble waking up in the morning, despite a full
night's sleep -rely on coffee/soda stimulation
Poor memory
People with adrenal fatigue often have bursts of
energy at specific times - not untypical is a
burst of energy around 6 p.m., followed by possibly
resisted sleepiness at 9 p.m. or 10 p.m.. Another "second wind"at 11 p.m. is
common, which may keep you from falling asleep until around 1 a.m.
Common adrenal function ACTH test does not diagnose adrenal fatigue
The ACTH (adrenocorticotropic hormone)
test only recognizes extreme underproduction or
overproduction of hormone levels (as shown by the top and bottom 2 % of a bell curve.
Inexpensive Salivary CORTISOL
test CAN
diagnose Adrenal Fatigue. Purchase online and do at home
How to recover from adrenal fatigue
Although natural treatments are very
effective, expect recovery to take some time:
6-9 months for minor adrenal fatigue
12 - 18 months for moderate adrenal fatigue
Up to 24 months for severe adrenal fatigue
Veracity, Dani. "Recovering From Adrenal Fatigue: How Your Body Can Overcome
Chronic Stress and Feel Energized Again."Natural News, April 6, 2006
http://www.naturalnews.com/019339.html (Accessed June 11, 2009)
KEY STEP: Address current and past emotional
traumas in your life. Using prayer,
meditation and/or Meridian
Tapping Technique (MTT) .
Rest when you feel tired. Short naps or just lie
down in the day
Sleep in late if you feel like it (and if possible :) ).
At least
until 9:00 am
Exercise moderately but
regularly. Daily 30 min walk, rebounding
Make what you eat
count nutritionally and control your blood sugar levels
Eat a small meal or snack every 3 - 4
hours
Eat within the first hour upon awakening
Eat a small snack near bedtime
Eat before becoming hungry - which indicates you have already run out of
fuel (low blood sugar), placing additional stress on your adrenal glands
Avoid stimulants. E.g. coffee and soda - can further
exhaust your adrenal glands
Possibly supplement with DHEA hormone with MD
approval (if after above steps, you are not seeing desired results) - adrenals normally produce this natural precursor hormone, which levels can be
low with adrenal fatigue;
