Do you feel tired all the time? Do you find it hard to get out of bed in the morning? You might be suffering from adrenal fatigue.
This is a condition that occurs when your adrenal glands are overworked and can no longer produce enough cortisol, the hormone that helps you deal with stress.
About 10 years back, almost every girl in my family was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue (except for this one). Since then, we have striven to figure out the causes and cures for adrenal fatigue. It was clear that there was a connection to those who had it the worst, and those who found it the hardest to lose weight. One sister actually started melting the fat off just by changing her lifestyle to heal her adrenal fatigue.
This is her story in her own words:
I am a mother of 7 children. As I had each one, I seemed to get more and more tired, and just blamed it on having an infant and the lack of sleep.
I realized it was so much more than that after my last baby. I couldn’t even function. I would wake up, and live my whole day in a daze, barely able to take care of the kids. I was forgetting words, stumbling when I walked, and unable to focus on any tasks. I also was falling asleep any time I sat down, and if I tried to exercise I would be wiped out for days.
I saw my doctor, and he said that my adrenals were “shot” and I needed to rest, and to get some good nutrients to help them.
I am a vitamin snob, and have very high standards for what I am willing to take. A friend recommended a whole food supplement that tasted good and was easily absorbed by the body. The very first day I took it, I felt instantly better. I felt like I could focus, and was alert the whole day. I have now taken them for nearly 2 years, and I feel like a whole new person! I have energy, I feel like my mind is sharp and active. I sleep well, and awake refreshed, which still feels amazing. I also have been able to exercise, and spent a week at Universal Studios pushing around my mother in a wheel chair, and wasn’t sore!
You can find the stuff she took that helped her here from Kyani)
There are other ways to help conquer adrenal fatigue though, so keep on reading for all of the helpful tips along the way!
What is Adrenal Fatigue
First we must understand what adrenal glands are.
The adrenal glands are the secreter of hormones that keep us healthy and happy.
Adrenal glands are small organs that sit on top of the kidneys, just below your spine. The adrenal glands produce a handful or hormones which help maintain salt balance in our blood and tissues as well as keep pressure regulated so you don’t get HIGH blood sugar levels from low-sodium foods like processed food!
The job description for this little guy includes such tasks as producing cortisol, epinephrine (adrenaline), aldosterone among many others – all necessary in order to ensure our survival!
Is Adrenal Fatigue A Disease?
For some people, feeling exhausted is a normal daily thing, but for many others, the sudden lack of energy can be a frustrating and difficult thing to deal with.
Adrenal fatigue can manifest itself in a variety of ways, but the basic mechanism behind it isn’t quite fully understood at the moment.
Although adrenal fatigue exists, it is not a medical term, so most doctors will not be able to diagnose you for it. Once the adrenals actually start failing, it is called Adrenal Insufficiency, which can then be diagnosed and treated by a doctor.
For those who feel like they have overworked adrenal glands, who want to stop having chronic fatigue, or who have chronic stress, and low energy levels (like us), they may want to lift their energy levels and boost their adrenal health before being hit with an official Adrenal Insufficiency diagnosis.
Why Cortisol Levels and Adrenal Health Matters
Cortisol is released by your adrenal glands in response to perceived threats or danger. It increases strength and energy levels, helping you deal with a threat more effectively if one should arise.
A major function of this hormone is stress management–it’s what makes us feel prepared for any situation we might find ourselves facing; but there are many other functions too! For example: increased cortisol can be beneficial when trying new things because it helps focus on those skills most relevant at that moment.
The great danger is having high cortisol levels for too long (chronic stress), your body was not meant to hold up forever in a ‘flight or fight’ scenario. But in this day and age, many of us have stress-filled days. . . not just minutes or hours.
Cortisol levels are also important for maintaining blood sugar levels, regulating metabolism, and reducing inflammation. Inappropriate or uncontrolled cortisol levels can lead to weight gain, high blood pressure, diabetes, osteoporosis, and depression.
Adrenal fatigue is characterized by a decrease in the production of cortisol levels. So by the end of a stress-filled day at work, or taking care of children, or both, we can feel ‘worn out’ even if it wasn’t physically exhausting. That is because our cortisol stress hormone was working overtime and is done.
Symptoms Of Adrenal Fatigue
While very important pieces of this medical puzzle are still missing, there are quite a few symptoms that most people experience that point to some kind of deficiency of some essential chemicals in the body. These could include:
- blood pressure changes,
- sudden changes in weight,
- feeling of restlessness or tiredness,
- skin discoloration,
- chronic nervousness,
- eating or digestion issues
- and pain in the extremities or in your abdomen
are all primary signs that you could have adrenal fatigue.
The Chronic Stress And Weight Gain Connection
Now that we know that adrenal fatigue is brough on by chronic stress, let’s talk about how it connects to weight gain.
It’s simple: When we’re stressed, our cortisol levels go up. When cortisol levels are high, our body signals that we NEED foods that are high in sugar and fat (to keep up with energy our body thinks we need to fight or flee). We also have a harder time sticking to a healthy diet and exercising regularly because we just don’t have the energy for it and the end of the stress-filled day.
All of this leads to weight gain, which in turn puts even more stress on our bodies and creates a vicious cycle.
So, if you’re someone who is struggling with adrenal fatigue and chronic stress, it’s time to take action and start supplementing your diet with some of the best adrenal fatigue supplements out there!
Here are our top 10 Best Adrenal Fatigue Supplements you can take now!
There are many supplements on the market that claim to help with adrenal fatigue, but not all of them are effective. In this blog post, we will discuss 10 of the best adrenal fatigue supplements available and how they can help you feel better!
- Magnesium – This mineral is responsible for over 300 biochemical reactions in the body and is found in every single cell. It’s needed for energy production, protein synthesis, muscle and nerve function, blood sugar regulation among other things! Chronic stress can actually lead to magnesium deficiency because when we are stressed our bodies release a hormone called cortisol which depletes magnesium levels. Low magnesium levels have been linked to fatigue, anxiety, and poor sleep.
- Rhodiola – A perennial flowering plant that is part of the Crassulaceae family, Rhodiola rosea is most commonly found in cold regions of Europe, Asia, and Alaska. This “golden root” has been used for centuries in traditional Chinese and Russian medicine to help cope with stress, anxiety, and fatigue. Rhodiola helps the body adapt to stressful situations by modulating the production of cortisol.
- Siberian Ginseng – This root is part of the Araliaceae family and had also been used in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries. It is known as an “adaptogen” because it helps the body cope with stress. Siberian ginseng also helps improve mental clarity and cognitive function, making it a great supplement to take if you’re feeling foggy or run down.
- L-Tyrosine – An amino acid that is a building block for protein, L-tyrosine is found in many foods including meats, dairy products, beans, and nuts. It is also a precursor to several important neurotransmitters including dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine. These neurotransmitters are responsible for regulating mood, energy levels, and focus.
- Vitamin B-12 – A water-soluble vitamin that is part of the B complex family, Vitamin B12 is found in many foods including meats, poultry, seafood, eggs, and dairy products. It is important for energy production, red blood cell formation, and neurological function. Many people with adrenal fatigue are deficient in Vitamin B12.
- Pantothenic Acid – Also known as Vitamin B- five, pantothenic acid is found in meats, vegetables, grains, legumes, and eggs. It is important for the production of energy and stress management. Pantothenic acid has also been shown to help improve symptoms of adrenal fatigue.
- Ashwagandha – An evergreen shrub that is part of the Solanaceae family, Ashwagandha is native to India and North Africa. It has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for centuries and is known as an “adaptogen” because it helps the body cope with stress. Ashwagandha has also been shown to improve cognitive function.
- Holy Basil – A perennial herb that is part of the Lamiaceae family, Holy basil is native to India and has been used in Ayurvedic medicine for centuries. It is known as an “adaptogen” because it helps the body cope with stress. Holy basil has also been shown to improve cognitive function, memory, and focus.
- Maca Root – A root vegetable that is part of the Brassicaceae family, Maca is native to Peru and has been used for centuries as a food source and in traditional medicine. It is most commonly found in powder form and is known as an “adaptogen” because it helps the body cope with stress. Maca Root has also been shown to improve energy levels, stamina, and libido.
- Cordyceps – A parasitic fungus that is part of the Ascomycota phylum, Cordyceps is found in temperate regions of Asia and North America. It has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries and is known for its ability to improve energy levels, stamina, and athletic performance. Cordyceps has also been shown to improve immune function and help fight fatigue.
If you’re struggling with adrenal fatigue, these supplements may be able to help. Always talk to your doctor before starting any new supplement regimen, especially if you have any underlying medical conditions.
8 Changes That Help with Adrenal Fatigue
If you believe that you are suffering from adrenal fatigue, then you might want to take a serious look at the diet that you are currently employing. This means that there could be foods that you should really avoid in order to gain some relief from the disorder, but what about the vitamins and minerals that you get from the foods that you will now have to start avoiding?
The world of supplements has a wide range of products that you can use to replaces the foods that you no longer have the ability to eat.
The following paragraphs will be exploring some of the types that you will want to explore.
- Get more Sleep
- find more peace
- Follow an anti-inflammatory diet
- Try Dry Brushing
- take a ginseng supplement
- Add Licorice Root to your diet
- eat the right kind of mushrooms
- Keep up with your probiotics
Supplements
Many of the supplements that you can take will be relatively expected like B vitamins., B vitamins help to metabolize stored energy in a more stable and healthy way.
Finding a good multi vitamin might be a great way to keep your nutrition balanced.
Magnesium is essential for many processes in the body, so you will want to be aware of those levels as well.
Keeping pace with a good amount of antioxidants is nearly always a good idea because it combats nearly all forms of stress to the body.
One thing to be sure of, is that what you are taking has some kind of quality standards so you can be sure that you’re getting what you’re paying for. A small amount of due diligence goes a long way. Especially when it comes to health.
High quality supplements are hard to come by, and it’s hard to know just by looking at the bottle, whether the company is as high quality as they say. My family has been using Standard Process vitamins my entire life. My dad (a chiropractor specializing in nutrition) loves their products, and has actually seen great results with himself, his family, and his patients, who take them. We have also tried and were impressed by the company Kyani. Their supplements really helped invigorate us and many of us started to lose weight just by following their protocol.
Probiotics
Another form of supplements that you can take aside from the regular vitamins and minerals are probiotics. These are supplements that support the growth of important bacteria that are grown inside the body. You can also get these through yogurt and a variety of specialty drinks designed for the same purpose.
Tips for Managing Adrenal Fatigue
When confronting a difficult and debilitating conditions as adrenal fatigue, you can end up being faced with some very hard choices, but staying informed may help you to take control of the adrenal gland disorder, and return you to a place that is very close to your previous standard of living. Information can be difficult to weed through, so this information should help you understand how to better manage this condition.
Symptoms Of Adrenal Fatigue
Some of the ways that you can be alerted to the possibility of adrenal fatigue are if you are experiencing continuous tiredness, lack of sleep or sudden changes in sleep patterns, diet and weight loss, feelings of chronic stress, and a lack of mental clarity or brain fog.
Your mood is highly susceptible to the presence of important hormones, so it’s possible that the adrenal fatigue could simply be a symptom of a much larger issue. This makes adrenal fatigue a very difficult illness to diagnose, and it may require you to seek council of more than one health professional to make sure that all options are being considered. This is important because if the treatment is incorrect, then another illness may progress due to being treated incorrectly.
What You Can Do
Take note of all of your habits, and dietary choices. This will allow you to discover if there are any obvious factors that are changing your health for the worst.
In order to gain a balanced diet for your body, you may have to limit processed foods, and focus on healthy fats, vitamin C, and other foods that can stabilize your blood glucose, and help with insulin resistance. Be sure to start out simple and slowly add things back into your routine. Doing so helps to guarantee that you have a definite record of exactly when you started to feel sick again. You can take supplements aimed at restoring balance to specific systems like probiotics that are meant to help you to have a higher percentage of good bacteria in your gut.
That will help you to fight symptoms that cause problems in other parts of your body.
Dietary Changes for Managing Adrenal Fatigue
Adrenal fatigue is a difficult and unpredictable disorder that can have you wondering how you’re going to feel from one minute to the next. An important step in dealing with adrenal fatigue, is to identify what sorts of behaviors, habits, and foods might be a possible contributing cause to your condition. Once you have begun to identify some of the major factors, you can begin to make educated adjustments to your lifestyle so that you can increase your quality of life.
Symptoms
It’s unfortunate, but adrenal fatigue can manifest itself a wide variety of ways. Some these can induce vague symptoms like general tiredness, lack of sleep, high stress levels, impaired memory, major weight gain or sudden weight loss, extreme sudden feeling of nervousness or dread, irritability and other such disturbances of the emotional and physical nature. These symptoms can be so varied that they only way to know if there is any sort of deficiency, is to get some actual blood tests that can reveal whether or not you lack or have lower counts of specific hormones that should be present under normal circumstances. Be sure to make an appointment and follow the correct instructions that your doctor gives you in order to have a successful test.
Adrenal Fatigue Treatment
Getting extra sleep is always a good recommendation. Monitor your diet. Stay on a schedule that allows you to keep up with your rest, so that will mean that you should avoid staying up past when you feel tired. Take vitamin supplements like magnesium, vitamin c, and manganese.
Talk to your doctor if you think you might be suffering from adrenal fatigue.
Some cases of adrenal fatigue, can be attributed to something as simple as prolonged lack of sleep, or chronic stress, while other cases may be more difficult to diagnose because the real cause could be a serious condition stemming from depression or an autoimmune disease.
4 Types of Adaptogenic Herbs for Treatment
Traditional chinese medicine and herbal medicine might have some answers on treating adrenal function and strengthening the immune system:
When you’re facing a potentially frustrating disorder like that of the adrenals, there are actually a helpful number of natural treatments that you can employ to help you deal with the troubling disorder. One of the most celebrated types of treatment in the natural medicine world is the use of adaptogenic herbs, which are powerful non-stimulating herbs and plants, with the exception of ginseng. If you’ve been considering adaptogenic herbs for your adrenal fatigue, then you’ll be happy to learn about 4 different adaptogenic herbs you can use for treatment.
Ginseng
This root is the most common of all of the adaptogen types. Ginseng has a small amount of stimulant that can help revitalize you and wake you up when you need it.
Ginseng is known for helping the body to more efficiently metabolize stored energy, and helps to improve your endurance. Ginseng contains a high level of antioxidants, and is the perfect agent to help you deal with stress and repair damage done to the body by both hormonal imbalance and free radicals that can cause cancer. It is also very good at repairing oxidative stress.
Licorice Root
Like many of the herbs on this list, licorice root has the ability to foster a major increase in energy by boosting the immune system, and protecting many organs against damage that can be caused by cortisol. When the hormone cortisol is under control it is easier to achieve control over your emotional state, and it helps to improve metabolic functions.
The only catch, is that while the root has many positive attributes, it should only be used under medical supervision because of its ability to make major changes to your blood pressure, like too high or low blood pressure.
Reishi Mushroom
There are a few classes of mushroom that are excellent and powerful antioxidants, and reishi mushrooms are one of the strongest. This is largely due to their extreme concentration of nutrition, and their ability to boost immune health functions. Nutritionists have been suggesting the addition of certain mushrooms to the diet for decades for their positive influence on depression and hormonal imbalances and other health issues in people.
Even though they aren’t as popular some herbs like ginseng their value is has been firmly established.
Rhodiola
In the last few decades, dozens of studies have been done on rhodiola. Since the1960’s, it’s been well documented that rhodiola has some very useful effects on depression, anxiety, and other disturbances of the emotions. At one point, it was used to effectively treat the stress that was experienced by pilots and cosmonauts.
