What is Adrenal Fatigue? Symptoms, Causes & Stress Effects
Adrenal fatigue symptoms specifically refer to your body’s ability to cope with stress. Adrenal fatigue specifically refers to how the body responds when stress becomes prolonged and overwhelming.
The adrenal glands are part of the endocrine system. They are small glands about the size of a walnut that sit on top of the kidneys. They produce the stress hormone cortisol.
Due to modern lifestyles, the body can feel chronically stressed which causes the adrenals to constantly produce cortisol. Over time this can result in high or low blood pressure, blood sugar imbalances, weight gain, disturbed sleep, insomnia, sugar cravings, recurrent infections, fatigue that doesn’t improve with sleep and anxiety/depression.
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Symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue
Some of the symptoms of adrenal fatigue include difficulty waking in the morning even with sufficient sleep, feeling tired mid afternoon, difficulty falling asleep, becoming overwhelmed easily, craving sugary or salty foods, worsening fatigue with exercise, poor short term memory, digestive difficulties, food allergies, inflammation & inability to concentrate.
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Testing for Adrenal Fatigue
Testing for adrenal fatigue involves testing cortisol levels and DHEA.
Since cortisol is normally about 10 times higher in the morning than at night and it varies much during the day a single blood test is typically not going to be very helpful.
A salivary cortisol test in which saliva samples are collected at four different times throughout the day, is a better assessment of adrenal function. A salivary saliva test easily finds too high or low cortisol as well as deregulated cortisol rhythms, such as cortisol low in the morning and high at night. Knowing the pattern of adrenal function can help treatment.
Other recommended testing include:
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sex hormones
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estrogen
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progesterone
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testosterone
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thyroid
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Natural Medicine
Adrenal fatigue is the collection of symptoms often caused by prolonged stress that causes the adrenal glands to function less optimally. It is considered subclinical and therefore usually goes untreated by conventional medicine. Natural medicine tests and addresses the imbalances associated with adrenal fatigue using nutrition, herbs, whole food supplements & minerals and homeopathy bringing healing to the individual with adrenal fatigue.
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What Patients are Saying
I was tired all the time. I woke up tired, would nap after lunch and go to bed around 8 pm. I had no energy and never felt like doing anything. I wouldn’t go out with friends, rarely did physical activity and couldn’t concentrate enough to even read a book. I had physicals done by my doctor every six months and he kept telling me I was healthy. Although tests proved I had no allergies, I took allergy medicine every day to keep from getting a migraine, which happened two or three times each month. My doctor put me on anti-anxiety medicine because I felt angry a lot.
Since working with Dr Cafaro, I have a lot more energy and do not feel sluggish at any point during my day. I have greatly improved memory and my ability to think is as if I am in my twenties again. My physical health now allows me to enjoy thirty mile bicycle rides or hike up to nine miles and not be left in bed for several days to recover. I no longer have feelings of anger or depression and rarely get a migraine.
I no longer need anti-anxiety or allergy medications. I can function on limited sleep without any brain fog. I can stay awake and enjoy a good time well into the night. I am regaining friendships I had feared were lost. Since I had no idea how sick I was, neither did my friends. They thought I was just becoming anti-social. I can now make plans for events weeks in advance without worrying that I may be sick or have a migraine. I am able to keep up with housework, grow with my career and enjoy time with family and friends.