ADRENAL PROBLEMS (STRESS GLANDS OF THE BODY)

Fatigue and lethargy is one of the most common complaints amongst adult patients. If you have symptoms such as tiredness, fearfulness, allergies, frequent influenza, arthritis, anxiety, depression, reduced memory and difficulties in concentrating, insomnia, worn-out, inability to lose weight after extensive efforts, you may be suffering from adrenal fatigue.

Signs and Symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue and Stress (Symptoms may vary dependent on severity):

• Tendency to gain weight and unable to lose it, especially around the waist.
• High frequency of getting the flu and other respiratory diseases and these symptoms tend to last longer than usual.
• Tendency to tremble when under pressure.
• Reduced sex drive.
• Lightheaded when rising from a laying down position.
• Unable to remember things and a bad memory or foggy head
• Lack of energy in the mornings and also in the afternoon between 3 to 5 pm.
• Feel better suddenly for a brief period after a meal.
• Often feel tired between 9 – 10 pm, but resist going to bed.
• Need coffee or stimulants to get going in the morning.
• Crave for salty, fatty, and high protein food such as meat and cheese as well as sugar and carbohydrates
• Increase symptoms of PMS for women; period are heavy and then stop, or almost stopped on the 4th day, only to start flow again on the 5th or 6th day.
• Pain and extreme stiffness and tension in the upper back or neck with no apparent reasons and no form of therapy such as chiropractic, massage or physio seems to improve it.
• Feels better when stress is relieved, such as on a holidays or weekends
• Difficulties in getting up in the morning
• Frequent Urination
• Hair Loss
• Very quick tempered and easily angered
• Infertility
• Sugar Diabetes
• Headaches coming up from the neck over the vertex (top) of the head
• Stomach Pain
• Tiredness
• Dizziness
• Increase in smoking and drinking, grinding teeth (especially while sleeping), increase in eating and falling asleep straight after meals
• Crying
• Overwhelming sense of pressure and stress
• Loneliness
• Constant Worry and nervousness
• Skin rashes resembling Discoid Lupus or Psoriasis – small round red bumps growing larger to form large round circles with raised edges and lighter or darker inside.  The skin then dries up and dies off leaving scaly patches. Generally not painful.

Other signs and symptoms include:

• Mild depression
• Food and or inhalant allergies
• Lethargy and lack of energy
• Increased effort to perform daily tasks
• Decreased ability to handle stress
• Dry and thin skin
• Hypoglycemia
• Low Body Temperature or extreme heat and sweating on the hands feet and head
• Nervousness
• Palpitation
• Unexplained hair loss
• Alternating constipation and diarrhea and Dyspepsia/heartburn

HOW CAN ONE DEFINE STRESS?

Stress can be defined as anything which puts a load or tension on the systems of the body – be it emotional, physical or mental tension and as a result this renders in us an inability to cope.  Stress is also unique to everyone.  You must identify the source.

Our body has a built in mechanism to deal with stress.  Being able to handle stress is a key to survival and the control center in our bodies are the ADRENAL GLANDS.  When these glands become dysfunctional, our body’s ability to handle stress is drastically reduced and symptoms then start to manifest.  Fatigue now sets in and if not sorted out, can eventually lead to total exhaustion – burn out and inevitably ill health.

You might wonder where does all this extra energy and increased alertness initially come from?

Energy is divided away from the body’s normal repair and maintenance jobs such as DIGESTION, CLEANSING and REJUVENATING. Your organs such as the PITUITARY, ADRENALS, PANCREAS and LIVER are perpetually pumping out hormones to control blood sugar that you do not even need day in and day out.  Like a car driven too fast, the body goes out of balance and parts start to wear out.

Stone age man used this fast mechanism to obtain super strength and the speed to escape the jaws of a hungry predator.  Modern man’s “Stress” rarely results in the need to fight or run; the cause is usually a misplaced or out of control emotion or a real unfortunate happening in one’s life.

WHAT ARE THE COMMON CAUSES OF STRESS?

• Death of a loved one
• Heavy traffic on a daily basis
• Confrontations
• Marriage
• Pregnancy
• Deadlines
• Job losses
• Moving
• Accidents
• Divorce
• Financial Problems
• Illness
• Surgery
• Deficient diets
• X-rays, radiation, chemo, medication, toxic substances, bacteria and viruses
• One of the most commonly overlooked causes of adrenal fatigue is chronic or severe infection that gives rise to an inflammatory response. Such infection can occur sub-clinically with no obvious signs at all. Parasitic and bacterial infections including Giardia and H. pylori are often the main culprits.

Cortisol (The Hormone of Death)

The most important anti-stress hormone in the body is cortisol. Cortisol protects the body from excessive stress by:

Normalizes blood sugar – Cortisol increase blood sugar level in the body, thus providing the energy for the body to physically escape threat of injury in order to survive. Cortisol works in tandem with insulin from the pancreas to provide adequate glucose to the cells for energy. More energy is required when the body is under stress from any source, and cortisol is the hormone that makes this happens. In adrenal fatigue, more cortisol is secreted during the early stages. In later stages (when the adrenal glands become exhausted), cortisol output is reduced, and blood sugar balance becomes a problem.

Anti-inflammation Response – Cortisol is a powerful anti-inflammatory agent.  When we have a minor injury or a muscle strain, our body’s inflammatory cascade is initiated, leading to swelling and redness commonly seen when an ankle is sprained or an insect bite. Cortisol is secreted as part of the anti-inflammatory response. Its objective is to remove and prevent swelling and redness of nearly all tissues. These anti-inflammatory responses prevent mosquito bites from enlarging, bronchial tress and eyes from swelling shut from allergies, and swelling from being too intense.

Immune System Suppression – People with high cortisol levels are very much weaker from the immunological point of view. Cortisol influences most cells that participate in the immune reaction, especially white blood cells. Cortisol suppresses white blood cells, natural killer cells, monocytes, macrophages, and mast cells. It also suppresses the auto-immune system response to foreign insult.

Vaso-constriction – Cortisol contracts mid-size arteries. People with low cortisol (as in advance stages of adrenal fatigue) have low blood pressure and reduced reactivity to other body agents that constrict blood vessels. Cortisol tends to increase blood pressure that is moderated by calcium and magnesium.

Physiology of Stress – People with adrenal fatigue cannot tolerate stress and will then succumb to severe stress. As their stress increases, progressively higher levels of cortisol are required. When the cortisol level cannot rise in response to stress, it is impossible to maintain the body in optimum stress response. In this respect, we can conclude that stress does kill.

In summary, cortisol sustains life via two opposite but related kinds of regulatory actions: releasing and activating of existing defense mechanisms of the body and shutting down and modifying the same mechanisms to prevent them from overshooting and causing damage or cell death.

CHANGES TO BE MADE:

• Removal of Stressors
• Balance your blood sugar by always eating a low GL (Carbohydrate) diet
• Avoid Stimulants such as tea, coffee, chocolate etc
• Sleep!  It is important to go to sleep by 10pm every single night.  WHY?  Because your ADRENALS kick in for their second wind from 11pm – 1am.  When we rest early our adrenals are fully rested and the high gear is avoided.  Between 10pm and 1am our adrenals work the hardest to repair the body!
• Avoid TV and Computers and Cell phones late at night!
• Exercise!  Wonderful stress reducer.
• Nutritional supplements:  Vitamin B and C are essential for adrenal function, as well as Omegas, digestive enzymes, natural tranquilliser to help your body to cope (eg Valerian Root, Passion Flower etc)
• Check your Thyroid is working correctly
• Boost your immune system
• Detox your body!
• Take a maximum of 300mg of magnesium per day.

STILL NOT SURE IF YOU HAVE AN ADRENAL ISSUE?  ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS….

• IS YOUR ENERGY LEVEL LOWER NOW THAN IT USED TO BE?
• DO YOU FEEL GUILTY WHEN RELAXING?
• DO YOU HAVE A PERSISTENT NEED TO ACHIEVE
• ARE YOU UNCLEAR ABOUT YOUR GOALS IN LIFE?
• ARE YOU ESPECIALLY COMPETITIVE?
• DO YOU WORK HARDER THAN MOST PEOPLE?
• DO YOU EASILY BECOME ANGERED OR IRRITATED?
• DO YOU OFTEN DO 2 TO 3 TASKS SIMULTANEOUSLY?
• DO YOU GET IMPATIENT IF PEOPLE OR THINGS HOLD YOU UP?
• DO YOU HAVE DIFFICULTY GETTING TO SLEEP OR STAYING ASLEEP?

So did you answer YES to more than 5 of these questions?  Then you need to make changes to your lifestyle to cope in today’s world!