The adrenals are small glands located above both of your kidneys. They consist of two regions, the medulla which is responsible for producing epinephrine and norepinephrine, also known as our body’s fight or flight response, and the cortex, which is responsible for producing hormones that may affect blood pressure, sugar levels, growth and some sexual characteristics. When the adrenal glands are exposed to ongoing elevated levels of stress, it may result in a condition called “Adrenal Fatigue”. Read on to learn more on how a naturopathic approach may help you manage it.
Common Symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue:
– Craving salt and sugar
– Intense fatigue
– Inability to deal with stress
– Feeling quite wired/ agitated, yet tired
– Not feeling refreshed upon waking up, even after a long sleep
– Trouble getting to sleep and waking up.
– Weakened immune system
Testing for Adrenal Fatigue
While symptoms are a great place to start diagnosing adrenal fatigue, both salivary and urinary testing tests are used when testing adrenal function.
Two Common Causes Adrenal Fatigue:
1. Having an Empathic Personality
Empaths are deeply sensitive individuals who are highly attuned to the emotions and energy of others. They can easily take on the emotions of others as their own. This can be a challenge when they have porous boundaries and end up absorbing the pain and stress of others, which may further lead to feeling fatigued, have difficulty falling asleep or getting up from bed.
Empaths can benefit from natural de-stressing methods such as meditation, yoga, acupuncture, proper whole food nutrition and having enough rest and sleep. Herbs and nutritional supplements can also be used to support mental health and the adrenal glands.
Adaptogenic herbs such as ashwagandha, rhodiola can support the adrenal glands recovery and help reduce stress.
Ashwagandha has been found to improve the quality of life, improves resistance towards stress, and help decrease symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Rhodiola is known for its capacity to support hormones and has been found to improve mental performance, increase energy levels and decrease cortisol.
2. Ongoing Chronic Stress
Prolonged stress, pain, or blood sugar imbalances, will affect the normal functioning of your adrenal glands, production of cortisol and other hormones become compromised. As a result, an increase in fatigue, pain and/or inflammation will be experienced.
If left untreated, chronic stress can affect your health and result in signs and symptoms such as fatigue, weakness, low blood pressure, dizziness and sluggishness.
People deal with stress, anxiety, anger, and depression in many different ways. What works for one person may not work for another one.
Simple ways to relieve stress:
Exercise is one of the most important things you can do to combat stress, it lowers cortisol a measure stress hormone, in the long run exercise also helps release endorphins, which are chemicals that improve your mood and act as natural painkillers.
Music therapy may help lower the level of stress and significantly decrease stress and anxiety.
Massage therapy while mainly used for pain management, has a long and strong record of success when it comes to alleviating stress and anxiety. It also enhances attentiveness, reduce depression and improve immune function, among many others.
To learn more about the naturopathic approaches to improve adrenal health, contact our Naturopathic Doctor, Dr.Amauri Caversan, and schedule a consultation. You can contact us here or call us at (416) 922-4114.
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The blog post
Naturopathic Approach to Adrenal Fatigue first appeared on Dr. Amauri Caversan
