Adrenal fatigue & remedies

[XMAN.]

interesting thread, i will look myself for the paleo diet, but what i'm most interested is the relaxation techniques like power36 suggested , i'm hyperactive (technically ADHD) always stressed out and always depending on external factors to stimulate and motivate myself in other words i am an adrenaline junkie and i also use many stimulants like coffee and energy drinks..... but it's tiring sometimes i feel i'm gona explode i'm not in my early twenties anymore and i really need to take a break too (no heavy weights or any kind of exhausting activity).
i wish i have a nearby class for meditation or yoga or tai chi, but i don't i will look for these educational DVD's , i surely wanna learn how to breath well and relax a bit

sorry hanes didn't mean to hijack ur thread just that i feel we're on the same boat.

 

[hannes joubert]

sorry hanes didn't mean to hijack ur thread just that i feel we're on the same boat.

No worries, that is what the thread is for...

Seeing as the the adrenals are part of the HPTA axis that is responsible for T output etc, it may be a good idea to ramp up info on adrenal fatigue as it could be part of the users low T problems as well. You know, holistically speaking.

The more I ponder on it the more I realise, life is all about balance. Going hardcore is good and well, just be careful to balance that with plenty rest and recuperation, especially as we age...

Now that I have my T more or less sorted, I can concentrate on the adrenals. Who knows, maybe someone else will need to follow the same route and then the info is already available!!

 

[Zyglamail]

Going hardcore is good and well, just be careful to balance that with plenty rest and recuperation, especially as we age...

AND FOOD! Quality food! You are what you eat and long term crappy diets, aka the typical diet, stresses our bodies big time, always in a state of missing various nutrients etc. Food also has a direct effect on some of our systems hormones and having them constantly out of balance causes long term health issues (ie DR. Barry Sears and his talk of Eicosanoid).

 

[Zyglamail]

Also forgot to mention that as we eat more crap and rely more on meds a lot of the good bacteria in our digestive systems can get destroyed allowing for stuff like candida to grow out of control. The toxis they release stresses our bodies and imune system causing fatigue and a lot of other issues. Ive found a high potency proniotic to not only help control undesired overgrowth but help in the digestion of food. One of the most potent products ive found is from customprobiotics. Google them for web site.

 

[Power36]

Yea I cant go into the details of my condition, but I had to go heavy on probiotics for a good while....

Yes I am as guilty as anyone about pushing it hard in the gym, for over 20 years, and being an adrenaline addict, or recovering I guess we can say...not originally by choice....many things in life happened over the course of one time period, surgeries, heavy medications, personal stress, etc....and it nearly killed me....seriously 2 years ago I was 30% BF (normally 10% or under) and could barely get out of bed without popping pain meds, and had very little energy, literally falling alseep mid conversation with people....I was rock bottom.....fast forward 2 years later, Im 7.5% BF, lifting twice a day 4 days a week, can walk for hours no problem or pain......but for a good year I was doing heavy mind-body-relaxation stuff, mild mild mild workouts, lots of naps, rest, and tons of supplements to help with recovering my adrenals, list is too long or Id type it up here....

As for chilling out, Dr. Herbert Benson's book Relaxation Response will be an easy read to explain why....he also has DVDs that rock that show lectures of his, or studies he did on Tibetan monks where they could be in the snow with a sheet on them and by thoughts and breathing alone raise their core body temp to sweat, when most of us would go into hypothermia....its wicked cool stuff...also other authors to look into that write books in laymens terms might be some books by Dan Millman, I havent read him in a while but remember just about all of his books talk about breathing, stretching, light forms of yoga at home, and chilling out the mind body connection....Im a little tired but Im sure Ill remember more authors names.....Jon Kabat-Zinn is another good one who has some books as well lots of CDs you can get that help teach you breathing, meditation, relaxation techniques....

Dr. James Wilson's Adrenal Fatigue

The Peaceful Warriors Way

Mindfulness CDs and Tapes - Meditation CDs and Tapes - Stress Reduction CDs and Tapes By Jon Kabat-Zinn

Online Store - Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA

Relaxation Response

Those links should get you all started on simple ways to chill out, and why we need to chill out.....yea if life kicks your butt, youre a little older, or you have been pushing hard at work, gym, and then have personal stress on top, it might be good to learn about these things so you can manage it better so you never really hit "adrenal fatigue"....recovery is important in life....wish I could write ya a book to explain, but Ive had to discover the hard way many times over....at some point there is a chance you cannot "push through it"....I thought I was superhuman and bullet proof as far as being a workaholic, training my nuts off hard core and heavy on a regular basis, and being an adrenaline junkie...I ate well, rested well, did do lots of meditation, prayer, and spiritual things....but I had my foot on the skinny pedal to the floor (gas pedal) most of life, and cranked on coffee, ephedrine, etc in my younger years....its all cumulative....

take care of yourselves fellas!

 

[musclemom]

Which adrenal support supplement are you taking? Prescription or OTC? Something with actual adrenal gland in it is the best.

As for GF breads, little secret: Most of them are utterly SHIT. You're best bet for a bread substitute is Vans GF waffles. Most people can't even tell they're GF. Also GF pancake mixes are usually pretty good. Most GF pizzas are always going to have a dense, heavy quality, like the breads. Whole Foods sells a variety of GF bread, I think it's their in house variety literally called "the Gluten Free Bake House." It's probably one of the better breads but its only good toasted. The better health food stores are going to have better tasting GF foods. You're going to pay a little more money for them but ultimately they're more satisfying.

For GF pasta the best you're going to find is Tinkyada Pasta Joy, it's made with brown rice. About the only one that has a nearly normal "tooth."

I had what I thought was adrenal fatigue, never formally diagnosed, but I had virtually all of the symptoms. You get the right supplement, you clean up your diet and life and you can turn most of it around. However, you have to give up on being an adrenaline junkie. You cannot clean up, recuperate and resume the lifestyle. You can pretty much write off stimulants of all sorts, too. I have maybe one cup of coffee twice a week, total. Part of the problem with adrenal fatigue is that not only are you burned out, you lose the ability to mop up the excess adrenaline. You don't cope with stress properly. This is naturally a problem as we age but when you've accelerated the condition by abuse of stimulants and generally beating the hell out of yourself, you start feeling it a lot sooner.

 

[Vancouver]

I don't think low T is a precursor to adrenal fatigue, but clearly one could have low T as a result of adrenal fatigue as the adrenals produce substantially less DHEA, this is the way I understand it. I did a ZTR hormone panel 6 weeks ago for DHEAS, Test, Cortisol and E2, mainly to see where my Test was and Cortisol as I lead an extremely stressful life. I was extremely surprised by the results; Normal Test levels and very good E2, but low cortisol (how can this be???) and non-existent DHEAS. ZRT went on to explain the results and suggested adrenal fatigue. I did a lot of research and bingo; I didn't know it wasn't normal to have your wife or kids drag you out of bed by your hair every morning, I have a complete loss of wind at about 2pm everyday and I get a second wind around 8pm to midnight and sometimes until 2am; classic routine for a sufferer from what I've read.

Besides stress reduction, I've read you have to give up stimulants all together to fully recover. My diet is already very good (I eliminated refined foods and trans fats in 1995 after reading Optimum Nutrition). Where I'm guilty is coffee and alcohol. I'm not a boozer, but I easily averaged 2-3 drinks per day for about 3 years while getting a second business going (extremely high risk and stressful as a result).

Because I have extremely low DHEAS, I started with the Dermacrine, which was pre-planned prior to learning about the adrenal fatigue, it just made even more sense now. Within 4 days I felt 20 again (I'm 37)and completely forgot to make myself a coffee in the morning (I drink coffee to turn on the brain). I was on the Dermacrine for 15 days and then injured my back so I went off as I didn't want to waist it (results in the gym), started on Sustain Alpha immediately and within 4-5 days the adrenal fatigue came back, only not nearly as bad. I've been on SA for about 15 days, when the bottle is done I'll go on Dermacrine for 6 weeks, cut out all stimulants and then follow up with 4 weeks of SA. I'll do another hormone panel and see where I stand and then do it again...

While on Dermacrine, I gained 4lbs and looked leaner. Now on the SA and the 2pm blahs are much much less. I don't drink coffee in the afternoon anymore, I don't feel I need it. Also, while I was not treating depression previously, I'm sure I was suffering it...I'm a pretty happy guy these days!!

I think DHEA is the key; I've read it and felt it...

 

[Power36]

Im on prescription Adrenal Fatigue stuff... not sure of brand...there are a few brands my doctors use that Ive tried to look up online, and it seems they are only distributed through docs...

Companies such as:
Cognitive Nutrition
Pure Encapsulations
Vitanica
Designs for Health
Allergy Research Group

If you find a resource for these companies, I swear by them.

 

[hannes joubert]

Wow, this is excellent!!

Thanks for the feedback guys...Anecdotal evidence is the best imo....

I was not aware that there was prescription remedies for AF?? Any names?

Otherwise, lets keep the constructive additions coming in...

H

 

[Power36]

Well they are just pharmacy grade supplements that are not sold OTC.......its really lifestyle changes, lots of rest and relaxation, tons of supplementation of specific kinds which you can probably find in Wilsons book or on the AD website....if I have time Ill type up some...off top of head Vitamin C tons of it, Rhodea Rhodesia (spelling Im not sure you get the picture), NAC, ALA, green tea extract, pound anti oxidants like its going out of style...