Let’s face it, we live in a world that moves at breakneck speed that keeps many of us running all day long. It may often keep you burning the midnight oil as well with not enough time left for relaxation or recuperative sleep.
Being attached to nonstop technology that offers a continuous stream of texts, phone calls, emails, tweets, and posts, doesn’t really help either. They make even more demands on your time and energy by making you feel that you have to continuously stay engaged with the world going on around you. You may also be going through some hard times financially or personally. All that “stress of daily living” can lead you to experience the consequences of a real physical condition called adrenal fatigue. Let me tell you more about it.
Signs of Adrenal Gland Fatigue
Your adrenal glands are 2 little walnut-shaped organs that sit atop each of your kidneys. Even though they’re small, the adrenal glands do a big job of secreting over 50 hormones. These include the very important steroid hormones of adrenaline, cortical, estrogen, testosterone and aldosterone. They also help regulate blood sugar, fluid balance, your stress levels, inflammation in your body, and how well your immune system functions – to name a few of their important functions. It’s no doubt then that when they’re overworked, you’re not going to be functioning, or feeling, your best.
Some common symptoms of overworked adrenals can include:
• Depression
• Chronic fatigue
• Male and female hormones out of balance
• Low blood sugar – cravings for sweets
• Heart palpitations
• Intolerance to alcohol
• Sleep problems – too little or too much.
• Dark circles, puffy under eyes
• Bloating – cravings for salt
• Dry, blotchy, discolored skin
What You Can Do To Heal Your Adrenal Glands
Once you, or your doctor, have identified adrenal gland fatigue, there are a number of things you can do to reclaim the health of these very important organs. The first, and perhaps most important, thing you can do is to decompress. Turning off the chronic adrenaline/cortisol flow from your adrenal glands can help restore their balance as well as make you feel better. Here are some ways you can do that:
1. Turn off the technology. Limit your phone calls, texts, tweets, emails, etc, after 6 pm, unless you’re expecting an emergency message.
2. Keep your work in your office. Don’t bring your work home with you. If you have a home office, close the door at 5 pm and don’t go back until the next morning, if at all possible. Setting a regular schedule will help keep you from working nights too.
3. Exercise every day. Try to get at least 30-40 minutes of aerobic exercise. This type of exercise lessens stress hormones adrenalin and cortisol and creates “feel good” hormones called endorphins. Doing your aerobic exercise in a beautiful outdoor setting during daylight hours can also boost your mood and alleviate depression.
4. Make time for sleep. If you’re having trouble sleeping, try 1-2 milligrams of melatonin taken about 9-10 pm so you are ready to go to bed by 10-11 pm. Give yourself at least 6-8 hours to sleep.
5. Schedule your caffeine. Limit your caffeine use to early in the day. Cut it off after 3 pm to give your adrenals a chance to naturally calm down.
6. Optimize your diet. Limit/omit refined sugars, alcohol, and low-quality carbs (cake, pastries, cookies, etc). They can cause you to excrete more adrenalin/cortisol. Add more vegetables, fruits and high quality proteins to help stabilize blood sugar levels. Eat more protein at breakfast to help stabilize blood sugar levels all day. Save carbohydrates for dinner to help boost serotonin levels and help you sleep later.
7. Supplement. Stress can seriously deplete B vitamins – especially B12. Most adults over age 40 have trouble absorbing B12 and may already have natural deficiencies. Also, be sure you’re getting enough Omega-3 fatty acids, 1-2,000 mg a day, to help fight inflammation and depression caused by stress.
Adrenal fatigue, left unaddressed, can make you feel washed out, depressed, and chronically irritable. Because they affect your immune system, overworked adrenal glands can also lead to you getting chronic illnesses like colds, infections, or other more serious health problems. Even though you can’t make the world stop turning so fast, you can slow down your own personal world to help your adrenal glands function better and keep you healthier.
How To Tell if Your Adrenal Glands are Fatigued, http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-4911/How-to-Tell-If-Your-Adrenals-Are-Fatigued-Plus-7-Ways-To-Support-Them.html
Adrenal Gland Function, http://www.adrenalfatigue.co.nz/adrenal-gland-function/
