Super Woman Syndrome

Ladies, do you feel that you should wake up every morning and put on a leotard suit and wear a cape?  Do you feel as if you need to be looking around for a phone booth to change into your Super-She'ro gear?

The dream is that sprouting wings and flying would make things easier at times and if wearing a leotard suit and cape would help, I think most of us would be willing to stretch ourselves and do it 'for the greater good'. Back to reality here and the reality is that the Super Woman Syndrome is the end result of trying to conquer a busy lifestyle and you are going to slide down a slippery slope of physical and health problems if you keep on keepin' on.

How do I know if I might have Super Woman Syndrome?
Here are some key signs to look for: shakiness relieved with eating, sugar cravings, low blood pressure, moodiness, food sensitivity and GI upset, recurrent infections, restlessness, short temper and irritability, emotional lows, abdominal weight gain, hot flashes and night sweats, and fatigue most of the time.

Health consequences?
Altered stress response: elevated cortisol, elevated insulin, hormone suppression, inflammation, rapid aging, weight gain, insomnia, and difficulty resting.

Real life: The circadian rhythm is important, but in the Super Woman Syndrome, the rhythm can get discombobulated causing the body to produce low cortisol through the day and high amounts at night.  The effects will be that you won't sleep, you will be easily fatigued, and you will crave sugar and caffeine to keep yourself going.  Taking salivary cortisol levels 4 times a day can provide answers to the day/night body mix-ups.  The testing is affordable and easy.

What should you do if you have Super Woman Syndrome?
1. Draw some parameters around your life and make GOOD on the commitments you need to make.  Exercise, adequate sleep, R&R time, etc. You know what you need to do.

2. Engage in healthy relationships and disengage when possible from those that are depleting your emotional, mental, and physical reserves.

3. Learn to say NO.  Believe me, I haven't always been good at this myself, but I'm getting BETTER.

4. Get your HgB A1c tested.    Catching blood glucose problems early can lessen the risk of diabetes later. Cortisol can have a huge impact on blood sugar because it's basically a situation of stress on steroids.

5. Get your hormones and cortisol checked.  If you are struggling to function throughout the day, it's a simple way to see what's going on and to help you correct the problem. 


Now, take off the cape and the neoprene suit and rescue yourself and your health today.  I'm here to answer your questions and walk (no flying on this endeavor) you through the process of testing. 

To your good health,
Dr. Sonja