Using Your Laptop For A Pillow?

Do you have trouble sleeping at night? Do you feel like you want to nap throughout the day? Constant fatigue? Inability to lose weight even with diet and exercise? Crave salty or sugary foods? Have low energy in the morning and afternoon? ......... Did you answer YES? ...........................You may have adrenal fatigue.

Before defining ADRENAL FATIGUE, let's review the functions of the adrenal glands. The adrenal glands are two small glands located on top of the kidneys. Their purpose is to help the body deal with stress. They produce many different hormones in three major classes-glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids, and androgens. These hormones are primarily concerned with controlling you 'Fight or Flight' response to a stressor by stimulating the body so that it has energy to deal with danger or a stressful situation. This adrenal response involves an initial release of adrenaline, which causes a sharpening of the senses, rapid heart rate, and acute mental alertness. Adrenaline is quickly converted into cortisol, which circulates in your blood stream for a much longer time. Cortisol slows digestion, inhibits thyroid function, and increases blood sugar levels, supresses the immune system, and contracts mid-size arteries. All this is done to help your body deal with a stressful emergency situation.

In modern times these stressors manifest themselves in our fast-paced lives in different ways (see below). Problems arise when sustained stressors cause the prolonged release of cortisol in the body. Our bodies were not meant to maintain this 'Fight or Flight' state constantly; and doing so is detrimental to our health. Eventually, the adrenals are simply not able to mount an effective response to stress, and these excessive cortisol levels decrease to an ineffective level.

Common Causes of Adrenal Fatigue:
Chronic Illness                              
Severe/Chronic Stress
Chronic Pain
Anger                                             
Low Blood Sugar
Depression
Consistently High Caffeine Intake
Excessive Exercise                       
Maldigestion
High Carbohydrate Diet              
Sleep Deprivation

Symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue:
Imbalance of Sex Hormones (estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, DHEA)        
Fatigue
Sugar Cravings                      
Shakiness between meals                                            
Insomnia
High Cholesterol                    
Weakened Immune System                                       
Memory problems
Weight Gain... Weight Gain... Weight gain
Low sex drive                        
Fatigue especially afternoon                                     
Increased insulin resistance

Call me if you have any of these symptoms or feel you may be suffering from adrenal fatigue. This can be tested and might get you off the couch and plugged back into society.  It's simple and you can do it from your own home.

To your good health,
Dr. Sonja