Adrenal Fatigue - Part 3 - Wired, Tired & Inflammed

We’ve covered so much information in the last couple of days! It has been fantastic. We have looked at feeling WIRED FOR SOUND and WIRED, TIRED AND SICK and what our adrenal glands are doing throughout these stages.  If you haven’t seen the first two posts perhaps go back and read them now.  Today’s session will make a lot more sense to you! Today we are looking at feeling WIRED, TIRED AND INFLAMMED the ongoing cascade of adrenal fatigue.    You may remember that yesterday we spoke about how the adrenal glands don’t always fatigue in one hit.  We have covered what happens when the adrenaline producing medulla fatigues first but what happens when the cortex, which secretes cortisol, starts to fatigue. When your adrenal medulla is producing lots of adrenaline you may experience a boost of energy but at the same time episodes of insomnia and anxiety often follow suit.  That nervous jittery energy is working against you and not giving your body or central nervous system time to rest.  In this example, whilst your adrenaline is pumping, your adrenal cortex has grown tired and is no longer producing the same high levels of cortisol that it had been in the past.  The organs and tissues which had become accustomed to high cortisol level are now thrown by the apparent lack of the hormone.  Cortisol is a steroid hormone.  One of the roles of this steroid is to keep the body’s immune response in check.  In a healthy state it stops the body from over reacting to small stimuli and helps the body to ramp up when assaulted with a large threat.  When the cortisol levels drop the immune system is no longer kept as carefully in check.  It allows the body to perceive stress as a threat, particularly with the large amount of adrenaline now floating around. The body’s natural immune response is to send inflammation to areas of the body which are ill or damaged.  This works effectively as the body sends helper cells to the point of injury.  Think of a sprained ankle.  After the initial insult the body sends inflammation and helper cells to the area, then once the tendons have repaired themselves, the inflammation dissipates and normal function returns. When the whole body is under stress and the immune system perceives stress as injury, what ensues is generalised inflammation.  Inflammation is a complex biological cascade of cellular signals, ultimately resulting in clinical symptoms of pain, swelling, heat and redness.   When you have adrenal fatigue the symptoms of inflammation can be a little more subtle than our example of sprained ankle, but chronic inflammation often presents with pain of unknown origin, rashes and hives.  The inflammation does not only occur in muscles and joints and our digestive system is often an easy target.  People with low cortisol adrenal fatigue often report symptoms of undiagnosed pain, irritable bowel, food intolerances, bloating, brain fog and depression. Interesting there is emerging research linking chronic inflammation particularly of the bowel with depression.  Given that our gut produces over 90% of our happy hormone, serotonin, it’s not really that surprising! And the research was conclusive that it was not the depressive symptoms causing the inflammation but the inflammation predisposing individuals to depression.  This has prompted a new interest by pharmaceutical companies in reworking existing anti-inflammatory medications as a potential treatment for depression.  Chronic inflammation has also been found to be a precursor to other states of dis-ease within the body. If we can identify and manage the cause of the inflammation then we have an opportunity to stop the cascade of events that so often follows.  In the example that we are discussing today, we would be looking at working to rest and re-energise our adrenals by more comprehensively managing stress and in our lives.  A practitioner who is experienced in recognising and treating adrenal fatigue will be a valuable ally in managing your individual symptoms.  It is also important, that any other disease state is ruled out so that a comprehensive and appropriate adrenal fatigue management plan can be developed with you.  But, overwhelmingly the good news continues to be, that your body wants to heal itself.  With the right wholistic support and your commitment to managing stress, making nutrition and sleep a priority it can generally be achieved. Over the past few days I have offered some suggestions regarding bolstering your nutrition intake with doTERRA’s Life Long Vitality supplements to bridge any deficiencies in your diet, seeking professional advice and counselling to assist with stress management and sleep issues and incorporating calming essential oils to help with this, the benefit of relaxing exercise that does not further tax the adrenals and taking time each day for your own self care. Today I would like to highlight some other considerations for anti inflammatory care. * Nutrition. There are some foods that are especially good for assisting with inflammation.  Fruits and vegetables such as blueberries, apples and leafy greens are high in natural antioxidants and polyphenols which are natural protective compounds found in plants.   Olive oil, Fatty fish and nuts like almonds and walnuts are also protective of inflammation.  Studies have found association between moderate nut consumption and reduced markers of inflammation and a lowered risk of cardiovascular disease. With adrenal fatigue you need to consider maintaining good energy reserves, so incorporating lean protein and complex carbohydrates at every meal will be important for you.   Foods that you are more likely to worsen inflammation include refined carbohydrates such as white bread and pastries, fried foods, soft drinks and other sugar sweetened drinks, processed meats and red meat, gluten and for some people dairy.  Chemicals, additives and preservatives are also known inflammatory components of commercially produced food.

Other considerations specific to adrenal fatigue include: in excess, alcoholic drinks can reduce immune function and energy production; caffeine over stimulates your adrenals. It depletes important B vitamins and can alter your pH.  Foods high in potassium make adrenal fatigue worse – bananas, all melons, dried figs, raisins, dates, oranges, grapefruit, etc. 

* doTERRA’s DDR Prime is a proprietary blend of Frankincense, Wild Orange, Litsea, Thyme, Clove, Summer Savory, Niaouli, and Lemongrass essential oils, shown in studies to promote a healthy response to free-radicals while supporting healthy cellular function.You can include dōTERRA DDR Prime softgel caps in your daily routine to assist with cellular antioxidant protection. * Copaiba and Frankincense essential oils have been researched for their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant actions.You could incorporate either or both of these oils in your daily aromatic dressing along with the rosemary, cinnamon, clove or dōTERRA On Guard protective blend that we mentioned yesterday.Both copaiba and frankincense have been given the food standards of Australia and New Zealand approval as a food flavouring. Research is suggesting that both are most effective against oxidative stress and inflammation when taken internally. What steps are you prepared to take to start healing your adrenals and the cascade of symptoms that result from their fatigue and subsequent hormonal dysregulation? If you are new to CPtG essential oils and would like to discuss what natural solutions are available to enhance your wellness please message me. I would love to help you. You can also find more information about essential oils here.

Sandra xo