Does anyone on here have experience with adrenal fatigue and treating it without medication? I've been looking at a few herbs for consideration. I was looking at one product, Gaia Adrenal Health, but it has schisandra in it, something that I've had an awful experience with in the past.
I'm honestly not even sure if what I'm going through is just adrenal fatigue or something closer to just being depressed.
I've been seeing a functional medicine practitioner for the past 2.5 years, and adrenal insufficiency is one of the things he helps me with. I'm not quite sure if that's the exact same thing, but nonetheless, I have had some variable success with supplements. If things get too bad, though, I may eventually need to go on a form of oral steroid.
Most recently, my levels dropped quite significantly and my doctor has had me try ADR Code, ADR Lifeforce, Ribes Nigrum (as needed), and a double dose of Cortrex. I'm definitely not feeling quite as sick as I was before, but there's still some room for improvement.
If you haven't already, get your cortisol levels checked as this is a good starting point to figuring out what's going on with your adrenals, and find a doctor who really knows how to address this sort of thing as many still don't know that much about handling it.
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Why don't you take a pill, bake a cake, go read the encyclopaedia.
If you don't mind me asking, what sort of symptoms did you experience?
shareThe symptoms aren't always very specific, but I have a tendency to feel quite flu-ish when I'm going through a rough patch. What happens with the cortisol levels in my body is I tend to just release the bulk of my cortisol all at once upon waking, and then there's nothing left to sustain me for the rest of the day. An AM cortisol reading can show levels in the 900-1000 area, which is more than twice the normal amount, but if you take it later, there's basically nothing there. This leaves me feeling very ill throughout the day. Even my pupils don't respond to light properly.
ETA: I just looked it up, and apparently adrenal fatigue and adrenal insufficiency are not the same thing, though this will help explain my symptoms a bit better:
What’s the difference between adrenal fatigue and adrenal insufficiency?
While adrenal fatigue is not accepted by most doctors, adrenal insufficiency is a real medical condition that occurs when our adrenal glands cannot produce enough hormones. Adrenal insufficiency is caused by damage to the adrenal glands or a problem with the pituitary gland—a pea-sized gland in the brain that tells the adrenals to produce cortisol.
A person with adrenal insufficiency may be dehydrated, confused, or losing weight. He or she may feel weak, tired, or dizzy, and have low blood pressure. Other symptoms include stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.
Adrenal insufficiency is diagnosed through blood tests, and can be treated with medications that replace the hormones the adrenals would normally make.
http://www.hormone.org/hormones-and-health/myth-vs-fact/adrenal-fatigue
The webpage basically explains that there are no tests for adrenal fatigue -- it's usually diagnosed through some sort of evaluation like a survey (I actually found one online when I found this page). I'm no doctor, but a blood test is probably not a bad idea either way. It's always good to see what's going on in your body and if there's something specific causing you problems. It could be a quick fix.
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Why don't you take a pill, bake a cake, go read the encyclopaedia.
Ain't goin thru that prob but got some vast knowledge about supplements.
Adrenal insufficiency aka Addisons disease requires medical help especially medicine prednisone n other corticosteroids, which got some serious n nasty side effects.
Supplements which might help Addisons disease r Licorice, Dhea, vit B5 n coq10.
Do seek medical help.
A person who has health has hope n a person who has hope has everything.