Adrenal Fatigue Adrenal fatigue is a collection of signs and symptoms, known as a syndrome that results when the adrenal glands function below the required level (Landa, 2012). Most commonly associated with intense and prolonged stress. It can also arise during or after acute or chronic infections, especially respiratory infections such as bronchitis, pneumonia or influenza. As the name suggests, its paramount symptom is fatigue that is not relieved by sleep but it is not a readily identifiable entity like measles. You may look relatively normal with adrenal fatigue and may not have any obvious signs of physical illness, yet you live with a general sense of unwellness, tiredness or gray feelings.
Signs and symptoms (Myth vs. Fact: Adrenal Fatigue, 2010): Symptoms are your body’s way of informing you that it’s not receiving the funding it requires. While none of these features have a direct causal relationship with adrenal dysfunction on its own, a distinct “aggravating pattern” emerges when all these factors are taken into consideration. Examine if you spot these tendencies in yourself:
Symptoms to look for:
- Blood pressure: High or low blood pressure are signs to be aware of. Low blood pressure can often cause the symptom of dizziness or vertigo associated with it, especially with a posture change, like going from sitting or lying down to standing.
- Food cravings and weight changes: Abnormal weight gain in the belly and thighs. Do you have cravings for salty or sugary foods, sometimes feeling uncontrollable?
- Energy: Ongoing fatigue, lack of stamina, feeling tired and wired much of the time. Lack of get up and go.
- Emotions and coping ability: Inability to deal with day to day stress, feeling overwhelmed much of the time, clambering to induce through the day, driven, having a very “short fuse”, anxiety attacks, and/or unable to reform ones thinking.
- Thinking: Mentally foggy, foggy thinking, inability to stay centered on one task, chronic racing thoughts.
- Immune response: Frequent infections, requiring a longer time than others to recover from sickness or infections or injury.
- Sleep: Inability to fall asleep or falling asleep well and/ or waking up one or more times nightly. Sleeping soundly, but waking up tired.
- Hormones/Libido: Worsening of premenopausal symptoms, depressed libido, severe PMS.
- Loss of body hair
- Skin discoloration (hyperpigmentation)
- Adrenal fatigue affects most of us on some level. If you or someone you love experiences some or all of the signs of Adrenal fatigue, please call today and get the help you deserve!!