Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
- Why Adrenal Health is So Important
- Dependence on Sunglasses
- Hollow Cheeks
- Lines in the Fingertips
- Pale Lips
- Balding Lower Legs
- Unexplained Back or Knee Pain
- QUICKLY Get Relief From Adrenal Fatigue
- Get to bed no later than 10:30 pm
- Throw out the processed salt and replace with sea salt
- Eliminate coffee and refined sugar from your diet
- Reduce dependence on grains
You’d have to be living under a rock not to notice that adrenal fatigue and adrenal problems, in general, are at epidemic proportions in our modern culture.
Just notice how nearly every gas station sells energy drinks and shots and there is a coffee shop on practically every corner. The average American now consumes a whopping 180 lbs per year of refined sugars. These signs surely provide sufficient evidence.
By the way, the 180 lbs of sugar per year figure is a shocking 27% increase just since 2003 when sugar consumption was 142 lbs per person per year!
Caffeine and sugar consumed in excess amounts will sucker punch your adrenal glands faster than just about anything else, no doubt about it.
I’ve read a lot of articles about the adrenal glands and adrenal fatigue over the years. Most of them focus on the symptoms which include excessive fatigue, hair loss, sleep problems, difficulty getting going in the morning, etc. You know the drill.
What I haven’t seen as much written about is why it is so critical to keep these two walnut-sized glands at the top of your kidneys happy and healthy and how to spot the freight train of adrenal fatigue coming full speed down the tracks and about to smack your life upside the head.
Fact is, once you are losing your hair, can’t sleep at night or get off the couch during the day, adrenal fatigue has already sucked the “life” out of your life. At that point, mustering the strength and courage to reverse course can be quite daunting indeed.
Why Adrenal Health is So Important
A few years ago, I attended the Wise Traditions Conference hosted annually by the Weston A. Price Foundation. One of the most interesting lectures I attended during that information-packed weekend was given by Dr. Bruce Rind MD, a holistic endocrinologist whose talk focused on spotting and reversing thyroid and adrenal problems.
I learned from Dr. Rind that the health of the thyroid gland and the adrenal glands is inextricably linked. If one goes south, the other one probably will too and in very short order.
Adrenal problems can frequently masquerade as thyroid problems. As a result, if the adrenal glands are experiencing high levels of stress day in and day out from lack of sleep, too much sugar and caffeine in the diet and a rush rush lifestyle loaded with carbohydrate-heavy processed foods, thyroid gland problems will eventually manifest along with the adrenal problems. Panic attacks may occur as well.
Why is this such a big problem?
Because thyroid problems often end up going hand in hand with insulin resistance problems. The development of insulin resistance is a BIG problem as this has a direct effect on longevity.
Once insulin resistance and blood sugar problems enter the picture, the domino effect to Metabolic Syndrome takes place, a fancy name for a group of risk factors which includes heart disease, stroke, and Type 2 diabetes.
Now that we know why we need to keep the adrenal glands in ship shape and why ignoring this problem will only lead to more serious and imbalanced endocrine problems in the future, let’s explore the early signs of adrenal problems.
As you can see, a person’s overall hormonal balance is extremely intricate and one endocrine disorder frequently portends another then another. Hence, keeping one’s adrenal glands from becoming overly fatigued is extremely important as the seemingly insignificant signs of early adrenal dysfunction and insufficiency can rapidly start a person into a downward spiral to Metabolic Syndrome.
When does one cup of coffee in the morning or that afternoon pick me up candy bar suddenly indicate a major problem on the horizon?
Here are a few lesser-known signs of adrenal fatigue as described by Dr. Rind in his Wise Traditions lecture and as written in my notes:
Dependence on Sunglasses
Are you one of those people who can’t stand to be out in the bright, midday sun without your shades? Oversensitivity of the eyes to bright sunlight is a sign of adrenal problems from a chronic sodium-potassium imbalance which prevents the pupils from properly constricting in response to bright light.
The good news is that being out in the midday sun with no sunglasses is a way to strengthen the adrenals. When I do errands, I try to leave my sunglasses in the car and walk to and from the stores so that my eyes get a good dose of unobstructed sunlight.
I’ve noticed that my eyes have become significantly less sensitive to sunlight over the years as my diet has improved with the general banishment of refined sugars and carbohydrates in my home. While I still wear sunnies for safety reasons to reduce the glare while driving, I frequently find myself forgetting to put them on at all on very sunny days.
Hollow Cheeks
This young person shown in the picture to the left has some serious adrenal fatigue! My bet is that there is a lot of sugar and caffeine going on in that diet. Being young is no protection from the ravages of hormonal disruption. If you find your cheeks hollowing out, take a look at your diet pronto.
Skip the collagen injections and lose the sugar, caffeine, and refined carbohydrates instead!
Lines in the Fingertips
Turn your hand over and examine the skin of the fingertips. Do you see nice, plump fingertips or is the skin covered with vertical lines? If they are nice and plump, that is a good sign for your adrenals. Lots of vertical lines in your fingertips indicate adrenal stress.
My own fingertips used to be quite lined years ago, but getting off refined sugar plumped them out nicely within a few months.
Pale Lips
I have a friend who once told me that after about age 30, a woman’s lips disappear into the back of her head! This was a colorful way of saying that lipstick was mandatory after a certain age.
I don’t agree! Lips that have no color whatsoever is not always an age thing. It can also be a sign of weak adrenals. When refined grains and sugar are eliminated and any grains that are eaten are properly prepared with minimal to no caffeine in the diet, most women are delighted to see a youthful pink return to their lips once again!
One of the most striking things I noticed when I went on the GAPS Diet a few years back was how the color flooded into my face and lips. Clearly, my adrenals were on the mend!
Even now, I can tell within an hour or two if my adrenals have been stressed by the meal I just ate…my lips go pale almost immediately. Watch this yourself. You will be amazed at how quickly the amount of color in your lips will indicate how your adrenals are feeling at that moment.
Balding Lower Legs
Do you have bald patches on your lower arms and legs or sparser hair in those areas than you used to (particularly men)? This could be a sign of adrenal fatigue.
Boys entering puberty with sparser beards and leg/arm hair than their peers are frequently those with low adrenal function and an overall lower drive to achieve.
Unexplained Back or Knee Pain
Muscle weakness is a frequent sign of adrenal insufficiency. Unexplained back or knee pain with no accompanying structural defect may indicate weakness of the muscles supporting the pelvis and/or knees.
In the case of lower back pain, chronic adrenal stress leads to weakness in the muscles which support the pelvis causing the pelvis to subluxate in a posterior direction. In other words, the lower back pain has nothing to do with the lower back and everything to do with muscular instability in the pelvis.
QUICKLY Get Relief From Adrenal Fatigue
If you suspect that you have adrenal fatigue, it would be a good idea to get a holistic physician to do a thorough examination and consultation. Hormone problems are incredibly intractable conditions to reverse and professional advice is warranted in most cases.
In the meantime, you can quickly provide your adrenals relief if you do the following:
Get to bed no later than 10:30 pm
This piece of advice was given to me by an Ayurvedic MD over 15 years ago. It is still one of the best pieces of advice any doctor has ever given me. She explained how the hormone system cleanses between 11 pm and 1 am (generally speaking) and if you are not asleep during this time, the flushing process will not take place, essentially backing up the hormone system with toxins.
Throw out the processed salt and replace with sea salt
The adrenals need GOOD salt. Use sea salt to taste in your dishes at home and your adrenals will thank you!
It doesn’t matter the color either! Just make sure it’s not white.
Eliminate coffee and refined sugar from your diet
This is a simple piece of advice but easily ignored in our crazy modern lives. Continue with the daily caffeine/sugar fixes, and you WILL have serious hormonal issues down the road if you don’t already. Coffee has already been linked to blood sugar issues (sorry bulletproof coffee fans). Combine this with a sugar-filled diet and the Metabolic Syndrome freight train has left the station.
Is it really that hard to replace that cup of Joe with dandelion coffee or green tea and the white sugar/high fructose corn syrup with natural alternatives like raw honey? Do it today!
Reduce dependence on grains
The Western diet is overly heavy in grains and starches which tax the adrenals when consumed to excess. Focus the diet on clean meats, organic and biodynamic vegetables and fruits, seeds, nuts, eggs, and grass-fed dairy. You will very soon feel the energy that comes with a significantly reduced digestive burden and begin to regain more youthful vitality that comes with healthy adrenals!
References
Dr. Bruce Rind MD, Lecture at Wise Traditions Conference
CBS News: Coffee and Blood Sugar
More Information
Vitamin D Deficiency Signs Most People Miss
Rethinking Fatigue: What Your Adrenals are REALLY Telling You
Adrenal Exhaustion: A National Epidemic
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suprachiasmatic_nucleus
Hi,
Is rocksalt, which is available here in a pink shade, any good? Its supposed to have a laxative effect, and is not reccommended in large quantities.
Viraj
Just couldn’t help noticing the sunken cheeks and was immediately reminded of pictures of Adam Lanza, the young man responsible for the Newtown shootings. I can not help but wonder what if any factor, foods have in events like these. A very touchy subject, but I hope it is one of the many things we observe and can learn from.
Hey, it was nice to find this site. I’ve been self diagnosed because here in Finland at least I haven’t found any doctor who would recogn my condition. I came sick 1,5 years ago. It was after one night, first I felt really anxious and had breathing difficoulties. I started panicing whats going on and went outside to have a few deep breathes and it went away. Next morning it came back more severe and I thought I were dying and having a heart attack. I went to ER and everything was fine. I went home and just cryied whats happening and want my old life back. I lost a lot of weight nearly 10kg, I had a feeling of a clumb in my throat all the time and couldnt eat. I couldnt think straight and my heart was pouncing like crazy all the time. I were on sick leave nearly 2weeks. Doctors thought I’m just depressed and tried to offer me drugs for that. I declined. I wasn’t depressed but sure felt that way after nobody could tell me whats wrong. I only wanted to sleep and indeed I did. I slept 12 hours night sleep and sleep was so bad, next morning I just waited when I could sleep again. I began to have delayed food allergies. I werent interested of anything. After two weeks I started to find out myself whats wrong with me. It took me six months to find out adrenal fatigue. I’m sure I have it. It just annoying to be all alone with this. I always get little bit better and then again it’s few steps back, I just hope I finally get better once and for all. At the moment I’m having panic attacks once again after many months but I’m also suffering from severe sleepyness and I’ve started to gain some weight. I even had my thyroid testes done and it looks I have a hypofunction of thyroid (?! When it’s not functioning good enough and is slow). Doctor wanted to look them for another year because they still were in line but not very good, TSH 3,8 and T4V was 11.
Maybe adrenal fatigue infects to thyroid as well and another way around. But yes I’m working my way through sickness were doctors didn’t helped but found the help myself. I’m just looking forward to the time were I’m well again as I were before. Sure now afterwoards I realise I had this coming for a long time I just didn’t realise to listen my over stressed body (I were stressed all the times, suffered from insomnia and raicy heart). Now I would give just about anything to feel normal again. But I know I can have it back. It just takes some time. Hugs to everyone suffering from this! After recovery we just become stronger and can manage pretty much everything, yeah? 😉
I love reading your blog. I felt the same way. Your not alone. Don’t know if I will be the old me but I have to start liking the new me. I am by your side.
I found out that not only do I have adrenal fatigue, my thyroid was also being attacked by body. The doc said the two come hand in hand. When one starts to fail, then others will follow. And being tested for Gluten allergy should be done. I have Ceiliac disease which over the years not knowing it, eating flours made of wheat, barley, rye or oats. They have a binder in them that destroys the villi in the small bowel that moves your food through. Over time, if I would have kept eating the breads, pies, cakes etc; I eventually would have gotten colon cancer. Thank God I found out before that had a chance to happen. It will take about 2 years for my body to heal itself and the villi start growing back. Soooo, Gluten-Free, Thyroid and Adrenal medicines along with vitamins such as B12, D, Centrum Silver, Magnesium and Iron. Some days are better than others, but at least with meds and my new diet, I will live to a good old age with all my faculties in place. I thank God for helping get all these things fixed so I can be here to help others. 🙂
Hi Sarah and everybody reading my words. I found your article just now because I have many problems to solve and do not know where to start. I know that you are busy with other articles (after all you posted this in 2010) but I have some hope that you can answer me.
Here is a list with some of the problems I am facing:
1. I have been battling with lack of appetite for years (over 30 years);
2. I am unable to go to bed early (if I do, I am unable to sleep). So, 2 o’clock in the morning or 3 is my time (I tried lots of things to reverse this but somehow I cannot do it which gives me a lot of frustration). Especially when I have a 10 month old baby to take care of;
3. Six years ago I had a stupid accident: I was on top of a heavy wooden chair and I fell on it… my coccyx hit very hard on one of its tops. It was probably the most hurtful experience I have ever had – that and labor). I was in pain for 2 weeks when I managed an appointment with a homeopath. He said that my coccyx dislocated and had to go to its rightful position (his words were – your coccyx just went up). He did some acupuncture to my palms and ear lobes and told me that he could not do much more and that I could age prematurely due to what happened. He sent me to a couple of osteopaths but they were unable to fix me completely… only 3 osteopaths later could I find someone who did something to help me. Even today I have coccydynia sometimes, depending on how I sit down;
4. I have been fighting depression for 5 years now, with many ups and downs (and I am taking 5HTP);
5. I have two cysts on my left breast;
6. I found out that I have a myoma in my uterus (left side too);
7. Whenever the weather is humid or foggy I have this terrible pain in my left hip. It goes down my leg like electricity… that reminds me of sciatica…
8. In these last days I have been feeling a strange pain on top on my (more on my) left kidney. I never felt such pain before.
9. It’s been more than 10 years since the last time I had coffee. However I enjoy my tea. I try to have herbal tea instead of Lipton or any other brand.
10. I have a hollow cheecks (which worsens my depression as I am unable to gain weight due to my poor appetite). People just say that I am thinner and thinner when I struggle to gain appetite and gain weight. A couple of days ago a friend who I did not see for many months told me I was shrinking. Depression got worse.
11. I have thin vertical lines in all my fingertips.
12. It seems that I don’t have enough energy to do my household chores and I think that maybe I am lazy. I also have trouble in concentrating, fuzzy thinking. I also cannot see the bright side of things like I used to. Depression gets worse.
13. Yes, I have strong sensitivity to lights… even light bulbs.
14. My body reacts whenever I eat carbs (grains).
The list could go on indefinitely… after reading your article (and thank you so much for that Sarah!) my hunch is that all of these symptoms are linked together and that I suffer from adrenal fatigue (thyroid + adrenals and something else?) but I don’t know what to do. In my hometown there is no such thing as a holistic physician… and no such thing as a holistic endocrinologist.
I am so lost…I want to fix myself but I don’t know how. Can anyone help me, please?
Thank you…
Sara.
Sarah, I am so sorry for the big message 🙁
Sara,
You are in a good place here. Just keep reading everything you can on this site.
I myself just started the Gaps Intro diet a month ago, while doing a fair bit of Full Gaps before that since July. My sleeping has improved so drastically. And I am maintaining a weight of 110 lbs which is very good for me. Before that I was chronically 95 – 105 lbs. Not enough. I am never hungry on this diet. I also didn’t have much appetite, but I make sure I always eat.
Even if this diet seems overwhelming just make one little change each day or week or month, whatever you can handle. You will slowly see results. You are so worth it and so is your family.
Sorry about your accident. May there be complete recovery of that in your future.
Blessings!
Sara
Your adrenals sit right on top of your kidneys
The pain is probably from adrenal problems
DAR
Hi Sara,
Your symptoms are indicative of Coeliac Disease which is an autoimmune condition which needs to be treated by lifetime abstinence of gluten and supplements as needed. Contact a GP and request a blood test and a gastroenterologist if you want further more invasive testing. There are over 300 symptoms of coeliac disease the most common include gastroenterology upsets (stomach pain etc), failure to put on weight/ thrive, fatigue and vitamin deficiencies. There are some good websites online if you want to do some research, see WebMD.com; coeliaccentral.org or google for other websites. Make sure that the websites/ books you read are reputable, there is a lot of misinformation out there.
hi Sara,
sorry to hear about all your issues 🙁 if you still haven’t gone to the doctor, I’d recommend you to go and see a naturopath kind of doctor. I find these doctors very helpful in understanding the real issues and their goal is to help you recover naturally, whereas regular doctors will simply prescribe you some meds to reduce your symptoms. Also, try going to this website, and it might be helpful: http://www.adrenalfatigue.org. But again, if I were you, with so many unanswered questions, I’d seek for doctor’s guidance, preferably a naturopath doctor 🙂
I hope you can all read (I posted on November 4th 2012)
Thank you all for your help!
I went to a specialist in Coeliac Disease who told me I didn’t have Coeliac Disease (no testing done). She didn’t even know what spelt was. I probably looked at her as if she had three heads… really!
My husband decided to book an appointment for a Naturopath who told me that I most probably have Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity and definitely Adrenal Fatigue. I am waiting to make some tests (saliva, etc). Let’s see what happens now.
Thank you all once again!
Sara.
Thank you so much to Sarah and everyone for leaving their comments to try to help others who have adrenal issues. I also suffer from quite severe adrenal fatigue and have done for many years. I have tried practically every supplement under the sun, I find that if your adrenals are weak you have to start very slowly with supplements and build up until your body is able to cope with them. In fact, I have only found one supplement that works for me which is stress ease adrenal support (licorice, tyrosine, winter cherry, rhodiola, rehamania) by an Australian brand called herbs of gold – I am in no way affiliated with this product or company but just want to share what I have found successful for me – this is the only product that makes me feel halfway normal again, and gives me hope for recovering in the future. I only share this in the genuine hope that it can help someone else the way it has helped me 🙂
I have adrenal fatigue and hypothyroid because of it. I started the Adrenal Diet and felt better, but I was not improving as much as I wanted to, and thought something else was in the way. I knew there was some digestive issues going on, and I came across Leaky Gut Syndrome as a culprit for adrenal fatigue. I was on a heavy dose of antibiotics a month or so before I felt adrenal fatigue symptoms, and lo and behold, I feel amazing! I “healed” my leaky gut by following the Leaky Gut Cure (google it), taking the supplements, and have been on the diet ever since. It’s very similar to a Paleo diet, but with a few modifications based on what our adrenals like. After being on the supplements for four weeks, I felt amazing, and haven’t looked back. I don’t plan on incorporating caffeine/chocolate back into my diet for at least another year, as it takes up to 3 years for your adrenals to fully recover.
The key is that slow and steady wins the race. I’m also doing yoga/meditation and coffee enemas, kombucha, natural sweeteners (maple syrup, cocounut sugar is a godsend), and taking B12 and tanning for the Vitamin D. I feel good as long as I don’t stray away.
I highly urge anyone dealing with adrenal fatigue to treat themselves for leaky gut first, or in conjunction with their adrenal fatigue. Leaky Gut is the basis for many many pathologies!
Hi Beth,
I have just started on the road to healing my adrenal issues. I was diagnosed with them about a month ago, I have high cortisol and high estrogen. I think that I also have thyroid issue but they have not been diagnosed yet. I also experiencing a lot of heartburn, stomach issues, and constipation. I was wondering how you knew that you had a leaky gut. And what kind results did you get from tanning. I had thought of this earlier today because of the vitamin d and the stimulation to the thyroid but couldn’t find any information to support that. Did it help with weight loss and fatigue? My muscles hurt and joints hurt all the time I thought it might help with that too. I am currently taking about 5000 mg a day of vit C and adapten-all. Please let me know what you think?
Sarah – great post and Beth, thanks for commenting this.
I’ve been searching for guidelines as to what kind of diet is optimal with adrenal burnout. (I’m just waiting for my hair analysis results and my consultation with Dr. Wilson, but I’m convinced I am have moderate-to-severe adrenal fatigue and hypothyroidism :P) I’ll definitely look into the diets mentioned.
And – I wonder if Swiss-water decaf coffee would be a decent alternative to coffee and green tea. I love my coffee and hate to think I would have to give it up forever! Thoughts?
Interesting to note, as well, how there are a few on here who also are parents of special needs kids. I’m pretty sure being one myself was the trigger for my trip down the rabbit hole with my health. My husband has worked out of town for the last 20 years, so raising my autistic son has been on my shoulders all that time.
It would be interesting to see the stats re: adrenal burnout and special needs parenting. I bet there are a ton of these parents who are dragging themselves around trying to get through the day dealing with the stresses of these kids and don’t know why they can’t cope anymore.
Anyway, I look forward to having pinker lips and hairier lower legs as I get better – oh, wait… 🙂
My wife and I have severe adrenal fatigue, and she has Hashimoto’s. We have a special needs child and there has been a lot of stress trying (and mostly failing) to seek services for him.
A note: green tea is high in naturally occurring fluoride which is damaging to the thyroid gland, so green tea may not be the best replacement for coffee.