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Interesting read indeed, how do u heal broken adrenals, suppose it’s trial & error 🙂
ReplyQuestion is…and where do we go for help when our Dr’s don’t listen or have no clue about all of this magnificent info? HELP!!!
ReplyI’m still trying to heal mine. Emergency surgery in Nov 2011, threw me into Hashi’s a few months later. Then a Dr was giving me prednisone shots in the winter of 2012 for allergies(I didn’t know this was so wrong for my adrenals). I see an osteopath now. So how long will it take for me to heal? I so want to sleep. This is a frustrating journey.
ReplyHi Leah,
Thank you for your question. It is very difficult to say how long with any certainty. There are so many variables. Generally the more thorough the approach, the better and faster the outcome. If you are not addressing all of the issues I mentioned in the post it will take longer. I have found most people don’t find success because they do too little.
Best,
Marc
Great post, very informative. I feel like I am starting to understand my issues. Thank you very much!
ReplyI like your paper. I really buy into your explanation of the disease process because I have an extensive education having been to both pharmacy and dental school and having studied pharmacology, biochemistry, physiology twice….and anatomy and pathology once at the academic level. This is complex stuff. ( I wonder how much the average patient can absorb from your explanation ?) Would you believe that I once met a biochemist who claimed to have worked on the original research of the hypothalamic-pituitary feedback loop in Germany before WW2 ? But I digress.
Anyway, I have totally changed my diet. I am within a few lbs of my ideal BMI number of 24.8 and should reach it in a week at the present rate. I’m getting good exercise. I see my doc for my 6 mo ck-up on Monday. I was diagnosed about 15 yrs ago. I get the shingles too. They told me that I have the Epstein-Barr virus. Blah-blah-blah…. What is the best prognosis I can hope for and do you have any disease management tips for me that help. Mainly I periodically get slammed with an an unpredictable extreme mood swing/ lethargy that lasts about 36 hrs. I even see a psychiatrist but I don’t think the antidepressants do anything. I recently started chewing nicotine gum. That seems to improve my mood. Love my coffee too!
Hi Dave,
Thanks for your comment. Your prognosis depends on, firstly, getting a proper evaluation and treatment plan. Then secondly, on your willingness and compliance to carry out that plan. I have no idea about either. Personally, I’m not a big fan of coffee, particularly if you are trying to heal the adrenals. It is often counter productive to say the least. Your mod swings and lethargy are important diagnostically and suggest to me that you may not be addressing the problem sufficiently.
Best of luck and please keep us posted on how things are progressing.
Best,
Marc
In all your complete and brilliant piece of writing, I’ve missed any reference to physical exercise. I agree that stress has bidirectional relationship with adrenals and cortisol. As better as you can manage your adrenals, better you will face up to stress. That’s one big truth.
But, in my own particular experience, when practicing physical exercise in the appropriate way, you can change your cortisol efficiency, and so, your deal with every day stress.
Hi Xavi,
Great comment! I absolutely agree with you exercise is an important part of the solution. There was just so much to cover in explaining what is happening that I had to first do that with this piece. In an upcoming piece that I’m working on, I’ll be discussing what to do about all of this. And in that discussion I will cover how to use exercise to to reset your cortisol rhythms.
Best, Marc
ReplyI am a very low income single mother, and I have no options with my insurance. I can’t afford to see someone else on my own. My insurance won’t cover anything beyond the most basic of services, and my Doctor is NOT interested in digging deeper. My health is deteriorating but my numbers are normal so noone seems to care.
I believe 100% that my problems first began with my adrenals decades ago (I am a child abuse and multiple trauma survivor), but when I try to talk to my Doctor about this she looks at me like I’m crazy. I’ve been working on my emotional health for decades. That is not the problem. I need to work on my physical health, but I don’t know how to get help with this!
Now I’ve been diagnosed with fibromyalgia on top of that, so it feels like every one of my concerns just gets lumped in with that diagnosis. Noone will take me seriously beyond offering me antidepressants. Last time I went in, my Doctor told me to see a counselor without even bothering to find out that I’ve already been seeing one for over two years! Even my counselor believes that my anxiety is primarily physiological at this point, and has offered to consult with my Doctor about this. But my Doctor doesn’t seem interested.
Do you have any suggestions for someone in my situation? Things I could say to my Doctor? Any helpful ideas are very appreciated. Thank you.
ReplyHi Melissa,
Thank you for reaching out! Firstly, I want you to know that this is not all in your head. There is a very strong link between both thyroid and adrenals issues and psychological issues.
I can’t tell you how many emails and comments I get where people ask me what to do about their doctors. There’s no easy answer. The first thing to do is to evaluate if your doctor is reasonable and open to suggestion. If they aren’t it’s not worth your wasted time, energy and effort. Find another doctor who will be.
The second thing is to arm yourself with articles and research. Most doctors want to see things from Pubmed and unless you are a medical professional its hard to decipher some of these studies. But even then you must understand that most doctors use the tools that they have, which are thyroid replacement hormone, glucocorticoids, and antidepressants. That’s pretty much it. They don’t have other tools in their arsenal. As a functional medicine provider, I am familiar with using natural supplements, diet and lifestyle modification. and this is what I write about extensively.
I also offer a free 30 minute Hashimoto’s Healing Discovery session. In it you can share where you are and where you want to be, I can offer some resources that will help you right away and I can explain how I can help. There is no obligation and I might be able to steer you in the right direction. If that interests you, you can schedule using the button on the home page.
Best,
Marc
[…] including too little thyroid hormone production, the affect of too little thyroid hormone on the adrenals and blood sugar metabolism and the problems with ATP and mitochondria mentioned […]
Reply[…] my previous post on the adrenal glands we learned about the HPA (hypothalmus-pituitary-adrenal) […]
ReplyHi
This article is so interesting. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia 2 years ago. Only through my persistence was I finally diagnosed with Hashis. I went down the route of levothyroxin and was brilliant for 2 months and then went downhill. I changed to natural thyroid and once I got the optimal dose, I had lots of energy and was doing well apart from stiffness. I was then put on LDN but the dose was increased too rapidly and my thyroid levels shot dangerously through the roof. it has taken four months to reduce my levels and I am now left fatigued and aching again. I have had my adrenals tested (saliva) and the cortisol is high in the morning, drops below normal at 12 midday, ok at 4pm but then rises again above normal as I go to bed. I have a lot of trouble sleeping, and have had a lot of emotional stress the last 12 months. I crave sugar and salt. What I am also interested in is that I have suffered from restless legs and I believe this is caused my lack of dopamine and you state that the adrenals produce dopamine. I have leaky gut syndrome and high heavy metal toxicity. Can this all be connected? I am about to go onto the GAPS diet. What do you think?
ReplyHI Liz,
Thanks for sharing your story. Wow, it sounds like you have a lot going on. Yes, this certainly can all be connected. The body is not a machine with isolated parts. Its a collection of living breathing ecosystems that all interact in remarkably complex and sometimes unexpected ways. Adrenal issues impact thyroid issues, thyroid issues impact the brain, the gut affects all of these things and on and on it goes. What ultimately happens is you get these vicious cycles spiraling your health downward.
That’s why I created my program because it really teaches you all about all these interactions and how they affect one another. If you work on all these areas, not just one, you can turn those vicious cycles on their head and start getting positive results that are magnified as the different systems all improve.
The GAPS diet can be helpful. I don’t really know enough to be able to say for sure, but generally that’s a good place to start. I don’t know of you are aware of it, but I offer a free 30 minute Hashimoto’s Healing Discovery session. In it you can share where you are and where you want to be, I can make some suggestions that will be helpful right away, and we can discuss how I ma be able to help moving forward.
If that interests you, you can visit my home page and click the button in the right hand column to schedule a session.
Best, Marc
ReplyJust talking with you and sending emails and listening to (reading) your advice has helped me so much. Now if only my endocrinologist would listen to me rather than criticize, I might get some healing but he only believes in levothyhroxine which I do believe I should not talent because he has never checked my adrenal glands…I am so frustrated!
Joan kosieniak
Hi Joan,
Thank you for your kind words! I can be really frustrating. I don’t understand why endocrinologists don’t see the importance of properly assessing the adrenals. It really can be frustrating. You just have to continue to be your own advocate and don’t stop until you get what you need.
Best, Marc
ReplyMy endo did the ACTH and mailed me a letter saying my levels are in range. I realized I was one my own. I’ve gotten myself a 24 hour saliva test. It confirmed my cortisol is scary high. I’ve been doing my own research and I’m working on it. It surprises me when people don’t even believe me that Endo’s do nothing for adrenal fatigue, I had to ask her just to test my cortisol she did not offer, I’m so disappointed with the care from my endo. Adrenal fatigue is huge for healing. And it’s to important to ignore, although it’s very complicated and is hard to figure out by myself. So thank you for posting this article. Your awesome…
ReplyHi Kimberly,
Thank you for your kind words! Healing your adrenals is hugely important in healing the web of problems related to Hashimoto’s. If you need any help in interpreting that ASI I offer a free 30 Hashimoto’s healing Discovery session. IN it you can share where you are and where you want to be, I can make some suggestions and we can discuss how I might be able to help. You ca schedule an appointment by clicking the button in the right column of the home page.
Best,
Marc
[…] Here’s a post I wrote that goes into the adrenal thyroid connection in much greater detail. […]
Reply[…] my previous post on the adrenal glands we learned about the HPA (hypothalmus-pituitary-adrenal) […]
Reply[…] my previous post on the adrenal glands we learned about the HPA (hypothalmus-pituitary-adrenal) […]
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