Those with adrenal fatigue, what do you take?

My sister has been treating it with hydrocortisone for 6 months or so, she is pretty much bed bound. I feel something more is going on, such as Lyme and Co but she won't listen to me.

So she is on 20 mg per day, what is a normal dose and is there something else she could take?

What natural meds are available?

I would think she would have seen results by now. What kind of a diet should you follow? And no coffee at all right, not even decaf.

My adrenals were my weakest link for quite a while so I did extensive science experiments on myself to see which protocols helped the most!! Here's what's worked best for me.

Megafoods Adrenal Strength... It's food based so I believe the body recognizes and absorbs it well.. A nice combo of many of the adaptogen herbs that really support the adrenals. You can chew them and eat them like food.

While you're at it a good Megafoods Multi-vitamin would be good, too. Make sure your nourishing the body.

Many docs put me on adrenal supports that had bovine adrenal hormone in them... While I can see that this could help a lot, it really went against my vegan inclinations so I opted for maybe the slower road of the all vegetal/herbal protocols.

Paradise Panax Red Ginseng.. Has the ginseng which is supposed to be great for adrenals, as well as licorice root, also very good.

My cortisol levels were in the basement, yet supplementing with any cortisol at all gave me really bad reactions. I tried 3 different kinds before I said, this just isn't working for me

Remember the intimate relationship between adrenals and thyroid.. If the thyroid hormones are high for example, it will tax the adrenals. Make sure thyroid hormones are in a good range.

Apex AdrenaCalm and Apex Glysen.. These are a bit more for how my adrenal fatigue has led to blood sugar imbalances.

ADRENAL DIET is basically don't get hungry.. One of the main reasons the adrenals get stressed is because of blood sugar being low. They say to eat frequent small high-protein meals. Low sugar so as not to roller coaster. No caffeine --do as I say, not as I do on this one.. I'm currently sipping green tea :0

Sleep/rest.

Decrease stress.

Hi Revive,

I use Adrenal Health by Gaia Herbs. It sounds similar to the other recs for Adrenal Strength by MegaFoods: it is food-based but comes in a gel pill full of oil. It's worked wonders for me for years as far as energy, before I knew this was lyme-related.

And just in case this helps broach the coffee issue one last time: I actually can do powdered decaf coffee w no side effects (something rich & yummy-tasting like Nescafe Clasico, not Folgers), but have horrible response to caffeinated coffee. I can't do drip decaf at coffee shops because there is obviously still too much caffeine left in it. I just read that you can minimize the caffeine in any tea by steeping the teabag for 10 seconds and throwing that water out--what you're left with is mostly decaffeinated tea, just add more water. Same with drip coffee brewed at home: throw out the first 10 seconds' worth of drip.

I hope you can get through to your sis, you're making a great effort.

Thanks for all the feed back!

Mauihawaii, that where I got married, loved it there. I am trying to help her but she's not real fond of alternative treatments, she prefers big pharma drugs, she thinks they are better suited. Boy I would take alternative over western any day.

And Traveler, I agree she needs to nix the coffee, even if she's only consuming decaf till she starts to feel better. I also think she needs on thyroid meds, I took her to my LD when we were trying to figure out what was wrong and he put her on Naturethroid but these quacks she goes to now says thyroid is ok.

Her diet is terrible, everything comes out of a box or can, I don't even think she cooks much anymore. I just can't see where she can get better with the diet, caffiene, smoking. She spends most of her life in bed.

We are such opposites.

I take Adrenal Manager by Xymogen - also taking pregnenolone and B vitamins for deficiencies and my doctor said those will help adrenals too.

Traveler so glad to hear you did the same and pulled out, not being mean but being sincere. In have tried to help her but she won't give up her bad habits, also drinks soda pop all the time and she has osteoporosis and bones are breaking left and right. She has so many issues and I keep trying to help her. Unfortunately she doesn't get on the Internet, doesn't know how that's why I ask the questions. She even said not to go to my forum and ask people but just get the info from the Internet. But what better way to learn but from great people like the people here who have walked the walk.

Bluebyyou and garden peace I will also write these down for future reference, I finally spoke to her tonight about trying something different than a big pharma drug. This steriod makes her mean and the poor girl only gets up about 2 hrs per day on good days so she needs to try something different.

Wonder if she can do say the mega foods adrenal strength or the standard process while she backs down on the hydrocortisone, she's taking 20 mg per day? I would think yes, since they are just whole food supplements.

Trav, standard process is sold by distributors right? I know one but I will price it all for her and let her decide.

Thanks again everybody!

When I studied the pathophysiology of adrenal fatigue, it became evident to me that adrenal fatigue is the body doing what it has to do to survive. Many people see adrenal fatigue as a bad thing (and it is from a health standpoint), but adrenal fatigue is in a sense like sickle cell trait. It's the body coping with the problems it's facing to prolong life. Looking at someone with adrenal fatigue, there are a host of metabolic abnormalities and nutritional deficiencies. Correcting the metabolic abnormalities and nutritional deficiencies is paramount in correcting the condition. Hydrocortisone can help, but it does not address the underlying causes. Long term chronic infections take a heavy toll on our body and that can be what causes the issues leading to adrenal fatigue. If someone is having a difficult time stopping the chronic infection (like many often do,) then the problem with adrenal fatigue can be an issue for a long time as well. It is much easier to correct the nutritional deficiencies and metabolic dysfunction than it is the chronic infection. IMO, I think many are missing out on an opportunity to feel better. I would love to be cured, but in the end, feeling better is what I want. Several of the tests from Doctor's Data could be beneficial in determining what elements and nutrients your body needs. I know we are all different, but it has surely helped me.

You need to vent, so don't apologize for it. You are going through so much stress with her and now you have your mom to worry about. My doctor was just telling me about Lithium Orotate and how much it is helping some people with brain related problems, so you might look into that for your mom. Main stream docs may not know anything about it, though.

I got worse after going through my mom's last years, so I know how hard it is to see a parent decline and with your sister's problems on top of that, it's very stressful. Like I need to tell you that! So this is a good place for you to come and get support and understanding.

My adrenals got worse after going through my mom's last few years too, so I agree with trav that you should get yours tested.

Dementia is hard for both the one with it and family members. Give her some coconut oil. :)

Thx again, you guys are the greatest!

My mom is ready to be in the ground, that's what she says. She won't go to a doctor, she only drinks diet Pepsi and smokes cigarettes and has a terrible diet. She wouldn't eat anything that she thought was healthy and going to help her. She thinks I'm weird for all the good stuff I eat.

I do take Naturethroid but kept adjusting it cause it felt like someone was pressing in on my throat. My LD dropped my dose, I now take 1/4 gram - 3 per day I think that's what it is, I know it's less than 65 mg. I'm was biting them so wasn't getting a correct dose and so far I'm not getting that feeling in the throat.

Thanks again for the support and listening to me vent. It makes me mad these people with poor health and not doing anything to support it and make yourself healthier.

Revive,

Did your sister have comprehensive adrenal and thyroid testing to accurately determine what the nature of the problem is? The Adrenal Fatigue label is sometimes erroneously applied to a low energy situation.

For instance, my daughter had "Adrenal Fatigue" for years, even after she otherwise became well from her illness. Sure we tried every relevant Adrenal and Pituitary supplement/glandular for several years in an attempt to rejuvenate the Adrenals, but with no results.

Eventually Dr. J. suggested a saliva test, which was followed up with several types of blood tests. They definitively showed that it was a Pituitary problem and not an Adrenal problem at all. She had "Secondary Adrenal Insufficiency". She could have taken the Adrenal and pituitary supplements until the cows came home and it wouldn't make a difference.

Hydrocortisone usage is definitely NOT for everyone. It is only for everyone that definitely is deficient in it, and has tried the intelligently applied supplemental/glandular approach. I am also jaded and against "Big Pharma" as are many on this forum. Its a different story though when we are talking about cortisol which is something that the body normally produces and absolutely requires in physiological amounts. Sometimes I get the feeling that some of our members think that the human body does not require this "steroid", and that physiologically normal levels are somehow bad. That conclusion would be as erroneous as thinking that since it is possible to die from drinking too much water, that therefore we shouldn't drink any. Once again, the real truth is that either too much or too little of a good thing is what is bad!

You can pump as much hydrocortisol into a corpse as you want and it won't make a difference. The reason is patently obvious because we all know that there would be many more issues involved than cortisol levels in the body. Why would the reality be any different for a chronically ill person? I think that Georgia Hunter has come closest to the true answer. He mentions "metabolic abnormalities" and "nutritional deficiencies" as more fundamental issues than the steroid levels themselves. If your body cannot metabolize the most ideal of supplements, then the production of downstream products such as enzymes and steroids will be hindered. They also won't be utilized properly.

There are many other factors than "Adrenal Fatigue" that can contribute to a low energy condition. I would only fault the physician if the prescription hydrocortisol was the remedy of first resort. If comprehensive testing and all conceivable contributing factors were not first explored, then that physician may have blindly and inappropriately prescribed the hydrocortisol.

I do know one thing, though. A person that is cortisol deficient is not harmed with "bio-identical replacement therapy" with hydrocortisol at the correct dosage and schedule. That's an oxymoron which has been disproven by many physicians. On the other hand, a person that does not need the steroid is harmed by carrying excess levels in the body. Its a very simple issue really.

Dr. William Jefferies' career was devoted to the research and treatment of cortisol deficiency. He wrote a book entitled "Safe Use of Cortisol" which scientifically documents his painstaking research and clinical applications. Dr. J.. loaned the book to me to read. It is available through Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Safe-Uses-Cortisol-William-Jefferies/dp/0398075018

Don

Post Edited (Heathersdad) : 5/7/2015 10:15:17 PM (GMT-6)

I was just reading through some comments on an article on core warmth by the Hansa Center and they wrote that Cytozyme-AD had 2.5mg of cortisol per tablet. Apparently that is more than Isocort which has 1.5mg of cortisol per tablet.