Adrenal fatigue

LOL

Yup, pretty much

[Paleofornow]

I can relate to clear as mud!! I think I have information overload at this point! I'll be reading on other subjects for a while to clear my head, and reading posts from you guys to learn more about adrenal health s-l-o-w-l-y.

I'm really into sleep right now. A favorite book is "Lights Out - Sleep, Sugar, and Survival" by T.S. Wiley. Not specifically about adrenals - but covers a lot about all kinds of hormones. Basically she's saying to sleep more to quiet down the stress hormones. (She's saying tons more than that as well.) I'm not reporting this to try to persuade anyone to add this to their already long reading list (lol), but to let you know why I'm so obsessed about getting more sleep myself.

Anyway, I'll be working through those links slowly. Hormones seem to be the big unifying link in all my readings lately.

Sweet dreams, all,

Alice

[barb keith]

Yep, I think hormones RULE our lives and if any of them are out of whack, the others get out of whack too. And there's so many of them (besides the 3 basic life giving ones) that it's hard to keep them all straight. I have to really respect any doctor who is an endocrinologist, they have to be the cream of the crop to get it all straight, Diana S. being at the top of my list. And I'm sure there's soooooooooo much we humans still don't know about them. It boggles the mind.

It's very interesting. In the articles I read about cod liver oil, they talked a lot about hormonal stuff, nothing specific to the adrenals, but one has to think that if the other systems are coming in line, that they would as well...?

http://www.westonaprice.org/askdocto...c_fatigue.html I thought this article was interesting. I don't do the castor oil packs -- they just feel slimy to me, though my doc does recommend them highly! :o

http://www.westonaprice.org/moderndi...romyalgia.html This is an excellent article on fibromyalgia -- which he atributes to over stressed adrenals, amongst other things.

[BC]

Alice, I've been taking sleep a lot more seriously myself the last couple of months. Especially letting myself sleep until I wake up naturally whenever I can. Just wish I could go to sleep at a decent hour.

Sharron, reading the first link you listed does remind me that those old eicosanoids rule all, so if migraine is a vascular inflammatory process, why would I be surprised at a hormonal connection. In addition, I've been really uninterested in eating during the day for the last few weeks and have been living mostly on Ak-maks, almond butter, and FF feta. OK, here we have the grains which are producing phytic acid and a nice amount of nut butter, both of which could be throwing those prostoglandins out of balance, especially since I don't metabolize zinc and B6 correctly in the first place. And dairy, which is iffy for me. Gee, wondering why I'm having migraines and feeling foggy again. LOL!!! Call me a slow learner!

Wow, that does make sense, doesn't it Bren??

(((hugs)))

Migraines are the pits. My doc said I have a "cervical migraine with T4 syndrome with pain radiating down the right arm." He also said there are over 100 different types of migraines. Mine, at this stage in my life anyway, are related to my neck -- that is how I've been feeling and he confirmed it today.

I will say, though, that before I started LC I had migraines constantly -- more days with them than without them. It was awful.

How about a nice pot of chicken soup? I can always eat that

[barb keith]

WOW Sharron, what interesting articles!!!!! I'm gonna print them out and go over them with fine toothed comb and try to digest everything in there. It sure is like a jigsaw puzzle.

Bren, are ak-maks crackers? I've heard of it, but can't remember what it is. Hope you feel better soon, girlfriend!!!!

I sure wish mainstream medicine would acknowledge fibromyalgia and candida as REAL disorders (more than they do now) and therefore would garner more research on the subjects. But since they seem to be largely "womens' issues" I don't think they get the attention they deserve. I suppose we have come a long way since menstrual cramps have finally been acknowledged as being "real" and not just some hysterical female disorder in the head.

LOL Barb -- yes, they are interesting! My poor dh though, after I typed up this stuff, I went and "processed" to him. His eyes were glazing over!!!

Yes, Ak Mak are crackers. They are really cheap and made of absolutely whole ingredients -- no fakey-liquid or hydro-oils, and I think they even use sea salt! Only 99 cents at TJs :great:

I do find I have to limit them too, though.

The fibromyalgia article, I need to go back and read it again, actually probably both of them -- I read so much stuff last night I was having trouble processing it all!

I had a funny snack last night, but I think it bears mentioning in here -- actually the whole "synergistic fat" concept... I guess I should mention my "prescription in a pan" thread in the caveman forum http://www.lowcarbeating.com/bb/showthread.php?t=11039 There is the link.

Anyway! I've gleaned from my reading on WAP that certain foods need fats to be utilized better by the body and certain fats need other ones to work better. So, I've been trying to apply that across all our meals, and I did it at my bedtime snack last night. I had (weird, but bear with me!) a small chicken sandwich on WW with mayo and a cup of yummy homemade chicken (bone) broth. Part way through I realized that I should have put butter on the bread rather than mayo for the synergistic effect with the broth and the protein from the chicken, so what did I do? I just plopped a little blob of butter into my broth! OHMAN, was that yummy

But I digress...

The point is that I slept better, more soundly, even though my pain level is high, than I have for some time, and I had VERY vivid dreams!

Also, I am not bloated, even though I ate "funny" overall yesterday and my pain is high and I'm on pain medication. Typically, any of those would have caused bloating -- not particularly "adrenal" related, but related to the FM, and I thought worth mentioning. Oh, and my foggy brain is clearer, though many of the migraine symptoms are still present.

I'm going to be watching this!

[barb keith]

Interesting Sharron. I hope you feel better soon.

I'm so glad I haven't been plagued by migraines. I have only had ONE so far and that was shortly after my second child was born. Plus I was dealing with my alcoholic (first) husband. I will never forget it. I was sitting on my couch, watching "Red October" on HBO, the first evening we had our cable hooked up. I just wanted to lay on the couch and watch TV. My alky-ex had come in from drinking outside with the neighbors, plopped himself down (almost on top of me) and began to ream me out for not coming out and partying. He proceeded to tell me what a f-ing *itch I was and didn't know why he married me in the first place. I was in extreme pain, and all sounds seemed like I had a bell on my head. I didn't get the visual haloes or anything like that and I wasn't nauseated (until he came in, LOL) so it wasn't a full blown migraine, but bad enough. All I could think about was that I had to be to work in 2 days and had to get rid of it. I had decided that night that I was going to start stashing MY paychecks away in a separate account and start saving up for a lawyer.

Anyhoo, I digress, that's the only experience I've had with migraines. I've had plenty of headaches, but just run-of-the-mill ones.

[BC]

I've starting watching my selections of fat more, too, Sharron. I'd sort of forgotten to use my coconut oil--was depending way too much on the raw almond butter.

Yes, Ak-Maks are great, and a good snack for me generally, but again, I got in a rut, and I just can't do that!

[Paleofornow]

Wow, thanks you guys. Great info here. I sure love that WAP site - so much good info.

One way I have been nourishing my adrenals is by drinking nettle infusion a couple of times a week. I learned this from Susun Weed's menopause book. It has really helped my hot flashes (nighttime flashes are often caused by overtaxed adrenals) so maybe it would help with other cases of adrenal fatigue as well. Nettle is really a food-type herb rather than a medicinal one. Spring-gathered nettles are a favorite food with foragers.

If anyone wants to try it, the recipe is simple, so let me know.

Alice

Alice, I think I can get nettles in the bulk at Wild Oats. I'm game...

Barb, that sounds like he was the headache

Last night was proof to me that I'm far from well. I did the wake-up-fully-awake-with-no-where-to-go at 315 nonsense last night. I hate that. I had a wierd snack last night (really wierd) and I'm sure it didn't help...

My headache is improving though!

[Paleofornow]

Here's the recipe for nettle infusion.

You need a quart canning jar with a tight fitting lid. Use either one ounce by weight, or one measuring cup of the nettles (weight more accurate, but one cup is ok and may be more convenient. I use the cup.). Put nettles into canning jar, wide mouth funnel is helpful here. Bring kettle of water to a boil. When boiling, fill jar with boiling water. I use a wooden spoon handle or chopstick to push down the nettles and get them all wet, and then add more water to fill again. Put on lid.

Leave it on the counter for at least 8 hours. I either do it at night to drink the next morning, or in the morning to drink in the evening. When done infusing, I use the wide mouth funnel again with my big 32-oz water cup. Strain through a wire strainer, then squeeze the plant material to get all the juice out. Spent plant material can be added to your compost pile. (I'll have to start one of those)

You can see that the process is very similar to making tea. The differences are the larger amount of plant material used, and the longer "steeping" time.

I drink the whole thing that day, and I use it in rotation with two other nourishing herbal infusions, so if I don't skip a day, I'm getting the nettles every third day. Weed recommends at least one cup, at least 4 times a week. So, you could refrigerate the finished infusion and drink a cup a day. Or, you could drink the whole thing and make it a few times a week. Because nettles are a food, I don't think there are any overdose concerns.

I add one tablespoon of sage because I found I didn't care for the flavor of the nettles straight. Some people love the nettle flavor, you'll have to try it and see. Sage is good for night sweats and other menopausal issues. She also says the sage is good for headaches.

According to Susun Weed, the adrenals become fatigued and over-reactive during menopause. A slight sound at night activates them to wake us up, prepared for danger, and flashing and sweating like crazy. She says a need to urinate at this time confirms an adrenal-mediated flash. Maybe this applies in other cases of adrenal exhaustion?

I really admire Susun Weed for her ability to change her views based on new information. Specifically, in her books written 10 to 15 years ago, she is a vegetarian with lowfat tendencies. In her current books she is an admirer of WAP and NT! Of course, I went through the same change, so I just love it in her books.

As far as my own experience with nettle infusion, late last April I started to lose sleep with the night sweats (though I never sweated to speak of). I started using her recommendations and found great relief. Of course, there was no control, so I don't know if I would have got better anyway. Flashes are like that - very variable, so you think whatever you were doing before they improved must have been what helped.

If you try this, I'd love to hear about your experience.

One last thought - if it's true that menopause stresses the adrenals, then it's a good thing for younger women with adrenal issues to deal with it before they get to this age, eh?

Alice

[barb keith]

Oh Alice that was very interesting. Is that from her newest book (the one you gave me?) I'll have to take a look. I haven't read it for a few weeks. I'll have to pick it up again. I haven't been having any problems menopause-wise yet, except the period irregularities. Do you know if Whole Foods carries nettle? I have not ever found any growing wild in my yard yet. (You're talking about stinging nettle, right?) I wish I had it growing in my yard. I have a girlfriend who lives in Wisconsin. One day we were sitting around her pool and I spotted this plant. It was Stinging Nettle!!!!! I told her to be sure and wear gloves whenever dealing with it, 'cuz it can really irritate the skin.
I just glanced at Susan Weed's page about nettles, what a dynamo herb. I hope I can get some dried at Whole Foods (or maybe some health food store.)

Yes, herbs are food. I used to say that all the time when I had the herb shop.

LOL Sharron, ain't it the truth!!!!!

Next time I'm near TJ's I'll look for Ak-maks.