When Periods Cease - Part Five: Oh, Those Poor Adrenals!!!!

Soooooo..... About three months ago I was offered a position as an Office Administrator and I accepted. The job is good and I enjoy it but the stress of adapting has been less than easy. Not to complain or anything... I'm grateful to be employed!! I just knew something was definitely "not right" after a very long time of feeling like my energy tank was on empty and I started having chest pains! My first step was to go to a doctor that I trusted and confirm that my heart was ok, do some blood tests and a 12-hour saliva test to see what my DHEA and Cortisol were doing. The results showed that my DHEA was fine but my Cortisol levels were extremely low and they stay low all day long. Typically they should start out high and gradually decline during the day. This particular doctor suggested we try to stimulate the adrenals in order to raise the cortisol. However, all attempts so far have been less than favorable because even a micro-dose of any kind of adrenal support supplement caused insomnia rendering me pretty much useless!! Not good when you're trying to look like you know what you're doing at a new job!!!!

So at this point we are shifting to adaptogens. Some of them still sound like they could have some stimulating (causing insomnia) affects but are generally milder. I did some research and found that many adaptogens can have other side effects as well like blood pressure raising or blood sugar lowering or increasing thyroid symptoms (all of which are red flags for me) so another doctor of mine suggested "Solomon Seal". It's a mild adaptogen that doesn't seem to have any reported side effects. It's not easy to find but I did manage to get Solomon Seal root at a local health food store. I followed instructions and placed 1/2 teaspoon of the chopped root in a cup, added my hot water and then covered and steeped for about 10 minutes. I did this without a tea ball or strainer and it worked fine since most of the root sinks to the bottom. According to instructions you should drink one cup a day and never more than 3 cups in a day. It tastes very mild so no need to hold your nose when drinking! In the future if I want to order it in drop form I can do that online.

Since this is my first day I will need to come back with my results. But if you're in a similar situation, other things that may help are:

• Exercises that raise chi (like chi gong, tai chi, and some yoga stretches)
• Acupuncture
• Meditation
• Going to bed by 10:00
• A really good multi-vitamin with lots of B Complex.... way more than the daily requirements
• An excellent vitamin C supplement (2,000 - 4,000 mg per day)
• Pantothenic Acid (1200-1500 mg per day)
• Magnesium (400-1200 mg per day)
• Stay away from sugar and gluten
• Check your vitamin D levels. Chances are they are low.
• Eat lots of good sources of protein
• Increase fiber

Some adaptogens that may help (but make sure you research for side effects) are Ashwaganda, Asian Ginseng, Bacopa, Cordyceps, Holy Basil, Licorce, Rhodiola, Maca, and Dong Quai.

More to come in a while!