Are you feeling totally burnt out, stressed and constantly exhausted? You’re not alone. With our busy lifestyles and not-so-great diets, so many of us are constantly on the go, go, go, leaving many people feeling as if their energy is totally depleted and like they are just running on empty.
Enter The Term Adrenal Fatigue
This is a term used to describe the feeling of low or no energy, stress, chronic fatigue and exhaustion that may also be accompanied by weight gain and other changes to the body. The problem with this term adrenal fatigue, however, is that it sounds as if the adrenal glands aren’t working when in reality, they work just fine.
The real issue is that the brain and adrenals aren’t communicating well together. What is really off is the HPA access the Hypothalamus Pituitary Access. The hypothalamus, the pituitary gland and the adrenal glands all work together, sending signals between the brain and the adrenals. When the system is off due to underlying health issues, people experience many of the exhausting symptoms noted above.
What are the Adrenals?
The adrenal glands are one of the hormone making centers of your body. Sitting atop your kidneys, the adrenals are endocrine glands that secrete some pretty important and powerful hormones including epinephrine and norepinephrine (also referred to as adrenaline) which are your fight or flight hormones. The adrenals also secrete cortisol, a hormone that is associated with gearing your body for the metabolic needs of stress, as well as hormones that help the body regulate metabolism, electrolyte balance, blood pressure and more.
No Magic Pill for Feeling Burnt Out
In the majority of patients, burn out, stress and chronic fatigue are not primary adrenal problems, they are reactions to something else going on in the body. At Shakthi, we work with each individual to identify the real health issues. There’s no magic pill or quick fix when the body is worn down. Our plan of action involves lifestyle and diet changes and testing to identify underlying conditions including a chronic gut disorder, hormone imbalance or chronic infection to name a few.
4 Steps to Help Heal, Re-Energize the Body
Often, patients who are feeling constantly run down and low on energy need to reboot their bodies. We often discover that a common condition such as a food sensitivity or hormone imbalance may be the culprit. In addition to treating underlying problems, we offer our patients these four steps to help the body re-energize:
- Step 1– Identify what is not in balance or what doesn’t belong in the body. It could be a reaction to a food sensitivity, presence of abnormal yeast, bacteria or a parasite. It could also be a heavy metal issue, having inadequate amounts of good bacteria or nutrients . We often begin by changing the diet tailored to your condition or eliminating foods that cause inflammation in your body. For some individuals, this may mean eliminating dairy or gluten and introducing more fresh vegetables and gluten-free whole grains and carbohydrates.
- Step 2 – Introduce dietary supplements if needed. At Shakthi, we not only identify foods that cause inflammation in your body but also essential nutrients that are missing. Through our physician supervised supplement plan, we add vitamins and minerals back into the body to increase your energy and promote balance. This includes adding more B vitamins to boost energy, omega-3 fatty acids to reduce inflammation and vitamin D, selenium and magnesium to help your thyroid function. It also could include adding herbs, probiotics and agents to help with your specific condition. We also have specialized cooking classes to help you learn how to nourish your body.
- Step 3 – Hydrate. This may seem simple, but making sure the body is properly hydrated is important for cell function and energy. Dehydration can make you feel sluggish and constantly tired. We have testing that looks at how your water balance is doing.
- Step 4 – Stress reduction. If a constant, on-the-go lifestyle has you feeling constantly run down and is draining your adrenals, Shakthi offers a variety of solutions to help you refocus and re-energize including yoga, meditation, acupuncture, biofeedback and neurofeedback, as well as infrared sauna to improve your body’s response to stress. These tools promote the concept of healing the body from the inside out.
Learn more about our integrative approach to caring for the whole person.
Give us a call to begin your journey to better health and wellness at 301-703-5067.