5 Signs You Could Be Adrenally Fatigued

1. You are extremely tired in the morning, cannot get out of bed and take a while to wake up. And then at the end of the day you are wide awake, making it hard to sleep, and the cycle continues.

2. You rely on caffeine for your energy. I’m talking without it you wouldn't be making it through your working day. Your level of fatigue is so great you are finding it hard to function without some assistance.

3. You are craving more foods. If you have started to crave foods, in particular sweet or salty foods, then this could be your adrenals crying out for some love.

4. Inability to deal with stress

5. Your immune system isn't working as well as it once was.

If you can relate to these symptoms then it may be time to look at repairing your adrenal gland function.

So what is adrenal fatigue?

Our adrenal glands are responsible for producing the stress hormones cortisol and adrenalin. These stress hormones are produced in ‘fight or flight’ situations, which was great when we needed this response for life or death situations. In the modern day there is a lot less need for this fight or flight, however we are under a lot more long term stress through living our busy lifestyles and the stresses of everyday life. In times of long term our body secretes excessive amounts of cortisol. After a while our adrenal glands get tired so they slow down the amount of cortisol being produced.

In the morning our cortisol levels are supposed to be high, giving us the energy to get out of bed and start our day, as the day progresses we should see a steady decline as our body winds down to prepare us for sleep.

When our adrenal glands become tired this pattern can switch, as the adrenal gland becomes almost unpredictable with its action.

In many people who are adrenally fatigued their cortisol levels will be low at the start of the day and elevated at the end of the day. This explains the severe fatigue in the morning and struggle to get out of bed, and then the inability to fall asleep at night.

What can you do to improve your adrenal gland health.

Get to bed earlier.

Rest is the key for repairing your adrenal glands. Sleep as much as you can, practice relaxation exercises and allow your bodies nervous system to rest as much as possible. Holidays are a wonderful way, so if you are able to take some time off from reality, your adrenal glands will love you for it.

Getting to bed early is the key, to help to regulate your cortisol levels getting to bed before midnight is a MUST! If you can be in bed by 9pm each night you are doing great.

Give up the coffee

Coffee does not love your adrenal glands, and your adrenal glands definitely don't love coffee. Coffee is a bully to your adrenal glands, it stimulates them and causes them to increase the output of cortisol. This is a why you get an initial kick of energy, but then your left feeling more tired than ever. If you keep stimulating your adrenal glands with coffee you will find that recovery will become even harder.

Eat well and exercise

It is simple. Looking after yourself and ensuring that your diet is full of wholesome foods that will nourish your adrenal glands is the corner stone for allowing your body to heal itself. A balanced diet full of colour and lots of veggies will provide you with the many nutrients such as B vitamins and vitamin C. Exercise is also important but gentle exercise is the key. Restorative exercise like gentle walking or yoga is key, no heavy cardio or intense resistance training. Or keeping it to a minimum at least.

Improve your work life balance

A poor work life balance is often the reason why your adrenal health is where it is. Everything is so busy these days, we are constant pushing ourselves to do more work, fit more into our days. We are resting and playing less but working more than ever. Making time for rest and doing things that we enjoy is essential for living a balanced life. So if there are things that you can change in your lifestyle that will enable you to able to do more things that are good for your soul, do it. Your adrenal glands will thank you.

Stress management

Learning to better manage your stress levels will help to take the burden off your adrenal glands. Keep in mind that while your adrenal glands are exhausted you will find it harder to deal with stress, so if you find this hard, try not to worry, because it is hard. When you start to feel a bit better then this is the time to start practicing better stress management skills. It can be something simple like not checking emails outside of work hours. It can be practicing mindfulness or guided meditation for just 5-10min daily. Whatever you can do to help your body deal with stress start to implement it slowly.

See your Naturopath

As well as doing the points discussed above, there are plenty of herbs which can give your adrenals a bit of a kickstart in terms of repair. Seeing your Naturopath will allow them to formulate a treatment plan which will be able to get your adrenal glands, and your health back on track in the quickest amount of time.