Posted by Jeanne M. Schmit, Pharm. D. on Fri, Apr 16, 2010 @ 07:46 AM
If you're having trouble with adrenal fatigue or burnout, it's critical you:
- Adjust your life to decrease stress, including improving your sleep
- Improve your diet (including removing adrenal draining foods such as caffeine, sugar, processed foods, artificial sweeteners, alcohol, and damaged fats). If you're having trouble removing certain things from your diet, you may need amino acid support to address your cravings.
- Caffeine, stimulant drugs: L-tyrosine
- Sugar and carbs: L-glutamine if due to low blood sugar, L-tyrosine if due to low energy, or 5-HTP.
- Alcohol, smoking, tranquilizers, anxiolytics: GABA if due to anxiety/nervousness
- Comfort foods, pain killers (incl ibuprofen): DL-phenylalanine or D-phenylalanine to increase "feel good" endorphins
- Fried/fatty foods: EPA/DHA essential fatty acids
Before using any aminos, be sure you have no contraindications. Check past blogs on amino acids or use the contraindication sheet in the studio.
Adrenal recovery can take between 6 months to 2 or more years. Supplements support this process by helping your adrenals return to normal function.
Helpful adrenal supplements:
- Vitamin C, magnesium, panothenic acid, B vitamins: work in concert to potentiate the action of adrenals; essential for the production of enzymes and energy needed for the adrenal hormone cascade.
- Adrenal glandulars; supports and rejuvinates adrenals
- DHEA (do not take this without knowing your levels. Work with a health practitioner if you take DHEA)
- targeted amino acids; see below
- Licorice extract: supports adrenal function
- Ashwaganda root: normalizes cortisol levels
Before taking any of these supplements, read up and understand what you are taking and why. A good explanation of most of these can be found on the James Wilson Adrenal fatigue website listing product faqs.
Aminos important in adrenal healing depend on the state of adrenal fatique you are in. If your brain chemistry is not ideal for daily (and nightly) functioning, your adrenals continue to be stressed.
- If you feel very stressed and have a difficult time relaxing or you find yourself snapping at people, GABA is helpful.
- If you are dull, feeling flat, with low energy, focus and concentration, tyrosine/phenylalanine is helpful.
- If you feel depressed, low self esteem, withdrawn, 5-HTP/L-tryptophan is helpful.
Many people need a combination of aminos. If you take aminos, take them on an empty stomach (without other proteins in your stomach) and be sure you have B vitamins (especially B6) available. Bs are necessary to convert the amino to the neurotransmitter.
Posted by Jeanne M. Schmit, Pharm. D. on Sat, Apr 10, 2010 @ 08:28 AM
Our group has come a long way in only 4 weeks! I'm so impressed with the books read, food diaries kept, classes attended, videos watched, CD's listened to, grass fed beef bought and the too-numerous-to-count action steps many of you have taken to significantly improve your (and your family's) health.
Revisiting Stress Reduction:
- Did you look in the nooks and crannies of your day-to-day life to find opportunities to manage your stress?
- Are you starting to avoid relationships with people who drag you down?
- How is it going with pursuing that dream?
- What did you do to address excessive stress?
A number of years ago I did an exercise where I listed out all the things I would do if I had unlimited money. When I looked at the list I realized that most of those things I could start doing right now.....or at least work toward them (even though I didn't, and don't have unlimited money). I was surprised to see how many things did not require much or any money at all! Those that did, I started finding ways to pursue using the available resources I had. It totally changed my life. I realized that up til then, I never seriously considered pursuing what I really wanted and probably used money as an excuse.
Week 5 focus: Adrenal and Thyroid (there it is, on top of the kidney)
You now know the importance of a good diet in providing you with optimal brain chemicals to feel your best. For optimal brain function (meaning you have good energy, you can focus, have good memory and concentration, you feel satisfied, sleep well and feel happy and well adjusted most all the time). Your meals should be centered around: 
- Approximately 20gm protein
- Vegetables
- Essential fats
- Additional carbs (if needed) from whole fruits, whole grains, starchy veggies, nuts, seeds, beans
For the most part, anything that's not the above doesn't add value to your diet and/or it actually harms your body. Don't be fooled into thinking that alcohol, "natural sugar" or coffee is good for you. If you choose to have some, just realize it's not adding to your health, but you're doing the best you can. I just ask that you don't justify poor eating....it is what it is. Be informed and do what you can.
The following must be in place before you can maximize your therapy with amino acids, bioidentical hormones and vitamin/mineral supplements:
- Good diet (as listed above)
- Healthy digestion (we address this in week 6)
- Optimally functioning thyroid and adrenals
It doesn't mean supplements won't do any good at all and it doesn't mean you shouldn't use them. It means you may not get the entire results you are looking for just yet. This explains why one person benefits right away from supplements and another person does not. The cause is often malfunctioning adrenals, thyroid or digestion.
Which are you?.........
1. Healthy Adrenals
We've heard from a few people on the blog who have had exceptional results with diet improvement only or taking a vitamin/mineral supplement. People who can easily eliminate all sugar and caffeine (and don't smoke, use alcohol, or use other drugs) are in this category. They have adrenals and thyroid that kick in and work well. Their digestive system is working properly.
2. Headed for Trouble 
You may be in the place where you live on caffeine and sugar, you take birth control pills, don't eat nutritious food, you have plenty of energy, your mind is sharp, and life in general is great. It's a fun place to be... it just doesn't last forever. You're headed for adrenal trouble. This is why it's critical that young people (up to age 35 or so) understand WHY their behaviors need to change. They need to see what's ahead, and understand it's much harder to fix later. Once they hit 35-40 years, it becomes clear there is a problem.
3. Adrenals Depleted (to any extent)
If you have trouble eliminating caffeine, sugar, alcohol (meaning that when you eliminate it you feel terrible, have cravings and can't stay off it for long), it's a probable sign that your adrenals and/or thyroid may need some help.
If you've been through stress of divorce, abuse, death, raising children, low calorie dieting, skipping meals, regular and long term caffeine use, high sugar diet, illness, chemical addiction, or any other very high stress situation, your body has been in "depletion" mode. Depletion mode rather than "building mode" is very stressful for your adrenals. Your adrenal glands (adrenals give you stress and sex hormones) may be tired out. Tired adrenals affect the thyroid and also hormone output.
If you have some degree of adrenal depletion, just an easy change of your diet or a vitamin/mineral supplement will not be enough to get you feeling your best. You likely feel much worse when you attempt to eliminate sugar or caffeine. Just the thought of giving up those substances makes you panic! You need a little more help and support, and that's what we're going to learn about this week. Once you're at this stage, you'll need more than your diet can provide in terms of amino acids for brain chemistry rebuilding. Plan to rebuild your brain chemicals with amino acid therapy. It's shorter and simpler than you might think. When you get the right one, you'll know in about 6 minutes. While you're working on supporting your brain, you start on the path of rebuilding strong adrenals and thyroid. You may need bioidentical hormone support right now, but may not need it later as your adrenals recover. You CAN recover fully from this and feel better than ever. It just takes time.
Action Plan for BodyBlitz Week 5:
- Read pp 159-196 in "Female Brain." Complete pages 20,21 with thyroid and adrenal information.
- If you think your adrenals may have problems, add this to your list of items to be checked. Order your own test or get help. Do not start on adrenal supplements before understanding what you need (based on your levels).
- If you suspect you have low thyroid, get it checked with the appropriate tests. Remember, low adrenals can cause low thyroid, so help the adrenals first...it may correct your thyroid problem.
- If you suspect problems with either one, remember, decreased stress and diet support these glands. Overexercise makes it worse.
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Review how amino acid therapy (and which amino acids) can help when you have adrenal and/or thyroid problems. (it's all intertwined!)
photos courtesy of hk_traveller and Dyxie: Flickr.com