When we encounter major problems in our lives, our body experiences high stress levels. Some of the major stressors are illnesses, work-related, finance, and death. When we experience one of these, our body goes through physical and emotional change to cope with the problem. The adrenal gland is responsible for releasing the stress hormone, Cortisol, to help the body cope. There will be times where stressors come one after the other causing stress longer than it should be. When this happens, the adrenal gland might not meet the body’s cortisol demand to help cope. This often leads to adrenal fatigue.

Adrenal fatigue is a serious condition that must be treated. When the adrenal gland slows down its production of cortisol, the body suffers physically because it cannot properly cope with stress. This can gravely affect the way one lives and may lead to chronic diseases like cancer, chronic hypertension, and stroke. Today, there are adrenal fatigue tests that can be easily performed to detect if the adrenal gland is fatigued or not.

Here are the signs and symptoms of adrenal fatigue:

• Chronic fatigue. That feeling of prolonged exhaustion, even if you’ve been getting enough sleep. When you experience this, you have the tendency to be irritable.
• Change in sleeping patterns. Sometimes, the body is too tired that even when it is time to sleep, you can’t. You end up sleeping and waking up later than usual.
• Sweet and salty food cravings.
• Languid. Because the adrenal gland is not producing enough stress hormones, your body is having a hard time recovering. This results in lower stamina levels. You may also experience muscle and joint pains.
• Difficulty with focus and concentration. Brain function is also affected because of insufficient hormones in the body.
• Respiratory problems. The immune system becomes weak because the body is not getting the hormones that it needs to cope. Allergies may also develop.
• Poor digestion. Adrenal fatigue also affects the production of acid that aids in food digestion.
• Headaches. When cortisol levels are low, blood vessels don’t contract and air passages constrict. This affects the blood flow and may also affect blood circulation.
• Decreased sex drive.
• Constant urination and thirst.
• Low blood sugar levels.
• Disrupted menstrual cycle.
• Mild depression. You will start feeling depressed because of all the stress that you are experiencing.
• Skin pigmentation. Adrenal fatigue also affects the production of melanocytes causing pigmentation in different parts of the body.

If you are experiencing some of these signs and symptoms, or you know someone who is experiencing these signs, consult with your doctor and ask about getting an adrenal test. There are millions of people affected by this condition, some even lived with it for years without knowing. Don’t just live with it and hope that it will be gone when you wake up in the morning. Getting an adrenal fatigue test will provide you with proper medication. It will make you feel better and will decrease your chances of getting chronic diseases.

Source:

http://adrenalfatiguehelp.org/20-adrenal-fatigue-symptoms/

http://www.project-aware.org/Resource/articlearchives/adrenalfatigue.shtml

Posted under Hormones
Tags: adrenal fatigue, adrenal gland, AIDS, Chronic fatigue, cortisol levels, HIV / AIDS & STDs, Hormones, stress hormone.