Broken Adrenals, cortisol, fatigue and oh yes, anxiety

[Therunningman]

Hey guys. So my cfs me appears to be perpetually driven by adrenals. That is I get anxiety at sleep onset, anxiety in the morning, and even at naps. It just comes on. I’m calm and not even thinking about anything. I started on Seriphos about a week ago. It’s supposed to lower cortisol. Now I don’t know if that will lower anxiety but so far at least not much effect. I take just the one dose at bedtime. If anyone knows how this supplement may work, or how they got there adrenals to calm down and heal, please let me know! My energy just drops during stress. I am almost bedridden at this point. My 8 year old autistic son is the root cause over the last 2 years. But I can’t give up on him. This illness is devastating

 

[Hip]

This might interest you: Completely eliminated my severe anxiety symptoms with three supplements!

 

[Judee]

Have you tested high on cortisol? I believe that Seriphos is suppose to lower your cortisol levels but if your adrenals are burning out or burnt out, I don't think you want to do that. You may actually need more cortisol to help you deal with the stress.

I do take a very low dose of Cortef whenever I have a very stressful event coming up and am not physically up to the task and it helps a lot, for instance when my mom had to go to the ER and we had a feeling she was going to be admitted.

Also at the recommendation of my environmental doctor I've taken the 4 sample assessment from ZRT labs called Adrenal Stress Profile which measures cortisol and DHEA and their report for me said:

Cortisol is normal throughout the day; however, a significant number of symptoms commonly associated with low and/or high cortisol are reported. Under stress situations the adrenal glands respond by increasing cortisol output. (underline mine)

However, when cortisol levels are within normal range under situations of excessive stress, as reported herein, this suggests that the adrenal glands may be overworking to keep up with the demands of the stressors, which could eventually lead to adrenal exhaustion.

Adrenal exhaustion is most commonly caused by stressors which include: psychological stress (emotional), sleep deprivation, poor diet (low protein-particularly problematic in vegetarians), nutrient deficiencies (particularly low vitamins C and B5), physical insults (surgery, injury), diseases (cancer, diabetes), chemical exposure (environmental pollutants, excessive medications), low levels of cortisol precursors (pregnenolone and progesterone) and pathogenic infections (bacteria, viruses and fungi).

A normal daily output of cortisol is essential to maintain normal metabolic activity, help regulate steady state glucose levels (important for brain function and energy production), and optimize immune function. Depletion of adrenal cortisol synthesis by a chronic stressor, sleep deprivation, and/or nutrient deficiencies (particularly vitamins C and B5) often leads to symptoms such as fatigue, allergies (immune dysfunction), chemical sensitivity, cold body temp, and sugar craving. (Things I check marked on the assessment form I sent with my samples.)

For additional information about strategies for supporting adrenal health and reducing stress(ors), the following books are worth reading: "Adrenal Fatigue", by James L. Wilson, N.D., D.C., Ph.D.; "The Cortisol Connection", by Shawn Talbott, Ph.D.; "The End of Stress As We Know It" by Bruce McEwen; "Awakening Athena" by Kenna Stephenson, MD.

Another good book that talks about this some is the Mood Cure Book by Julia Ross. Actually, her book is where I first heard about Seriphos helping with high cortisol.

 

[Runner5]

Stopping coffee and sugar is supposed to help cortisol - but yeah, I've never managed that.

My anxiety is really helped by L-Tyrosine and L-Theanine. I have absolutely the worst digestion and I was on all kinds of psych meds at one point then found L-Tyrosine and it was like .... oh .... OH! OMG. It just worked for me within 20 minutes. It's not one of those things that take 3 weeks, it either works or it doesn't.

 

[Mary]

Hey guys. So my cfs me appears to be perpetually driven by adrenals. That is I get anxiety at sleep onset, anxiety in the morning, and even at naps. It just comes on. I’m calm and not even thinking about anything. I started on Seriphos about a week ago. It’s supposed to lower cortisol. Now I don’t know if that will lower anxiety but so far at least not much effect. I take just the one dose at bedtime. If anyone knows how this supplement may work, or how they got there adrenals to calm down and heal, please let me know! My energy just drops during stress. I am almost bedridden at this point. My 8 year old autistic son is the root cause over the last 2 years. But I can’t give up on him. This illness is devastating

I think @Judee is right. You really should get an Adrenal Stress Index Test done before taking Seriphos. The test is done by several different labs. Seriphos can be very effective at lowering high cortisol but you have to know if that's what you're dealing with.

I had high cortisol in the middle of the night several years ago, shown by the ASIT, causing severe insomnia, and Seriphos worked wonders for me. I had to experiment to find the right dose and found that I needed 8 capsules a day - a very high dose and I don't recommend anyone start with that. Each person has to find what works for them. After a few months I cut the dose as it was making me tired, my cortisol was going too low. Now I just need very small doses every once in awhile.

Also - and this is important - in general Seriphos works best when taken in the morning. When taken at night it just caused a weird bad insomnia for me. I later read this has to do with the circadian rhythm.

But Seriphos may not even be the right thing for you right now.

My chiropractor who does muscle testing found many years ago that my adrenals were weak and stress made me very tired. He gave me an adrenal glandular by Standard Process called Drenatophin PMG. I had to start with a high dose of that but within a few days my energy started returning. I've needed to take an adrenal glandular off and on ever since, though generally in a much smaller dose. When my house flooded, I developed a bone-deep weakness and realized my adrenals had taken another hit. I increased the Drenatrophin again and my energy returned.

Pantothenic acid can also help support the adrenals.

 

[Moof]

I'm making an off-the-wall suggestion – feel free to think I've lost the plot!

My friend and I once got a bit tipsy on her birthday, and decided (as you do at 3am) that we were going to learn to purr like a cat. We had a silly half hour making ridiculous noises in our throats, which sounded like a cross between gargling and burping. I noticed that it had an intensely calming effect on me, but put it down to the alcohol; I'm severely intolerant, and even a couple of units makes me feel like death dug up.

Fast forward 30 years or so, and I read about vagal nerve stimulation helping some people with dysautonomia and anxiety. One of the ways to activate it is gargling. I experimented a bit with the stupid purring noise, and lo and behold, it works! For me, the best use of it is when I fall into bed exhausted, but then promptly go into 'wired and tired' overdrive. It just cuts through it completely, and I fall asleep easily.

There are various vagal stimulation techniques that might work better for other folk, but this one's pretty effective for me.

OK, lunacy now over!

 

[Mary]

@Moof, I love that! My cat does too!

@Therunningman - one more thing - Seriphos never helped with my adrenal fatigue, so it very well may not be what you need right now and might even be making things worse as Judee suggested.