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Adrenal Issues and treatment problems

soxfan

Senior Member
Messages
995
Location
North Carolina
Sing-
I am seeing Dr. Komaroff now and he did a bunch of blood work..we talked a little about adrenal problems and testing. I couldn't really tell which way he was leaning on going back on the cortef. He said he wanted to get all the blood test results back first and then he would come up with his plan.
I would really like to go back on the 10mg and see if it helps...at least get me back to where I was last October which wasn't great but better than I am now!

I showed him my saliva tests and blood cortisol and they were completely different in that the saliva was flat throughout the day but my cortisol am was in the low normal range...
 

caledonia

Senior Member
Pepegracie - there is a relationship between orthostatic intolerance and adrenal fatigue. Treating adrenal fatigue should help the OI, at least it has for me. Several of treatments for both overlap, another clue.

So if you have OI, you should suspect, and test for adrenal fatigue.

For the person with the antimony poisoning - you should be able to very slowly and carefully chelate that out. I was able to tolerate a supplement called Chelex for lead and mercury chelation. I used it for 6 months. If you decide to do any kind of chelation or detox, start low and go slow. That means a fraction of a pill, maybe only a few times a week, so you can control the rate of detox symptoms.

Here's a link so you can check ingredients:
http://pureformulas.com/chelex-120-vegcaps-by-xymogen.html

ps. you can get a Doctor's Data Metals and Minerals test first to verify heavy metals in your body. It also gives you your mineral status because when you chelate you will also be losing minerals and will need to replace them.
 

InvertedTree

Senior Member
Messages
166
Pepegracie - there is a relationship between orthostatic intolerance and adrenal fatigue. Treating adrenal fatigue should help the OI, at least it has for me. Several of treatments for both overlap, another clue.

So if you have OI, you should suspect, and test for adrenal fatigue.

.

I took a strong medication for a week that stressed my adrenals out. My OI has been worse ever since. I've been wondering why but this explains it.
 

Sing

Senior Member
Messages
1,782
Location
New England
Soxfan,

Lucky you to have Dr. Komaroff, though he proceeds in a conservative fashion, it looks like. Let me, us, know what he decides with your cortisol results and treatment. Have you had the 24 hr urine test? I think that is one conventional test which can show low cortisol output, at least on average.

My last saliva test showed a simlar pattern: it was abnormally low in the am then flat throughout the day. This was when I went off Cortef for several days. I didn't know how long to be off it for this test, and my GP didn't specify anything as he didn't know.

I sure didn't want to go off for 2 months, which an Endocrinologist once had me do for all hormone supplements (in 2002). Then, when I had some abnormal levels, he brushed those off and ignored them, only pointing to the ones that were within a normal (LOW) range. He then proclaimed that he only dealt with patients who had REAL diseases, like Diabetes, not--sneer--Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and that he thought my problem was with my relationships with people and I ought to see a Psychiatrist. Since he didn't even know me, this was particularly ludicrous. I looked at this old man with surgically altered, brushed up skin, dyed hair and a face like a perverted mask, and thought, You are projecting onto me! I felt angry with him for this injustice, particularly since I had suffered through two months off of meds I needed!

I have felt really frustrated for all of us that the medical profession doesn't seem to be clear about how to test and evaluate our hormonal status, with HPA abnormalities. If there is doubt, it seems to me that there is a good rationale for allowing a "clinical trial"--in other words, just seeing how our bodies react to a supplemental dose. This is letting the body be the judge of it. Jefferies advocated this approach.
 

InvertedTree

Senior Member
Messages
166
It was little irritating that they wanted $5 to download the pdf file. I copied it into MS Word without any problems.

That would be irritating. I appreciate you sharing it with us.

Sing-

I share your frustration with the medical profession not wanting to treat hypoadrenia. My 24 hour cortisol is at the last stage with low levels throughout. I have to supplement with cortisone or I have bad adrenal symptoms.
 
Messages
40
Location
East Coast, US
I also am going through peri menopause and my adrenals have tanked.
I am at the point of being able to take a shower and that is all right now :)

I don't know or have the answers if I did I would not be stuck in bed right now :(

Anyway there are forums where people talk about things for adrenal fatigue...check out heapsreal he has alot of knowledge about adrenals.
There was also something said in a chat the other day about someone who tried different herbs for adrenals:

i had a major crash and started researching; taking 7-keto,ashwagandha, relora/magnolia, eleuthero, vitex and dong quai for balance, devil;s claw for inflammation, rx and various herbs for sleep
imrproving for hte first time in years
a9ymous

Anyway I don't think you are being ignored and good luck.
Let the rest of us know if anything works for you.

Hope Love Light
 

heapsreal

iherb 10% discount code OPA989,
Messages
10,089
Location
australia (brisbane)
Turns out the the B5 severely burned my stomach, presumably from it being pantothenic *acid* (big clue). I've since seen reports that PA can be ulcerogenic. I might even have a peptic ulcer at this point from all the GERD, because the night I took the largest dose one area of my stomach on the left side was burning so bad I thought I was going to pass out. After stopping the panto, the next day it was back to baseline again.

I think I'm going to switch back to pantethine, except this time at a higher dose. Too bad it's so much more expensive - I think most of that is b/c of being able to market it as a cholesterol supplement. But maybe it will bring up my 50 HDL a little as an added benefit. I hope the adrenal effects aren't less, though - do you have any info on pantothenic vs. pantethine specifically in regard to adrenal benefits?

regards

Did u take pantothenic with food? Its only been a short while that i have been using b5 but i have had no problems with it but then i take a truck load of supps and then eat soon afterwards.Lets us no how the pantethine go's. I will get some test results soon and also interested to see how it effects cholesterol, the non flush niacin knocked my levels down a fare bit, im hoping to see more improvement in that area too.
 

SaraM

Senior Member
Messages
526
HC helped me to get rid of heart palpitation due to adrenal fatigue ,but damaged my gut. I took it for more than a year which was unnecessary. I did it on my own because my GP could not figure out what my problem was and simply put me on beta blockers with no result.
 

caledonia

Senior Member
When I was originally researching supps for adrenals, I did see the pantothenic acid recommended, but it had enough bad side effects that I was too scared to take it.

The heart palps could actually be due to lack of magnesium. At least I get heart palps when I don't have enough. If your adrenals are low you won't be able to regulate magnesium levels in your body. So if the HC raised your adrenals, then you would be able to regulate magnesium again and the palps would disappear.

My naturopath said it would take a year being on adrenal supps to let the adrenals heal. I believe I saw on Dr. Lam's site, it could take some people 2-3 years.
 

SaraM

Senior Member
Messages
526
Caledonia, thanks much for the info. I have no more palps now. B5 in moderate dose has been great for me while Mag does nothing . My Mag level is good.
 
Messages
62
Turns out the the B5 severely burned my stomach, presumably from it being pantothenic *acid* (big clue). I've since seen reports that PA can be ulcerogenic. I might even have a peptic ulcer at this point from all the GERD, because the night I took the largest dose one area of my stomach on the left side was burning so bad I thought I was going to pass out. After stopping the panto, the next day it was back to baseline again.
regards

I found taking zinc carnosine helped with my burney churney stomach.. A week on it and all nice a cheery down there..
 
Messages
62
Since being on the homeopathics hypothalamus gland and thymus gland .. not only I have much less/ no? need for sulfate I also do not need methyl B12

Without the B 12 previously my heart was always very bad.. out of breath, pain/ tension in my chest... Now all better .. So my heart problem was related to HPA axis or immune.. cannot remember at which point it improved.. think after the hypothalamus which I started a couple weeks ahead of the thymus.
 

soxfan

Senior Member
Messages
995
Location
North Carolina
Sing- I think I read someplace that Dr. Komaroff doesn't use cortef so I am not sure what is going to happen. I am not sure if he did a blood cortisol. They took 12 tubes of blood plus 2 more for his research purposes. He didn't seem too interested in my saliva test that I had done a month ago. I have only had transmitters tested through urine and my serotonin is still extremely low.

I wish these doctors could agree on testing methods too... I will let you know when I hear back about what the plan is going to be. I have already been on tons of medications these past 6 plus years but he did tell me there are quite a few that I haven't tried that he uses so we shall see...
 

jeffrez

Senior Member
Messages
1,112
Location
NY
I found taking zinc carnosine helped with my burney churney stomach.. A week on it and all nice a cheery down there..

yeah, i've been taking that for a couple of years. Jarrow was the best, but they stopped making it. The crap that's out there now seems to be nowhere as good as the original. what brand have you found to work well?
 
Messages
62
yeah, i've been taking that for a couple of years. Jarrow was the best, but they stopped making it. The crap that's out there now seems to be nowhere as good as the original. what brand have you found to work well?

I am at the end of my Jarrow bottle. I just ordered Doctors Best.. from iherb.. IT looks okay.. hopefully..