Lightning, reverse etc. says cortisol is too high, but what if too low?

[Hip]

A lot of RT-clients need to learn to say no to people and their demands.

That seems to be similar to what @sueami said, but in her case, she was placing these demands on herself, trying to be too perfect, and holding herself up to too high a standard.

In that way, she had a learned response that placed stress and heavy demands upon herself.

I fall in the 40% of RT-clients who actually need to learn to live life slower, to calm the fuck down. To not try and control everything.

Again, that is not dissimilar to @sueami, who said she took on responsibility for other people’s emotional reactions, and tried to do everything herself rather than asking for help.

However, my cortisol is still low. I have two conditions: ME and low cortisol. They each have (slightly) different symptoms.

I wonder if people who have low cortisol, or a weak cortisol response, might be more sensitive to stress, and thus the sort of people who may best benefit from something like RT, which teaches you to unlearn your learned stress responses.


If we assume that a de-stressing therapy like RT may help a small percentage of ME/CFS patients, the question then is which type of patients might find RT beneficial?

Was there anything you observed about your own makeup that made you think in advance that you would benefit from RT? Obviously you were attracted to trying RT, so I wonder if you already had an inkling beforehand that it would benefit you? Did you in some way intuitively feel that it might do you good?

What I am getting at is, do you think there may be a way, via self-examination / introspection, that your average ME/CFS patient could figure out beforehand that they might be a good candidate for RT?

After RT I went to no ME.
I could take walks outside and could shower on the same day. No brainfog. I still paced myself though, rested a lot.

With your brain fog cleared up, have you been able to do any tasks that previously you could not do because of the cognitive dysfunction? For example, on the rare times that my brain fog improves, I find that I can do complex computer software programming (my profession used to be in software); but normally I am unable to do this, because the brain fog makes it almost impossible. So I find that when I am able to do cognitive tasks that I am normally incapable of doing, this provides objective verification that my brain fog has indeed improved.

What do you think would happen if you tried higher levels of exercise, for example, brisk walking for an hour? Or do you prefer not to risk this?

Have you found any objective changes to your ME/CFS symptoms after RT, such as measurable improvements in any autonomic dysfunction you have? For example, I have POTS as one of my ME/CFS autonomic dysfunctions. POTS is very easy to measure objectively, as you just need to observe your increase in heart rate when you stand up. Similarly, the ME/CFS autonomic dysfunctions of orthostatic hypotension and neurally mediated hypotension can be objectively measured, using a blood pressure cuff.

 

[WoolPippi]

I wonder if people who have low cortisol, or a weak cortisol response, might be more sensitive to stress,

they sure are. They have blown their adrenals. That's what gets burned in a burn-out.

If we assume that a de-stressing therapy like RT may help a small percentage of ME/CFS patients, the question then is which type of patients might find RT beneficial?

In all ME/CFS people the stress-system is off its rocker.

It has reason to: things are wrong in the gut, the adrenals, the immune system. But it also influences exactly these things negatively, hindering normal bodily function.

Was there anything you observed about your own makeup that made you think in advance that you would benefit from RT? Obviously you were attracted to trying RT, so I wonder if you already had an inkling beforehand that it would benefit you? Did you in some way intuitively feel that it might do you good?

I knew back in 2008 that the stress system was involved. As was the digestive system; hormones; the immune system; lack of Growth Hormone due to insomnia. And the big mystery ME factor which I thought in my case to be Q-fever or a bacterum or mold.

I just didn't know how it all connected or what I could do to influence things. I studied about one topic per year.

To calm my nervous system I tried CBT; aura healing; acupuncture; sjamanism; hypnosis; drugs; supplements; enemas; past life integration and skin brushing. All are nope.

What I am getting at is, do you think there may be a way, via self-examination / introspection, that your average ME/CFS patient could figure out beforehand that they might be a good candidate for RT?

I think everybody will benefit from RT. Since it addresses how you allow your bodily stress system to function.

It's about giving your body room to do its thing. Not pester it with your mind. We PWME don't do that because:
- we think we know what's best
- we think our body is being stupid or faulty
- we put our body in situations it doesn't want to be in (cold; social stress; mental stress; weird diet; worries about the future; mulling about the past; etc.)

RT taught me I'm in a two-seater for this ride. And I better befriend my partner because it took millions of R&D years to make this body and it has a lot of wisdom in surviving and living. Who am I with barely 45 years of consciousness to think I know better?

With your brain fog cleared up, have you been able to do any tasks that previously you could not do because of the cognitive dysfunction?

Yes. I have since then dissected engineer's rapports and written my own for a court case that ran up to the highest level of justice in my country. I could focus and strategize information for 8 hours or more on a day without fatigue or brain fog.
The rapport had to be rewritten again and again, shifting focus and I did that all with cognitive ease and pleasure.

I can easily see myself picking up my last profession before ME which was scientific journalist.

What do you think would happen if you tried higher levels of exercise, for example, brisk walking for an hour? Or do you prefer not to risk this?

After 8 years of not using my muscles or my ligaments I'm not risking it. I did walk animated for an hour and have also done fit20 where you deplete a muscle from its energy. Both went fine. The fit20 depletion made me possitively happy. My body yearns to be used now.

Have you found any objective changes to your ME/CFS symptoms after RT, such as measurable improvements in any autonomic dysfunction you have? For example, I have POTS as one of my ME/CFS autonomic dysfunctions. POTS is very easy to measure objectively, as you just need to observe your increase in heart rate when you stand up. Similarly, the ME/CFS autonomic dysfunctions of orthostatic hypotension and neurally mediated hypotension can be objectively measured, using a blood pressure cuff.

this is difficult to say because I also have adrenal issues which influence my BP.
Since RT I experienced one episode of POTS, where my heart raced when I was just standing relaxed. I had never had this before.

One day the neighbour rang the doorbell and was talking longer than I wanted her to. My ME symptoms returned and I got tired, weak, couldn't stand up straight anymore, lost colour in my face and couldn't think.

Objective change that was measured: electrolytes in the blood are now well in balance. They weren't before.
Thyroid is doing better.

Also my liver tends to not make bile when I'm symptomatic. This too has gone. It sometimes returns when I don't handle stress healthily.

 

[Hip]

Yes. I have since then dissected engineer's rapports and written my own for a court case that ran up to the highest level of justice in my country. I could focus and strategize information for 8 hours or more on a day without fatigue or brain fog.
The rapport had to be rewritten again and again, shifting focus and I did that all with cognitive ease and pleasure.

That is pretty impressive. And before this would have been impossible?

Since RT I experienced one episode of POTS, where my heart raced when I was just standing relaxed. I had never had this before.

What about your average POTS figures from before and after Reverse Therapy?

I usually measure my POTS on waking first thing in the morning: I measure my heart rate beats per minute (bpm) while still lying horizontally and relaxed in bed, just after waking up. Then I get up out of bed and stand up, and I measure my heart rate over the next 5 minutes while standing still.

In my case, there is a maximum increase in heart rate of anything from 25 bpm to 40 bpm when going from lying to standing. The figures vary a little from day to day, from around 25 bpm to 40 bpm, but I get an average increase of around 35 bpm or thereabouts.

I tend to assume that if I ever made major improvements in my ME/CFS, then my average POTS bpm increase would go down. A fully health person will have little or no increase in heart rate on standing up.

 

[WoolPippi]

That is pretty impressive. And before this would have been impossible?

yes, utterly impossible.

In 2008 I had barely any cognitive function during the day. Didn't know my own name.
Brainfog went away slowly after that and from 2013 I could think again. But could do no writing or comprehensive reading.
In 2015 I could write again, for one day every once in a while, and would crash afterwards.
sinds RT/last January I can think and write for hours and I don't crash. It energizes me even.

What about your average POTS figures from before and after Reverse Therapy?

I never experienced POTS before. It was the one time.

I've had a very slow heartbeat all my life before I fell ill (42 bpm) and healthy BP (115/90)

After I fell ill and I started regular recording (from 2010 onwards) my heart rate was always high (65 bpm when lying resting in bed) and BP remained too low at 90/60 (lying or sitting or standing)

Since one year overall heart rate has dropped to 55 bpm average and I'm guessing BP is higher because I have no symptoms. However, since then I'm experienceing irregular heart beats, when I'm resting/lying down or when I sit slouched. I'm worried somewhat about this.

Since 5 years my BP is helped by cortisol replacement. It held at 90/60 all those years, even when I slowly upped my cortisol from 5 mg in the beginning to 20 mg per day the last year.

Over the last 10 days I went from 20 to 35 mg per day and suddenly I'm fully functional, nearly fully active. I have started to sport again. But this is an aided improvement, I am fully dependent upon the cortisol now. I can say nothing reliable about BP or POTS now.

(going from 20 to 35 mg Hydrocortisone in just 10 days sounds fast but under certain circumstances it's OK to do. I was still under-replaced at 20 mg per day, as illustrated by my adrenal symptoms and the blood work I had drawn up. I've been doing HRT for years now and had an Adrenal coach these past two weeks who knows her stuff. All this made me ok for doing this.)

Don't ever do hormones without knowing your stuff.

 

[Hip]

I never experienced POTS before. It was the one time.

I don't think that was POTS then, probably just an episode of tachycardia. POTS I believe is a constant condition, such that you always get an increase in heart rate (of 27 bpm or more) when standing up from a lying down position.