I was wondering if anyone else had adrenal fatigue syndrom before they found out that they had Celiac disease? What I've been reading is that one of the stressors that can lead to adrenal fatigue is gluten intolerance. I had adrenal fatigue syndrom for about 2 years, started feeling better then found out that I had celiac disease. Is it possible to have not known that I had celiac disease and got the adrenal thing from that? Because I also read that a lot people don't know that they have celiac disease until something major happens in their life (which is what happened with me)

So I'm kinda confussed, if anyone knows about this I would love some tips:-)

For me it's like the chicken and egg. I don't know which really came first.

My doc, who's a holistic doc, has a different outlook than conventional medicine. I do not know if I agree with her or not, but we'll see. She says that if I can get my body working right again, and it may take a couple years, that the food sensitivities will go away in the reverse order in which they came. I believe this to a point, but I don't believe that the gluten problem will go away since it's genetic (I should note, I have gluten intolerant genes, not celiac). I also believe the gluten problem contributed to the adrenal problem, and vice versa. I told that to my doc. She said that conventional medicine (she's also an MD) says that is correct, but holistic medicine says I'll be able to tolerate gluten better once I reverse the damage that's been done. I asked if she meant that contamination won't be such a problem, i.e. I'll be able to pick croutons off my salad instead of worrying about the crumbs. She answered that she thought I ocassionally might even be able to eat one or two croutons.

I am not suggesting that anyone do as she says, or that I agree because I really do not know. If in the future I can order food that I know is gluten-free and not make a fuss over contamination, that will be wonderful. I don't think I see any croutons in my future . I would still never knowingly eat gluten again because I think in the end it was what was the cause of the breakdown of my whole system. But, if I quit getting sick for 8 days every time I get contaminated, I'll sure be happy about that!

So how do u know if u have adrenal fatigue and can one do anything about it?? I found that ya'll are smarter/more experienced/ better informed than my gp.......... So it seems more effective to ask ya'll than pay to get brushed off by him!!

Thanx thanx!

So how do u know if u have adrenal fatigue and can one do anything about it?? I found that ya'll are smarter/more experienced/ better informed than my gp.......... So it seems more effective to ask ya'll than pay to get brushed off by him!!

Thanx thanx!

Adelle, I was diagnosed by hair analysis. If you get the book I mentioned before, there's a test in it you can take that will tell you based on your symptoms. The book also tells a lot about healing from it. You can search for adrenal fatigue, and adrenal burnout on the internet and learn a lot, but the book goes into much more specific detail.

Is there a website with this test ?

This is where I had mine done: http://arltma.com/index.html I should add, my doc ordered the test, I don't know if you can go there directly. Insurance covered the doctor visit (she's an MD), but not the hair analysis.

was hopping for somthing free

Oh, the test in the book!!! Umm, no, but you can go sit in Barnes and Noble or Borders and take it.

Thanks for posting this info, Carla.

I have an app't in November with an integrative medicine specialist in NYC. I am having serious health problems. I am going to add this to my list of things to ask about.

Appreciate the info

I'm not familiar with integrative medicine. Are they open to more holistic ideas? Conventional medicine doesn't really consider adrenal fatigue, probably because the adrenals are not actually diseased. My health problems have been pretty serious, too, to the point that I sometimes would spend the whole day in bed. All my conventional tests would come out normal though, so I had to start looking for how to get healthy rather than what disease I had. This has helped me so much, I just can't help but pass on the information as I think that years of gluten intolerance causes a tired system in most of us.

Carla,
Yes, they are certainly more open to all kinds of ideas! Thank goodness! He is an MD.

Here is his link...http://www.mdheal.org/

And this is a good description of who he is:
http://mdheal.org/whatis.htm

He is on the Defeat Autism Now (DAN) network of doctors also...meaning he understands food intolerances and their connection to more than just the intestinal system!

He also focuses on leaky gut, which is one of the mechanisms involved in Celiac:
http://mdheal.org/leakygut.htm

My first app't is a 1.5 hour consultation with him and his assistant. Finally, someone who will actually take the time to listen....

Laura

That sounds great, Laura. My doc is also an MD who is into holistic medicine. She's also into healing the leaky gut and doing everything to support health. I bet your doc will be well-versed on adrenal fatigue and I bet it would come up anyway with him if it is a problem for you. Keep us posted on your visit!

I have adrenal fatigue and mine was caused by having low Thyroid function and a normal TSH and no Dr ever ordering the right Thyroid tests for 30 years. I kept working and exhausted myself.

www.stopthethyroidmadness.com has a good test for adrenal function that you can do yourself.

Stress is a big factor in causing adrenal fatigue. Your adrenals send out cortisol and other chemicals for the fight or flight thing that happens because your body senses danger. So your heart may begin to beat faster, your brain becomes more alert, your digestion shuts off, and so much more but to make this brief. When you have that happening day after day you deplete your adrenals. You'll find foods like donuts in the morning and caffeine lift you out of this fatigued state and that only makes things worse in the long run. Even exercising constantly can cause adrenal fatigue. They call them adrenaline junkies. Anything that causes the excitement it takes to get the adrenals producing.

Stress also causes digestive problems. That could include celiac. So I think stress is what caused both things to happen for you instead of celiac causing adrenal or vice versa.

Gail

Really, there is no such thing as adrenal fatigue.

They work or they dont (which can be either right in the adrenals-Addison's Disease, which turns you orange, or in the pituitary, which makes you very pale. They both make you deathly bone tired, unable to get out of BED tired, weight flies off you, hyperallergic, hair falls out, and achey as all get out).

Of course, there is a wide range of normal, from 'yeah they're technically normal but barely' which may be one cause of CFS, to just barely sub-Cushings (which is the opposite of Addison's, except it lives in the pituitary and is usually caused by a tumor).

But sub-optimal functioning isn't caused by wearing them OUT. It can be natural, it can be an autoimmune process that either stops or doesn't (leading to addison's), it can be a pituitary glitch, et cetera.

If you have true adrenal failure, there isn't an herb or supplement out there that will give you back your life. You will be sent from specialist to specialist, thinking you found the answer with the rheumatologist or the toxicologist or the gastroenterologist or the naturopath or whoever. And you watch the weight continue to drop, and you get weaker and paler and more convinced that whatever you have, you are going to die.

Then you see an endocrinologist. And he takes one look at you, sees that your thyroid has been tested ad nauseum TYVM, and does an ACTH stim test. Your cortisol number pre-ACTH is 3 (normal for that time of day being above 15) and after is 12 (normal at that time being at least 25). The diagnosis: central adrenal failure. Not fatigue. FAILURE.

And you will have to take steroids for the rest of your life. In case of emergency you will need to carry a kit with intramuscular needles and injectable 'stress dose' steroids. Otherwise if you get mugged or in a car accident or vomit or anything YOU COULD DIE. Your blood pressure could crash through the floor, you have shaky hands and under a minute to get the needle in because of the impending crash, but you stab yourself or you DIE of adrenal crisis.

But the steroids give you back your life, so you deal with it. And you take the risks, even the ones that might require a needle. Because life is for living.

I understand wanting an answer for a myriad of symptoms. But chronic fatigue for no good reason (or undiagnosed nutritional deficiencies, or sleep issues, or the wrong phase of the moon) is FAR more likely than "mild" adrenal failure, seeing as failure means not-working. And, having lost a year of my life to adrenal failure, having almost died of adrenal crisis, and having gone from a healthy 143 pounds to 85 pounds in several months, I do not wish adrenal problems of any sort on ANYONE. Telling a doctor you have adrenal problems can get you the wrong treatment if they believe you(and crisis-dose steroids can make you psychotic if you don't need them, even if you're normally stable as a rock), or it can make life more difficult for the person who comes in with a genuine adrenal crisis 3 days later. I know that doctors are not fashionable here, but they ARE a fact of life, and when it comes to my hormones I trust my award winning endocrinologist over the herbologist down the street any day.

If you're suffering, look for another answer. If you cannot find one, and are convinced it is your adrenals, have them tested the conventional way. Then you can get the LIFE SAVING treatment before you crash and burn really really hard.

Kassiane
autistic
bipolar
epileptic
celiac
corn allergic
salycilate sensitive
soy sensitive
shrimp anaphylactic
drug allergies
central adrenal failure
central diabetes insipidus
ehlers danlos type 2
MECP2 mutation
Head injury or 2
TMJ
but otherwise perfectly healthy!

I was dxd with adrenal fatigue several years ago by the dr who treats my chronic lyme. He leaves no stones unturned. I've been treated for it with cortef for the same number of years.

My dr tested me through AAL labs. It was a 24hr urine collection test. The name of the lab may have changed by the way, I'm not sure.

Anyway, I am now taking a natural supplement and am down to only 5 mg of cortef. I'm afraid is has further lowered my already low immune system and I'd like to get off of it.

Kassiane,

I am currently looking into adrenal fatigue as to the possible causes of my extreme exhaustion and continued thyroid difficulties. So far, the sites and links given to me to research have given me great insight into this.

It would be great if you could post some links to back-up your belief that there is no such thing as adrenal fatigue. Any articles or studies would be great.....

I am having a hard time wrapping my head around this. If there is no such thing as adrenal fatigue, does that mean that your adrenals go from being fine one day to just konking out the next? No slow damage or weakening occuring?

I think of it like a car: Does your adrenal slowly get lower on fuel until you finally run out of gas? Or does your adrenals run full speed until they just "break down" all of a sudden......

I am truly interested in finding out as much info as possible, so any links would be great!

Thanks!
Karen

Kassiane, I am sorry you have to deal with so many problems already. I am also autistic (Asperger Syndrome) and have many of the same intolerances as well. I disagree that there are only either healthy adrenals, or you have complete failure. The road to failure usually leads through the stages of adrenal fatigue and adrenal burnout. The end stage, if undiagnosed and untreated, is adrenal failure. And yes, terrible stress all your life CAN wear out your adrenals, as they can't take constantly pumping out adrenaline. If you're under the kind of stress that makes you realize that danger is always close at hand (as in being abused all your life, and life being very unpredictable, plus being poisoned by foods you're intolerant to all your life, like me), then your adrenals WILL eventually not be able to function any more. And at that point, many fairly young people just drop dead, and nobody understands how somebody that young can have a 'heart attack'. I don't believe these are heart attacks, but adrenal failure.

I am at the burnout stage, which is darn close to complete failure. I am not treated just with herbs, but with freeze dried bovine adrenal concentrate, and spleen concentrate. I am also treated with rest, supplements to boost my immune system, as well as a diet that excludes all the foods I am intolerant to, and eating many small meals a day. And hopefully, the adrenals will decide to start working again. It is a lengthy process, and will take at least one to two years, there is no instant fix if you want to permanently heal the adrenals.

I am glad that the steroids help you feel better. But even though you seem to think that taking artificial hormones is the only answer, and that you have to take them for the rest of your life, that unfortunately seems to be the only way regular MDs treat all illnesses. I don't believe that your adrenals are hopeless, and cannot possibly be repaired. Even if that is what you have been told.

I understand that you can't just stop the treatments you are getting, or you might die. I don't deny that. But at the same time, you might want to look into supporting the adrenals to maybe initiate healing. I have the ideal situation, finally (at the age of 53), to have a medical doctor and a naturopathic doctor working together. I know this is unusual, but ideal (not to mention my chiropractor and a massage therapist being a part of my health team).

It would be nice if you would try not to attack those that don't think your way, but to maybe check first if what they have to say is valid, too. Too many doctors have told most of us lies for too long, to just blindly believe everything they have to say. Too many of us had to figure out the gluten connection on our own, because medical doctors are far from perfect, and too many of them are quite ignorant. Including many specialists we have seen.

So, just because you have an 'award-winning' endocrinologist, doesn't mean that he knows everything. I am more than twice as old as you, and I have had to find out that award-winning specialists aren't perfect, either.

Adrenal fatigue is real ... I, like Ursula, am being treated for it and the difference in my health is remarkable. Adrenal fatigue is sublclinical and was taught in the medical schools until we got into this system where doctors can't go by their instincts rather have to go by the code on the insurance form. Well, adrenal fatigue is not a code on an insurance form.

It would be nice if we could teach our doctors how to promote health rather than only how to diagnose disease. I'm thankful that I've caught my adrenal fatigue before I ended up with Addison's disease. Since I couldn't even get out of bed, and even now I'm not even dressed yet today, I was definately on my way there!

I want to add that yes, it IS possible for adrenals to go from perfectly healthy to failure instantly. If somebody suffers a terrible shock, then it can happen. I read that John F. Kennedy was on a warship that was rammed, and not many people survived. He had adrenal failure from this one terrible shock, and needed to take adrenal hormones for the rest of his life. Mind you, it is possible that with a different doctor, his adrenals might have slowly recovered.

And Carla, maybe we should have a pajama party? Because here I sit in my pajamas as well.

I found this great thread and needed to ask a question about adrenals.

My Holistic Dr. thinks I have stressed adrenals (tests show high a.m. cortisol levels).

She wants to give me 5mg cortef 2 times a day. She gave me the script but I haven't filled it yet.

I have read that HC and cortef can lower your immune system as well as many other things.

My question is would this low amount cause all the side effects they talk about?

I have read here that licorice helps. Is there any other foods or natural supps that would help our adrenals?


I seem to have gotten the adrenal fatigue the same time gluten/wheat started bothering me. Seems to be a connection

What's your thoughts on this subject seeing it's been a year sence the last post on this subject?

Thanks,

TS

Hi, Just bumping this one up

Its my understanding that HC can actually boost the immune system - if you are deficient as proven by medical testing - and take the correct dose to SUPPLEMENT what is missing. But be careful - as it is a drug of dependence and has a 'feel good' factor as well. Healthy adrenals normally produce about 15 - 40mg of cortisone a day I believe ( source Dr Hertoghe book The Hormone Handbook) but that can elevate to 100mg or more in times of stress or illness.

But if your adrenals are working at - lets say at 50% - and you take a dose of say - 15mg - it may be a total replacement dose for you and not just a supplement. A mistake made by Drs that haven't done all the correct testing. Then this is when you will risk atrophying the healthy 50% of your adrenals that are at present OK - if this regime happens for too long over months or even weeks.

Another person may have a total replacement dose of 20mg or 25mg or 35mg - and 15mg for them may be perfect....so guessing what dose you need is always dangerous. The tests needed are Stim Tests and the Insulin Tolerance Test - both in hospital tests. There may be others too - I am still learning and researching all this myself.

Hope this helps.

Search any Addisons site. Addisons ( adrenal insufficiency ) can be autoimmune ( primary) or secondary. There are tests to determine this. There are also various degrees of adrenal insufficiency from mild to severe. And sometimes this can happen gradually over many years or happen suddenly in days or weeks. Some people suffer mild AI - not realising why they are fatigued - until they suddenly are in ER with a life threatening Adrenal crisis. Some people on the Addisons sites take 30 or 40 years to be dx. Some get ill in days or hours. But - yes - no recognised medical condition for adrenal fatigue according to medical advisors on the Addisons Groups.

I have been treated for adrenal fatigue for a little over a year. I have DH and was diagnosed three years ago. I believe the adrenal fatigue was due to alot of things. Problems with insomnis my whole adult life, pushing myself too hard, major losses, too much sugar, ongoing allergy problems, and I'm guessing an underlying gluten intolerance that I did not know about for a long time. I was tested by a doctor using a saliva test that looks at a number of hormone levels over the course of a day. The important thing is to find information about adrenal fatigue and start the treatment. Slow down, eat the right kind of meals on a regular basis, cut out all sugar and alcohol, cut way down on foods with high glycemic index, etc. etc. Also, take adrenal supplements. I have been taking something called Adrenogen by Metagenics and Adrenal by Pure and these have helped me tremendously. When I first was diagnosed I had to take alot of supplements to keep me going. My health has improved and now am taking about a third of the supplement with no slowing down. Good luck!

I have adrenal fatigue (not adrenal failure)

I take Metagenic's Adreset

http://www.metagenics.com/products/detail.asp?pid=211


Good luck I am still learning too lol

Be careful. Some of these herbal medications can raise Blood Pressure and be of variable strengths. According to the Australian Addisons Society there is no medical condition called Adrenal Fatigue although - yes - people with Adrenal Insufficiency will feel fatigued. Adrenal Insufficiency is a medical condition that must be treated by an Endo and medications - especially during surgery and in case of trauma or accident. To not do so is life threatening in those situations. Adrenal Insufficiency or Addisons is caused by an autoimmune condition in 70% of cases - therefore could in theory be linked to Celiac and PolyEndocrine Syndromes. From what you are saying - you may have mild Adrenal Insufficiency at the lower end of the scale - but it still should be measured and checked by an Endo. Be careful.

I hope someone knowledgeble is reading this and will reply. I am seeing a Nurse Practitioner who has limited knowledge about gluten intolerance/celiac disease, and who strongly believes in hormone supplementation. When I told her I wasn't sure if hydrocortisone is small oral doses was safe for celiacs she got upset because she truly believes I need it for adrenal fatigue as diagnosed by saliva testing. However I have also been told that cortisone is very dangerous for unhealed celiacs. Can anyone shed more light on this? Thank you to those who have already shared on this subject. And BTW this is my first post. Hi everyone!

Hi Pele.
I have the same question as you do. I have a script for Cortef sitting here 5mg and I'm afraid to fill it and take it for fear of what it will do to me.
I take Adrenogen by Metagenics and ADR by Pure Encapulations and don't notice much of a difference, maybe a little help with the way I handle stress but I just have this "feeling" I shouldn't touch the cortef until I've exhausted the natural adrenal supports.

I also have Lyme and have come across some tidbits here and there about not taking steroids when one has Lyme.
hope you get the answers you seek.

I too was prescribed 5 mg cortef and decided to try it. After 5 weeks and a few cautions against it, I stopped cold turkey. I felt sick for about 2 weeks and now feel fine.

I also wonder about DHEA, an over-the-counter adrenal hormone, anyone have info on that one?

I also have adrenal fatigue. It started about a year and a half ago, when I had a very invasive surgery. I had already been gluten free for about two years. I went back to work too soon, I have my own business, and work 6 days a week on my own. Apparently that was a bit too much! (Both surgeons wanted me to take over a month off work to recover.) I've been taking this:
http://www.zapfatigue.com/go/FatiguedToFan...drenalStressEnd
It's gluten, soy, dairy free. I honestly started to feel the difference in the first few days. I was always so tired (I also have Hashimoto) and was freaking out about every little thing imaginable. I've been taking it for over 6 months now, and will continue for about a year, and then try to cut back. After my doctor did some blood work, he thought I could try the cortef, but I really was against it. So I found this supplement, and asked his opinion. He thought it was a very good supplement, and I trust him. Good luck!!

I too have adrenal fatigue. I am self diagnosed after reading Dr. Wilson's book--Adrenal Fatigue. I also have a very high a.m. cortisol level from a test my doctor ordered, which according to Dr. Wilson is a sign of it. Dr. Wilson's adrenal rebuilder supplements help me tremendously. They are what kept my head above water before I discovered I had a wheat allergy/gluten sensitivity.


I respectully disagree that adrenal fatigue is not real. If you read Dr. Wilson's book, adrenal fatigue was routinely diagnosed in the 1930s and it was treated with adrenal supplements until Corticosteroids were developed, and the the pharmaceuticals worked to get the supplements and diagnosis phased out.

Cortef is a natural hormone and much safer than Predisone and other Rx corticosteroids. Based on how wonderful I felt the two times I was prescribed prednisone, if I could afford to go to an alternative minded doctor, and he prescribed Cortef, I would take it in a heartbeat. Of course, I wouldn't take it indefinitely, just enough to let the adrenals rest and rebuild. But the only risk IMO, is if it works, it may mask a gluten reaction as it will lower the body's inflammatory response. So I would be well-versed in the diet before taking it.

Just thought I'd jump in here and give my opinion and experience.

Whomever it was that posted that adrenal fatigue was not real that the adrenals either work or don't,well,that's simply not true,sorry you are being misinformed. When someone is diagnosed with adrenal failure, either primary (addison's) or secondary (pituitary misfunction) that means that 80-90% of their adrenal gland has stopped functioning.

Now,yes that can happen very suddenly,from a virus or sudden stress. But more often,this is a slow,steady process.

Just like heart disease for example. The heart isn't either perfectly healthy or not functioning. Or the lungs, or really any other organ. There are huge areas in between of function. As a nurse,that's what we see all the time in the hospital,people who are there because one of their systems is not functioning properly,most of the time, it's not a total shut down,but a certain degree of malfunction.

For me,mine has slowly been shutting down,for how long we don't know. Have I had adrenal fatique? yes, I think so, but what has been shutting down my adrenals is a pituitary tumor. We found out that it is growing in the area of the pituitary that controls cortisol production. And I became very sick in November and had two crises in one week (two hospital visits, two different hospitals,neither much help!) and finally discovered what was going on. Once I was started on the hydrocortisone, I almost immediately developed diabetes insipidus,which is like being pregnant times ten!!!

But although all the doctors assure me my adrenals are fine, it's the pituitary malfunctioning, I don't believethat, how do they know that? My blood work for aldosterone and DHEA have come back low, I am told it is because of the hydrocortisone, but common sense tells me that whatever the reason, if they are low, shouldn't they be replaced? Wouldn't I feel better?

And so,like the person who posted who doesn't believe in adrenal fatique,I have to carry around my extra meds and worry about extra stress, injury, incompetent doctors, and injectables, because my pituitary no longer sends any signals out and I am told the damage is permanent and my adrenals will never again get those signals.

I am reading Dr. Wilson's book though,because it is full of common sense and I think that it is helpful to me and to anyone with any signs of adrenal fatique,which I think is so overlooked and discounted simply because the medical community doesn't understand it and doesn't have the proper testing,so they dismiss it. In a few years, when the testing is there, it will be considered a mainstream diagnosis and people won't needlessly be suffering like they are today.

Like I said,just my opinion and experiences....

This is a very interesting and informative thread. Thanks

I have a question. I have had adrenal issues for a long time--eventually the bovine adrenal cortex quit working for me and I was still very tired.

I was prescribed bio-identical cortisol, 5mg three times per day. I have been taking it for a week.

Normally, whenever I would resume or increase my adrenal cortex supplements, I would feel better in about two days! But I am not noticing much at all with the cortisol.

1. I am wondering if it is absorbed differently than the adrenal cortex, or if it takes longer to kick in--which doesn't make intuitive sense to me, because straight cortisol should be stronger and more direct than the adrenal cortex supplement.
2. I read in this thread that if one is an unhealed celiac, cortisol can be dangerous. I'm wondering if I am just not absorbing it. (I am currently eating gluten and am in the middle of the diagnostic process.)

Thanks for any information you might have!

Hi there,
I also have adrenal fatigue and went down the road of cortef and natural adrenal extracts etc. Nothing worked for me and the cortef actually made me worse! I think my multiple food allergies and lack of absorption is the problem. So right now I am working on those. Anytime you have a food allergy, it wrecks havoc on your adrenals. Hope this helps.

Thanks LoriG,

Allergies are an immune response, and of course if your immune system is under attack the adrenals are working overtime. I'm on the path now of trying to remove as many aggravations to my immune system as possible and give myself a chance....

Since my last post I discovered

stopthethyroidmadness.com

This is a site previously mentioned here. It has considerable information on adrenal faigue. I found links to articles that answered my questions about the safety of small doses of Cortef and also explained why most doctors do not believe in or treat adrenal fatigue (in a nutshell, 50-70 years ago they overdosed people --100-200 mg per day instead of, say 5-10 mg per day, and caused a lot of damage. And there isn't much money to be made selling hydrocortisone).

The site also has links to simple tests you can do at home to help you decide if you need further testing.

I happen to have hypothyroidism and wish this website had existed 30 years ago.

My nurse practioner was trying hard to help me but I have been on the receiving end of bad advice from doctors so many times that I am very skeptical of any treatment involving pharmacutical companies. However, I am now convinced that trying to fix adrenal fatigue with cortef will likely improve my quality of life, so here goes.