Comments on: Doctor questions if adrenal fatigue is real

By: Missie Turnen

Missie Turnen — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 14:50:24 +0000

I need advice. I am taking levothyroxine 75 mg and now have been prescribed 20 mg of hydrocortisone in the morning and 10 mg in early evening. I don’t like the way the hydrocortisone makes me feel. I have swelling and some of my joints hurt and sometimes tingling throughout my body. I am thinking of stoping the hydrocortisone and starting homeopathic adreneal support. Any comments/advice?

(From Janie: I’d strongly recommend joining the NTH Adrenals group: http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/talk-to-others )

By: Gerry Geneva

Gerry Geneva — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 04:51:31 +0000

These doctors irritate me so much. I constantly hear from people who experience this exact situation. Their doctor simply doesn’t believe them when they bring up adrenal fatigue. My response: fire your doctor and get one that has a clue.

I think we’ll be seeing a common trend in coming years of people taking their health into their own hands and utilizing the massive amount of information available from sites like this to “treat” themselves.

Nice post.

By: Brooke

Brooke — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 13:24:59 +0000

I too suffer from Adrenal fatigue, and the westerns doctors are absolutely useless! I display al the classic symptoms of adrenal fatigue, the constant illness and lung infections, the need to sleep 12-16 hours per day, the weight gain (ETC.). The only relief I have found is from Chinese Herbal Medicine. I encourage everyone with adrenal fatigue to explore TCM for possible “cures”. Licorice Root, Chinese Ginseng, and Ashwaghandha are the 3 best herbs to help repair your adrenals. *Unfortunately I can’t remember the case study which provided the evidence for this* You can find adrenal support tonic in health food and vitamin stores, and African Rooibos tea, Chinese white tea, and yerba mate are all excellent substitutes for coffee, and soda. Plus, they help your body repair your adrenals with a huge dose of antioxidants, w/o all the caffeine.

I have started taking the above mentioned supplements, and substituting tea for coffee and soda for over a year with excellent results. What worked for me may not help everyone, however I felt I had to contribute the little knowledge I’ve acquired to the rest of the Adrenal Fatigue sufferers out there.

By: Bonnie Monzeglio

Bonnie Monzeglio — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:03:48 +0000

HI Janie, I do have many of the symptoms mentioned, fogginess, dizziness, neck pain, sleep forever, but still tired. I just checked my levels of 1 week ago against the “normal levels” My TSh was 3.71, my FreeT4 was .0.5 and my Total T3 was 1.01. Endo says that my free T4 was low, others were normal. They are not normal. I am going to go back and havean adrenal test done to see what that shows, and maybe try the other armour thyroid compositions. Maybe the new formulation is not working for me. I had radioactive iodine in 2005 after 5 years of suffering with hyperthyroidism. Thought I would be better onthe other side, but not quite. Also, gaining weight. Thanks for all your help.

By: Bonnie Monzeglio

Bonnie Monzeglio — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:44:39 +0000

OMG! How long have you people been here? feel like I’ve found the end of the rainbow! I have an endo who refuses to listen to me, I have slightly low levels of TSh and FreeT4 and I am on Armour, but I don’t take the same every day, or sometimes I don’t take any at all. In fact, I just went a week without any, and I felt pretty good. I have had many of the symptoms mentioned here, and have told my endo, he just makes me drink water and swallow, tests my reflexes and writes me a new script! I’m doing my own research. I just found out that you are supposed to take Armour 2 x aday, not once, like I have been doing. No wonder I feel like crap! And , you should take Cortisol (Hydrocortisone ?) with it. Well, well, well. I should have gone to medical school. I have a lot of reading to do.

(From Janie: glad you found STTM. And patients are only taking HC if they prove they have adrenal fatigue. http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/adrenal-info You may not. Here’s how to find a much better doc: http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/how-to-find-a-good-doc )

By: Jacqueline

Jacqueline — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 15:53:29 +0000

It’s odd that this is the stance that’s taken, since Addison’s and Cushing’s diseases ARE accepted as ligitimate diagnoses. The newsletter I get from Women to Women just covered Adrenal Faitgue. The article came with a handy chart lining up symptoms of AF with Cushing’s and Addison’s — they are more similar than they are not. Here’s a link to the article. Scroll about half way down for the chart.

Adrenal extremes — could you be on your way to Cushing’s or Addison’s disease?

By: amanda

amanda — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 19:46:15 +0000

Can someone tell me where to locate a doctor who will be willing to work with me and see if adrenal fatigue is a proper diagnosis? I’ve wondered for the last few months if it isn’t the case or if I might be clinically depressed. But reading over clinical depression symptoms and also adrenal fatigue symptoms, the latter seems much more fitting. From reading all of your posts, it looks like a doctor who is willing to recognize the reality of this diagnosis is rare.

(Go here: http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/how-to-find-a-good-doc

Also join groups and ask: http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/talk-to-others.

And it’s strongly recommended to do the 24 hour adrenal saliva test http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/adrenal-info , which does not require a doctor, and take those results to the doctor after you have read this: http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/lab-values)

By: Jennyfer

Jennyfer — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 14:44:06 +0000

Adrenal fatigue is real. Many years ago, i could no longer affectively cope with the stress of this world. I shut down. I went to all the doctors. no one could help me. I was irritable, couldn’t sleep, felt better in the evening, was having strange weight fluctuations (it was like diet and exercise didn’t help, it was like the calorie theory just didn’t apply to me, was having menustral difficulties, problems with acne, hair dry and brittle, facial edema. and it goes on) I finally found somebody who tested all my hormones. I was low in dhea and cortisol. my insulin levels were elevated, my thyroid was whacked out “despite being normal” i was vitamin d deficeint. I was low in progesterone. I was a mess.

By: ibeji

ibeji — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 16:27:57 +0000

P.S.: See for instance “Coregulator Interactions with the Thyroid Hormone Receptor” by Jamie M.R. Moore and R. Kiplin Guy in Molecular & Cellular Proteomics 4:475-482, 2005, available online at http://www.mcponline.org/cgi/reprint/4/4/475?maxtoshow=&HITS=10&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&sortspec=relevance&volume=4&firstpage=475&resourcetype=HWCIT

By: Laura

Laura — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 14:09:56 +0000

I have adrenal fatigue. When I first took the 24 hour saliva test, two times during the day my levels were so low they were unreadable! I am so blessed to have found a doctor that not only will prescribe Armour, but actually ordered the cortisol test for me and prescribed HC! I felt so much better within days of starting the HC! My mind was lifted from a fog. It was like seeing clearly through glasses for the first time! I had more energy, and actually had enough ambition to get things done, instead of just sitting around all day. It was lovely! Then I got pregnant with my second child and went off the HC. I did “ok” during the pregnancy, but after I had her I crashed horribly, and dr wouldn’t prescribe the HC because I was breastfeeding. I had a really bad 6 months before my body recovered on it’s own enough to function. Just as I was about to get back on HC, I got pregnant with #3. I convinced my dr. (after lots of research) to let me get back on HC. It helped some, but not as much as before. I am afraid to take too much and hurt the baby, I haven’t tried rasing the dose (I was on 20mg), or rasing my Armour. I weaned off of it, but am sure I will need to get right back on again after the baby comes. I am confident that I will be able to figure it out, and get myself back again!