Take hydrocortisone and adrenal cortex together?

[cc120]

To give my adrenals a rest I am planning on taking 1 x day 5mcg of hydrocortisone for 2 weeks, then 10mg x day for for 2 weeks..

Then follow with Thorne Adrenal Cortex to help restore/support adrenals.

Or should I start the adrenal cortex at the same time as the hydrocortisone?

[Clutter]

CC120,

I'm sorry you've had no replies. Feel free to repost your questions.

[Kitten1978]

cc120 There is an adrenal support group on yahoo: rt3-adrenals.org/ Link to join is in the top right corner.

Peope who take HC usually take it for months, even years. Few weeks seems pointless. Taking HC and ACE at the same time is also pointless: HC is supposed to give your adrenals a rest, ACE is supposed to encourage your adrenals to work. ACE is generally considered a safer option. Some people find CT3M helpful.

[cc120 in reply to Kitten1978]

Thank you Kitten1978, very informative and helpful.

A link for CT3M for anyone interested: stopthethyroidmadness.com/t...

[Kitten1978 in reply to cc120]

No problem. HC is really the last resort option. ACE of CT3M are generally considered safer. Moderators from the yahoo group will be able to advise you. Paul Robinson had a group on facebook where he was advising members on the use of T3, including CT3M. Unfortunately he has decided to close the group down ;(( He has written a book on the CT3M: it's available on amazon. Whatever you decide to do I wish you all the best of luck xx

[cc120 in reply to Kitten1978]

Thank you Kitten1978, as I now have the hydrocortisone, I may as well take them, splitting 10 into half, take 5mg x 20 days, then 10mg x 10 days. Which will make a month.

I guess I should be taking them away from levy and T3. Should I take hydrocortisone on an empty stomach?

[Kitten1978 in reply to cc120]

cc120

You can take HC with thyroid meds. First dose when you wake up, second at lunch time.

I strongly advise against taking HC on a empty stomach: it can cause stomach upset. It's best to take it with food.

HC should be withdrawn slowly: it should be reduced by 2.5mcg every 2 weeks. If you don't have adrenal problem stopping HC cold turkey won't affect you much but if you really suffer from adrenal fatigue you will need to reduce it very slowly.

I do advise you to join the yahoo adrenals group: their moderators have used HC themselves and they are in a better position to advise.

I took HC for a month. It didn't work for me but it helped me realise that something else was the problem: insulin resistance. HC made my GI issues worse so I'm not a great fan of it.

I hope it will work for you.

Take care xx

Kitten1978

[cc120 in reply to Kitten1978]

Thank you so much Kitten1978.

[pinkjess17]

I take both together, 5mg HC and 100mg Thorne cortex in the morning only. It works the best for me, after trying various different methods and combinations

[cc120 in reply to pinkjess17]

Thank you pinkjess17, are you on thyroid meds as well?

[pinkjess17]

No I'm not at the moment, I had a TSH of 3.5, 3.9 and 4.6 but couldn't tolerate levothyroxine or NDT despite positive antibodies. Started adrenal support on the advice of Dr Peatfield and have gone from there, my tsh has come down actually to 2.24 on adrenal support.

[cc120 in reply to pinkjess17]

That is very interesting pinkjess17. It appears as though your thyroid issues are secondary to your adrenal issues, thus have settled once your adrenal issues had been treated.

What do you think of the point kitten1978 made earlier in this post:

'Taking HC and ACE at the same time is also pointless: HC is supposed to give your adrenals a rest, ACE is supposed to encourage your adrenals to work' ?

[pinkjess17]

Yes I think the adrenals were knocking my thyroid out of kilter as they work together. I do have positive thyroid antibodies tested on numerous occasions, so will have to keep an eye on that. In my experience both HC and ACE have steroid in them, I get the same effect from both. If I feel draggy, with low temp etc I take ace and within approx 15 mix it normalises my blood pressure, temp goes up, dragging lifts etc. I decided to take both as some say ACE repairs the adrenals, will see.

I would say definitely only take them in the am on as little dose as possible as to not shut the adrenals down, very important to stick to that.

[cc120 in reply to pinkjess17]

UPDATE on 19/08/17

I started on 5mcg Hydrocortisone x day for approx a fortnight. After approx a week I found I was feeling as week as a kitten. Thought this may be due to T4/T3 dosage. Increased to 50mcg T4 and 20mcg T3, was taking this dosage for a few days, then increased Hydrocortisone to 10mcg. The following day that I was feeling weaker still. It dawned on me that it was the Hydrocortisone causing the weakness. So I stopped taking them. After about 5 days I felt a little stronger and my strength has been increasing steadily since then.

I will soon be buying Adrenal cortex, maybe Thornes or a cheaper brand if I can find a recommended one and hope this heals my adrenals.