Adrenal Saliva Test - help interpreting results please

[ShonaGreen]

Hi, I've read here that it can be useful to check that adrenal glands are functioning well as can often have issues alongside thyroid problems. I've just got my results from medicheck, please see photo, and the 12pm and bedtime readings are both quite high. The doctor's report said the levels weren't a cause for concern and probably due to stress. I tried to do the test on a normal day for me and can't recall being anymore stressed than usual, but maybe that's the norm for me now with 3 young kids! Anyways, any thoughts or advise would be greatly appreciated as I don't know much about adrenal function at the moment, many thanks!

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

ShonaGreen

Optimal cortisol levels are

Morning at the top of the range - yours is 59% so it should be higher

Noon approximately 75% of the range - yours is 195%

And if you believe that a bottom of range can actually be 0 (surely one would be chronically ill or dead if your result was actually 0?):

Evening close to 50% of the range - yours is 54%

Nighttime at the bottom of the range - yours is 128%

What a shame you went for Medichecks and not Regenerus or Genova who have proper ranges for all 4 samples and include DHEA which is important to measure as well as cortisol.

I don't know how to raise morning cortisol, that's the one I struggle with myself. Better sleep perhaps?

Can you identify anything that would be causing stress around noon and bedtime?

[ShonaGreen in reply to SeasideSusie]

Hi, thanks for your response. The only reason for choosing medichecks was because the sale they had on last week! They suggested testing again in 3 months, so will be sure to use Regenerus or Genova next time, especially if they include DHEA. I usually get a pretty good sleep, helped by the amitryptline that I take for migraines, but maybe I just have pretty high stress levels I guess? But I'd think that noon and bedtime would be least stressful parts of the day as usually it's a quiet time when the kids are at school or in bed? I'll do some research to see what I can do to help myself and hopefully bring the levels down a bit.

[greygoose in reply to ShonaGreen]

Rather than trying to reduce the high levels, it might be a good idea to try increase the low morning level. Then, hopefully, the others will equal out.

[ShonaGreen in reply to greygoose]

Hi greygoose, that makes sense, thanks for suggesting it!

[greygoose in reply to ShonaGreen]

You're welcome.

[SilverAvocado in reply to ShonaGreen]

I definitely think you should consider Regenerate or Genova next time. Both Medichecks and BlueHorizon's test is a bit Mickey Mouse.

I really really don't like the way these results are presented, they make them look much worse than they are. From Genova (and I think from Regenerus, too) they are presented on a graph with the same axis for all 4 results.

If you look at only the numbers and ignore the ranges you can see that your shape still doesn't look too bad. Morning is the highest, then lunchtime a bit lower, afternoon and bedtime much lower. Even though the numbers are not ideal, you've still got that progression.

It's a bit of a tricky interpretation, because you've got two high numbers, but also two that are rather low. Technically this could be called a high result, but it's not quite right.

Definitely you should try all the lifestyle factors: eat healthily without skipping meals, rest more, learn to meditate, sleep well, do only gentle exercise, give up coffee, etc.

Difficult with 3 young kids, but there are a lot of good guided meditation stories for kids, maybe you can teach them to meditate, too! This used to be a good website for resources, haven't looked at it recently: relaxkids.com

Getting thyroid hormone and vitamins optimal also helps a lot.

After that you're looking into maybe adaptogenic herbs. I don't know enough to advise on them. I think Rhodiola was one I thought about when mine were high, but I can't remember the details. Mine was also high but a bit mixed ( v high morning, then v low evening), but improved loads as my thyroid hormone got closer to optimal. Although I did also meditate and improve my insomnia a lot.

[ShonaGreen in reply to SilverAvocado]

Hi SilverAvocado, thanks for your message. I had no idea there was such a difference between the tests with medichecks and others, will definitely use Regenerate or Genova next time.

It's a bit of a strange result and not that easy to interpret with the '0' ranges either, hadn't thought about the problem with a range going down to '0' until you and a few others mentioned but makes sense!

I used to do a lot of running but after having a lot of injuries and generally less energy in the past few years, I now do a more circuit and yoga classes, exercising about 4-5 times a week where possible. I'm already starting to feel better and have more energy after being on Levothyroxine for just a month, so I guess when my thyroid levels are more optimal then I'll probably see a difference in the cortisol levels too.

I discovered mindfulness about a year ago and slowly but surely learning how to meditate and switch off from all the craziness in my house. Thanks for the link to the relax kids website, I had been looking for something good to practice with the kids too, never too young to start being mindful!

[SilverAvocado in reply to ShonaGreen]

After only a month on Levothyroxine things are still quite up in the air, and hopefully your adrenals will improve at least a bit as a side effect of being on thyroid hormone. It will probably take several months to get on your ideal dose, about 3-6 is the minimum if you're lucky.

The adrenals are like the everyday version of a fight or flight response, and cover for the little stresses and strains we have throughout the day. They have to work overtime when thyroid hormones are low to keep us going. Once your hormone levels are more stable, it gives them a rest at last.

Glad to hear you are into Mindfulness! I am a fan, too. It isn't discussed on the forum as much as I'd like!

[LunaMa]

Hi Shona

I’ve not had my cortisol levels done (although I wish I had done so about 6 months ago), but something I’ve noticed is that I feel fine in a crisis - calm and in control. It is only once the crisis has passed that I start displaying the ‘normal’ stress indicators. I wonder if this could apply to you too and if this effect could have influenced your results? I wonder if anyone else has some thoughts on this?

All the best x