Last night I was part of an experiment by my dogs to check the state of my adrenals...
Around midnight (I'd been asleep since 10.30) first wake up call....
garden security emergency cat/ fox.... patrolled and vigorously threatened!
Back to bed with a warm drink to mull over this unusual event and brood on possibility it could be ne'er do wells or worse...
1.30am another possible security breach, dealt with in similar fashion, biscuits administered... (dogs not me, though very tempted)
I finally drag myself out of bed at 8am feeling utterly spent... punch drunk, trembly, dizzy and disorientated, feeling like I'd been kicked in the back just below my ribs on both sides.... with rapid response to bowel required.... (dogs are as perky as you like and after a hearty breakfast retired for a snooze)
Popped an adrenal capsule and regained function within half an hour.... phew
Do I have to write up a scientific paper to back up my findings, though I'm not completely sure what they are... maybe... Adrenals fit for 2 events then you're on your own... not sure how they rate on the scale... would anyone like to join this study group?
I can supply the dogs 😏
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TiggerMe
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It's just a glandular adrenal supplement to help aid and support depleted adrenals, I think a few here use similar products, I generally take 1 each morning
I've not been down the full cortisol testing route yet, fair to say that these make a big difference
Yes, I find they help a lot, I am hoping they will give my adrenals chance to rest and revive a little, I suppose the fact I was able to up and activate twice last night before crashing is good? Only been using them for a month and only 1 a day rather than 2....
I think there are two trains of thought on this (as with most things) that by over supplementing it could also allow them to pack up completely 🤷♀️(woman shrugging)
I think I might try them. I make an Adrenal Cocktail with half a tumbler of OJ, quarter teaspoon Cream of Tartar, quarter teaspoon sea salt. Once a day at lunchtime. 🤷♀️. Maybe mines a cheaper option 🤣
Yes, I've been 'doing' your cocktail too in the afternoon if I've had a stressy morning... I'm a tight old tick so rarely take their recommended doses 😉
A cautionary tale about taking adrenal supplements that contain any part of the adrenals or pituitary from an animal...without testing...
About ten years ago I was still a newbie on the subject of thyroid and adrenals, and had never had cortisol tested in any way. On the basis of my symptoms and the symptoms lists I had found on the web I assumed that my cortisol levels were low.
I bought a saliva cortisol test and also bought an adrenal glandular product.
I carried out the saliva test, posted it off, then started taking the adrenal supplements, then went on holiday, continuing to take the adrenal supplements every day.
I already suffered from severe insomnia at that time and had done from the age of about 8/9/10. During the time I was on holiday my insomnia was even worse than usual and I barely slept. I was so exhausted I couldn't even walk up a single flight of stairs and had to use the lift all the time. I suffered from almost permanent homicidal rage for no reason whatsoever, and struggled to contain it throughout the holiday. (I didn't kill or attack anyone - but it was a close run thing.) I think I glowered at everyone the entire time. My energy was practically non-existent. I was also severely depressed.
When I got home my saliva test results were waiting for me. My assumption that my plethora of symptoms were partially caused by low cortisol turned out to be completely wrong. Of the four samples I'd sent off for testing, samples 1, 3, and 4 were well above range. Sample 2 was 90% through the range. I stopped the adrenal glandular supplements immediately, and have never taken any product of that type ever since.
The point of all this is to point out that, although some people might be lucky and guess correctly whether their cortisol levels are high or low, it is definitely not wise to guess. It must be tested because, as I discovered, the consequences of trying to raise already high cortisol can be very unpleasant. The consequences of trying to lower already low cortisol could be extremely unpleasant too.
Thankyou. I’m cautious about taking anything so your advice is good. I’ve just always assumed with 23yrs of PTSD my adrenals are kn…..ed. I can’t afford a cortisol test so I think I’ll stick to my homemade cocktails for now 👍
also these Pure ones have “whole” adrenal and “cortex” ! I don’t want adrenaline, my body pumps out too much already, I just want my adrenals to recover. How do I do that?
If you specifically want to avoid adrenaline you should avoid whole adrenal supplements which contain the medulla. Cortex supplements without the medulla in should not contain adrenaline.
From the wikipedia article on adrenaline :
Adrenaline is normally produced by the adrenal glands and by a small number of neurons in the medulla oblongata.
I think the Thorne ones are just cortex, though I do remember helvella being sceptical about there ability to remove hormones successfully.... why do you take the cocktail if you are producing lots of adrenalin? If your adrenals have been working overtime for so long then it's more likely they have lost the ability to produce adrenalin? I'm confused 😳
Ah, soz... couldn't quite remember, I was reading a brilliant thread last night.... darned if I can find it now, I was so sure I'd saved it! Either that or I have started dreaming about this site 😳
In connection with adrenal health and cortisol you'll probably come across a lot of mentions of adaptogens. Read this link and be careful if you decide to try any of them.
You might find that changing the time you take an adrenal supplement makes a difference to how successful it is for you. The same is true of the timing of thyroid hormones. My early morning cortisol was my highest result from a saliva test, and it was well over the range. I discovered that I couldn't tolerate thyroid hormones at the same time as my cortisol was at its highest so I spent quite a long time taking thyroid hormones about an hour or so before lunch or a couple of hours after lunch.
Thankyou. I will have a good read. I’ve just always assumed I’m pumping out adrenaline 24/7 so my adrenals have packed up. I’m interested in the link to thyroid health. 🙏
Hello Bean, thanks for giving this heads up, yes I remember at the time of purchase looking into all the possible issues and I read your experience at the time.
When I say I've not tested I'm really meaning I've not done the more elaborate tests available yet, I had a single cortisol reading which was indeed low for the 6am-10am range, so thought I'd experiment.
I was sort of hoping that the Endo might offer to run some tests.... but I probably just need to get on and do my own.
Thankfully for me they are a tonic, but I would always recommend anyone doing their own full and thorough research before experimenting 🤗
I’ve had one early morning blood cortisol test and it was high ( over the range). Am I getting this wrong? Is the high cortisol because of PTSD? Are my adrenals tired because of this? Does that affect my thyroid? 🤦♀️🤦♀️🤦♀️🤦♀️🤦♀️
In order for cortisol to become biologically active it must be separated ("unbound") from its transport proteins. Only a small amount of unbound cortisol is present at any one time. The vast majority of cortisol in the body is bound to its transport proteins and is therefore biologically inactive.
Blood cortisol = Bound cortisol plus unbound cortisol
Saliva cortisol = Unbound cortisol
Urine cortisol = Unbound cortisol (I'm not 100% sure of this so take it with a pinch of salt)
Some people find that they have "normal" or high levels of cortisol in blood, but have low levels of cortisol in saliva. I have often wondered how the body splits cortisol from its transport proteins but have never found a link that describes the process. One member of the forum found one ingredient required in the process, by accident. She had good levels of blood cortisol but her saliva cortisol was well below range. Her doctor was uninterested in the problem. The member concerned was McPammy and her saliva cortisol shot up when she started taking T3.
The first point to make is that studies have shown that people diagnosed with severe mental health issues can sometimes have too high levels of this critical hormone.
then just a few sentences later says this :
However, don’t jump to the conclusion there is a clear-cut case that elevated cortisol makes people vulnerable to PTSD and its symptoms. There are also indications that other individuals with mental health conditions such as PTSD have too little!
Background: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has inconsistently been associated with lower levels of cortisol.
...
Conclusions: Low cortisol levels in PTSD are only found under certain conditions. Future research should elucidate whether low cortisol is related to gender or abuse and depends on the measurement methods used.
Personally I think my own cortisol is or was high because of severe chronic pain.
humanbean Thankyou . Fantastic information. Although somewhat confusing for me personally. I take 3 prescription meds which could be affecting my cortisol levels. But oddly I take them for my PTSD 🤷♀️. Totally catch 22. I think I’ll stick to my homemade cocktail for now and maybe adjust the timings.
I do however have all the symptoms of adrenal fatigue ( including the bizarre salt/sugar cravings after dizzy spells).
I think I also need to force myself to eat in the mornings and help my blood sugar levels.
I have a springer spaniel… they’re not called springers for nothing! Fast akip in the land of zzz to leaping up and sprinting at 100mph accompanied by enthusiastic barking in the blink of an eye is perfectly normal to them! Time of day or night is of no consequence and state of master’s wakefulness… ditto!
My adrenals are tested quite frequently too and I’m glad to say ‘fight or flight juice’ is still working very well! 😂
I used to have 3 (mum and two of her pups) and that was most interesting… I was younger then and my thyroid hadn’t packed up yet… 😂 Good times… fun times, indeed.
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