| Dark circles under your eyes, morning fatigue, | | | | glands are screaming for help. |
| chronic tiredness, the inability to handle stress, | | | | 1. Ragland's Test |
| cravings for sweet or salty foods, increased | | | | You'll need a home blood pressure machine for |
| allergy symptoms, mild depression ... | | | | this test (you can buy one for around $10 at any |
| Do any of these symptoms sound familiar to | | | | drug store). First, take your blood pressure while |
| you? If so then you may be suffering from | | | | sitting down. Then, stand up and take your blood |
| adrenal fatigue, which doctors estimate affects | | | | pressure again, right away. Your systolic number |
| 80% of the U.S. population. I hadn't a clue about | | | | (the first or top number) should have increased |
| adrenal exhaustion or fatigue until I realized that I | | | | by 8 or 10 points. If the number dropped, then |
| suffered from many of these symptoms, | | | | you probably have adrenal fatigue. |
| including dark circles under my eyes that would | | | | 2. Pupil Dilation |
| not go away, regardless of how much sleep I got. | | | | For this test you need a flashlight and a mirror. |
| That's when I got interested in adrenal fatigue | | | | Look into the mirror and shine the flashlight into |
| tests and further educating myself about this | | | | the pupil of one eye. Your pupil should contract |
| condition. | | | | pretty quickly. If your pupil does not contract |
| What is Adrenal Fatigue? | | | | after 30 seconds, or even dilates, then your |
| Adrenal fatigue is a strangely paradoxical health | | | | adrenals need some help. |
| problem. The adrenal glands, which are tiny | | | | 3. Pain and Sensitivity |
| pea-sized glands that rest atop the kidneys, do a | | | | Your adrenal glands sit right on top of your |
| mighty job in the body. They control and regulate | | | | kidneys. If you palpate that area and feel pain, |
| more than 50 hormones in the body, and are | | | | then your adrenal glands are fatigued. You can |
| primarily responsible for our "stress response." | | | | also try pressing on the reflexology point for the |
| When we are under stress, the adrenal glands | | | | adrenal glands, which is located at the top inside |
| release hormones like cortisol to help us deal with | | | | edge of your foot arch. If that area is sensitive, |
| the stress. As you may know, cortisol controls | | | | then so are your adrenal glands. |
| the strength of the immune system, normalizes | | | | Adrenal Fatigue Treatment |
| blood sugar, and regulates blood pressure, among | | | | My physician recommended several approaches |
| other things. Too much cortisol can trigger | | | | to dealing with this situation, and I've found three |
| autoimmune responses in the body, as well as | | | | of them help me the most: |
| cause weight gain. Cortisol is also related to our | | | | 1. Herbal Support |
| body's primitive "fight or flight" response. | | | | I'm taking an herbal formula called X51 (or Eleviv) |
| So we rely on our adrenal glands to help us deal | | | | from XanGo that works well. It contains four |
| with and handle stress, which is a good thing. The | | | | main ingredients that offer adrenal support: citrus |
| bad news is that when we are subject to | | | | sinensis, eurycoma longifolia suntheanine, and |
| prolonged stress, the adrenal glands are the first | | | | camellia sinensis. Other people use straight herbal |
| to fail. The adrenal glands can function at high | | | | tinctures. |
| capacity for only so long before they break down. | | | | 2. Order My Life |
| In fact, what most people call a "nervous | | | | By focusing on a routine and sticking to it, I |
| breakdown" is really adrenal fatigue. | | | | reduce the level of over stimulation in my life. I |
| Since about 80% of the current population has | | | | try to check email and voice mail less often, and |
| adrenal exhaustion or fatigue, it's clear that most | | | | have more "quiet time" to myself. |
| of us are subject to prolonged stress. These | | | | 3. Rest at 10, 2 and 4 |
| stressors come from too little sleep, too much | | | | Apparently the adrenal glands tend to become |
| caffeine, multi-tasking, poor nutrition, and too | | | | most fatigued at these times, so I stop for short |
| much work. Sound familiar? | | | | 15-minute power naps at these times. Lying down |
| Adrenal Fatigue Tests - Three Self Tests | | | | is recommended, if at all possible, so I do for my |
| So how do you know if you are among the 80% | | | | power naps. |
| who have adrenal fatigue? Well, examining your | | | | It can take time to help your adrenals recover -- |
| lifestyle is one easy way to tell. Plus, if you seem | | | | anywhere from 6 to 24 months, depending on |
| to be unable to catch up on your sleep or are | | | | how stressed they are. The good news is that |
| chronically tired and grumpy, you're likely to have | | | | recovery can be taken in baby steps, not radical |
| this problem. But there are three adrenal fatigue | | | | changes. I like that, don't you? |
| tests you can administer to see if your adrenal | | | | |