Adrenal fatigue can come on suddenly or gradually, depending upon the circumstances. It can be precipitated by a single, easily identifiable event such as a serious car accident, head injury, infection, toxic exposure, emotional shock, or life crisis. When an incident such as this is the decisive factor in producing adrenal fatigue, signs of adrenal fatigue are usually present after the event occurs which were not present before. In many cases people had been experiencing some degree of adrenal fatigue before the event but afterwards it became much more pronounced.
Because of our generally stressful lifestyles, adrenal fatigue frequently develops gradually. When this happens, the symptoms (what we sense and feel in our body) usually precede the signs (visible changes, and laboratory or clinical test findings). As the problems progress, these symptoms and signs accumulate to form a syndrome, which is a collection of signs and symptoms attributable to a known medical condition. Unfortunately medicine does not often recognize a condition until it has progressed to a full-blown syndrome. By that time you have probably already suffered considerable disruption to your life and well being. A syndrome may require much more extensive treatment to reverse than early symptoms. With the help of this book you will be able to detect early symptoms before they turn into a full-blown adrenal fatigue syndrome. You will learn what you can do to prevent those symptoms from becoming more severe and to reduce or eliminate them. I also hope that you will gain the understanding needed to protect yourself from adrenal fatigue in the future.
Because the adrenals are the glands of stress, they are involved in the processes of and recovery from most chronic diseases. The reason for this is simple. Most chronic disease is stressful. The processes that take place in chronic diseases from arthritis to cancer pull on the adrenals as more and more demand is made upon the body by the disease. Therefore, take it as a general rule that if someone is suffering from a chronic disease and morning fatigue is one of their symptoms, the adrenals are likely involved. In any disease or disease process in which the medical treatment includes the use of corticosteroids, diminished adrenal function is most likely a component of that disease process. All corticosteroids are designed to imitate the actions of cortisol, a hormone secreted by the adrenals, and so the need for them arises primarily when the adrenals are not providing the required amounts of cortisol. If the cortisol response is appropriate, there is little need for the external synthetic drugs that imitate its action, except in extreme instances.
There are a few diseases that particularly stand out as having an adrenal component. Chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, alcoholism , ischemic heart disease, hypoglycemia, rheumatoid arthritis and chronic and recurrent respiratory infections all usually involve decreased adrenal function. In the cases of chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia, substantial evidence is now emerging that these syndromes may result from unusual infectious microorganisms that are not detected by the typical laboratory tests. Special, sophisticated lab tests such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests can, however, detect these invaders. A growing number of peer reviewed papers are now confirming the presence of these microorganisms in these particular illnesses. Once they have been detected, the proper treatment can be given. Often there are two or more microorganisms associated with the same syndrome and both have to be eliminated before recovery can be expected. These pathogenic microorganisms act as a tremendous body burden, draining adrenal resources. Simultaneously eradicating these infectious agents from the body, while providing adequate adrenal support will greatly facilitate recovery in these often profoundly debilitating cases.
Adrenal fatigue often precedes a syndrome such as chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia and some cases of alcoholism. The immune weakness that results from altered adrenal function sets the stage for easier infection or greater debilitation. In many alcoholics, adrenal fatigue and the resulting hypoglycemia predispose the person to a compulsive desire for alcohol. In other cases of alcoholism, the adrenals become fatigued by the continual use of alcohol. In either case, adrenal fatigue is an intimate component of most alcoholism. Adrenal support greatly enhances the treatment protocol for alcoholism . See the section entitled “Drinks To Avoid” for more detail.
Chronic and recurrent bronchitis, pneumonia and other chronic lung and bronchial diseases typically have an adrenal fatigue component. This includes many cases of asthma, influenza and allergies. This relationship appears to be both causal and resultant. That is, frequent respiratory ailments can lead to adrenal fatigue and adrenal fatigue leaves a predilection toward developing respiratory problems. The association between adrenal function and respiratory infection was first written about in 1898, but by the mid 1930’s physicians apprised of the importance of the adrenals in resistance to infection and to overall health were also aware of the relationship of the adrenals to chronic and recurrent respiratory problems. Later it became known that even the proper development of the lungs in the fetus is dependent upon an adequate amount of adrenal hormones, especially cortisol. If there is a lack of cortisol from the adrenals in the fetus during development, the lungs don’t develop properly and early problems in the lungs are more frequent and more serious.
The tip-off that there is a low adrenal component to any of these illnesses is a longer than normal recovery period with decreased stamina and excess fatigue. When these symptoms are present, adrenal fatigue is likely a component of the symptom picture, no matter the cause .
If the number of health conditions given above seems long and several of the symptoms seem familiar, you are getting the picture. Adrenal fatigue is a generally unrecognized component in many types of health problems ranging from bothersome to life threatening. To close this chapter, here is a quote from one of the most recognized authorities on clinical manifestations of adrenal dysfunction, Dr. John Tintera. “For the sake of credibility, we have previously stated that about 16% of the population has some moderate-to-severe degree of hypoadrenocorticism [adrenal fatigue] with hypoglycemia but in actuality, the figure should read 67% if all the arthritics, asthmatics and hay fever sufferers, alcoholics and all other related groups are included.” (Tintera’69)