share. learn. thrive!

Adrenal Fatigue - supplements

My naturopath has informed me that I have 'adrenal fatigue'... My symptoms include veryy low blood pressure, low energy and general fatigue. (also salt craving / cold sensitivity)

She wants me to start using a supplement called "Isocort" for adrenal gland support along with vitamin B5 & vitamin C.

I am already taking the B5 and C, but am a little concerned with the IsoCort - as it is derived from animal sources. Does anyone have experience with adrenal supporting supplements and ideally any from a plant-based source? Recommendations are welcome!

Thanks so much in advance!

Tags: Isocort, adrenal, fatigue

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Michelle Brezinski on October 5, 2010 at 8:50pm

Nice work Ann...I am so going to look into that book! It always amazes me how people everywhere are going through the same things...we are truly all connected!!!!!! This discussion has been wonderful... thank you everyone.

Permalink Reply by Andrea Peck on October 10, 2010 at 12:36pm

Hey, Jill!

I also have adrenal fatigue. I just finished reading The Hormone Diet by Natasha Turner, ND. That book has become my Bible of sorts. I've been following her suggestions for eating (high protein and eliminating processed foods/carbohydrates) and supplements, including rhodiola, ashwagandha, Relora, B vitamins, and a few others. But really, I've found that maca supports my adrenals the best of all of these. Oddly, she doesn't mention maca anywhere in her book, and I'm not sure why. I've been recovering for about 3 months now, and I can say I feel best on days when I basically eat Vega products, eat few carbohydrates, and take extra maca. There's also a supplement I've found (and love!) called Sleep Tonight, which lowers cortisol levels by about 60% (claimed on the label). I don't know if that's true, but it definitely helps me sleep when cortisol keeps me up at night. It's all natural and does not have any weird sleep-inducing stuff, just natural stuff to lower cortisol levels.

Hope this helps a little bit! I know I'm always looking for supplements and suggestions. I empathize with the symptoms you listed above; it feels absolutely awful. In my case, I would also feel my immune system basically shutting down. Awful feeling. I rarely experience that anymore, but for the first month or so, I had zero energy. I'm used to just pushing my body to do whatever I want, so it was a huuuge lesson learned. It's forced me to relax a little bit. In addition to immune failure, I experienced chronic muscle fatigue, low blood pressure/sugar, weakness, and the inability to repair muscle. I had not been eating regular meals, because I'd get to wrapped up in what I was doing, and I just tend to overdo things in general, including exercise. So, basically, slow down, because I did not actually start recovering until I allowed myself to. Also, it won't happen fast. It's a pretty complicated thing. I'll feel much better then overdo it and wake up feeling awful again. Two steps forward, one step back. Makes sense that this ailment occurs in people like us, but it's so much harder for our personalities to just stop and give our adrenals the rest they need.

I wish you the best of luck in regaining your health. Take care! :)

Permalink Reply by joanna on October 10, 2010 at 3:18pm

Hey Andrea-
you posted somethign that caught my attention - you said the one supplement you use helps to lower cortisol levels at night and helped you sleep. now keep in mind, that is what worked for YOU. when i had my adrenal exhaustion, my body was not creating cortisol and i also had issues with sleeping. so a supplement like that would not have been helpful for me. and it may nto be good for others unless they have raised cortisol levels. you HAVE to get the adrenal stress index testing done before you self medicate. unless you know waht your cortisol levels are doing throughout the day, you cannot choose teh right course of action to take.
but i will agree that it is not until you actually slow down and let the body heal that you will actually start to recover. it is a journey, not an overnight trip :)

Permalink Reply by Amanda Brooks on October 28, 2010 at 9:31am

Hi Everyone,

This is such a fabulous thread I am so glad I stumbled upon it today. I'm nearly in tears from this fatigue and finally just making the connection.

Would anyone mind providing an example day of eating? I assume most are vegan...did you spend some time doing green smoothies to reduce overall stress?? For those who are athletes did you have to stop training for awhile?

I am entering a heavy racing season and very excited about it so I don't want to stop, but I sure do want to feel better!