Wellness Matters

JODI CHAPMAN Advanced Wellness and

Behavioural Centre

As a professional, you’re warned of the risks of overworking so you should know to schedule in downtime and maintain a balanced lifestyle. However, other life factors could also be inhibiting your performance, you may not know it until it’s too late.

Falling behind, becoming forgetful, feeling stressed, getting tired before the day is done are all the start of your adrenal glands getting tired. Ongoing issues include low mood, poor focus or thinking, depression, anxiety, low libido, low motivation and feelings of sadness or lack of joy in daily life; all warning signs of adrenal burnout and should be taken very seriously.

Poor sleep patterns or chronic insomnia, chronic stress, and high levels of responsibility, produce additional pressure on the adrenal glands forcing a higher than usual production of cortisol. If this goes on long term, it depletes the body’s ability to produce adrenaline, eventually leading to chronic fatigue syndrome.

A recent patient described sleeping longer hours, up to nine or 10 hours per night, though was still tired on waking. Sleep was broken with bouts of sweating through the night. Her memory had diminished, concentration levels were dramatically reduced, and was needing to sleep in the afternoon almost daily to get through the evening, only to crash again around 8pm each night. Each day felt like a marathon, the most basic of daily tasks became a massive effort. Continuing her daily exercise felt like such an effort compared to the past, with her heart rate dramatically increased, her stamina, endurance and muscle strength were dramatically decreased. Blood tests found her adrenal hormones severely depleted. These hormones go on to make your testosterone, oestrogen and progesterone through your adrenal glands, so depletion can also cause hormonal imbalances.

Long term physical or emotional stress, lack of sleep, or chronic insomnia, regardless of the cause, a depleted immune system, chronic inflammation, and poor nutrition all have the ability to create the same condition in your body as overworking, often suddenly causing an adrenal crash when you least expect it.

Adrenal burnout like this can take from months, to years for recovery, with careful rebuilding of the adrenal and hormonal system, though the consequences of this condition are far worse than the initial fatigue. A dramatic aging effect can occur if your hormones are depleted, causing muscle wastage, and loss of bone strength, excess fat deposition, and eventually may lead to osteoporosis. Hormone depletion has also been known to be a common factor amongst patients diagnosed with a wide range of cancers, Alzheimer’s or dementia.

Rebuilding the adrenal system takes time and targeted nutrient replenishment. With the right care, and a sound knowledge of how your body functions, what your body needs and knowing how much rest you as an individual requires is essential to maintain peak levels of energy and strength for optimal performance long term.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jodi Chapman BHSc is a qualified Nutritionist and Naturopath specialising in the field of optimal performance for mental and physical energy, particularly recovery from depression, anxiety and ADHD.

Are you waking up tired... everyday?

MAYBE IT’S ADRENAL BURNOUT!

So what are the warning signs of adrenal burnout? Low mood, poor focus, depression, anxiety, low libido, low motivation, feelings of sadness or lack of joy in daily life.

Don’t just ‘soldier on’! By following an individualized treatment and food plan we can have you bouncing out of bed and back into your life!

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