How many of these symptoms apply to you?
1. You’re having trouble falling asleep even when you’re tired (“tired and wired”) and even when you do sleep, you’re not rested when you wake.
2. You get irritable or angry really quickly or more often than you want to.
3. You’re craving sugar/carbs, fat, salt – or all of them!
4. You get tired around 3-4 most afternoons, and that’s when you really want something sweet or some extra caffeine.
5. You’ve been gaining weight, perhaps noticing a couple of extra kilos growing around your middle.
6. You feel anxious or down.
7. You’re getting sick more often than you used to.
8. Your hormones are all over the place, you’re having fertility problems, and perhaps your libido is nowhere to be found.
9. Your memory and focus are not what you think they should be.
10. Your digestive system is pretty interesting!
Sound familiar? You could well be suffering with adrenal stress or exhaustion. Our adrenal glands are tiny little organs that sit on top of our kidneys that can have a huge impact if they are not quite functioning properly. Designed to hep us deal with stress (aswell as control weight, immune system and blood pressure), they are arguably our primary survival organ and control our “fight flight” mechanism, which mobilises us to keep us safe from a perceived danger or stress. Problem is in our modern world we are now surrounded by what our body’s perceive as stress! This can lead to adrenal overdrive as we try to cope, eventually leading to adrenal exhaustion.
Great news is that this can be really effectively treated by natural approaches, which you can do yourself. Integrate some great self-care rituals: early nights, meditation, turn your phone off, cut back on the caffeine, keep your blood sugar stable with regular protein and avoid refined sugar, engage in regular outdoor exercise. Basically be kind to yourself.
I also love to use a special group of herbs called adaptogens, which nourish the adrenals and restore immunity, vitality and stamina. Herbs such as Rehmannia, Withania, Schisandra, Licorice literally help you to adapt to your own stresses and biochemical needs- both clever and effective. But remember, always consult a health professional like me before self prescribing, as these herbs are not recommend in certain circumstances (pregnancy, high blood pressure, immunosuppression).
And one lasting thought to leave you with, adrenal exhaustion does not happen in isolation and it is a symptom of imbalance in the body rather than a condition to be treated solely by itself! If you just take adrenal herbs you will not address the root cause of the imbalance and it will continue and you will continue to need those adrenal herbs indefinitely. I highly recommend a one-on-one appointment in this instance so that we can address find the drivers and the cause of the imbalance, simply click on the Book Now button to secure your day and time,
In good health! Victoria xoxoxox
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