Case Study: A Functional Approach to Hormones and Gut

How Functional Health Coaching Treats Mood, Gut and Hormones in an Integrated Way

The Symptoms

When Emily joined our coaching program, she was struggling with depression, anxiety, fatigue, and brain fog. She said that she did not have the energy to improve her diet or exercise regimen to support her health. She feared that trying to make major changes could have the potential to elicit panic attacks that would prevent her from moving forward.

Photo by Jason Briscoe

Emily felt “tired almost all of the time.” Up until a few years before joining our functional coaching program, she had lived an active life. She had spent years gaining her education and working as a public health professional. And, at 38-years-old, she found herself barely making it through the day.

Emily had resorted to some of the most common coping mechanisms available: coffee in the morning to give her enough energy to get going, and alcohol at night to help her sleep.

Emily had resorted to some of the most common coping mechanisms available: coffee in the morning to give her enough energy to get going, and alcohol at night to help her sleep.

She suffered from symptoms of gas, bloating and indigestion. Her symptoms eased when she was strict about her diet but returned whenever she wavered slightly. 

The First Steps

The first thing we advised Emily to do was to take the huge step of removing coffee and alcohol from her diet. Within a matter of a couple of weeks, she was amazed at how much better she felt, just from those small changes. While this is not always as impactful for everybody as it was for Emily, it does show that sometimes a couple of small tweaks can have big effects.

The Labs

As Emily made those early changes to diet, we ran a handful of functional labs, including:

• DUTCH Complete hormone panel

• Comprehensive thyroid panel

• GI-Map stool pathogen test

• Micronutrient (vitamin and mineral) test.

The Test Results

The test results showed that Emily was quite deficient in the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol is the primary stress hormone but it is also responsible for providing a sense of energy and plays an important role in regulating the circadian rhythms controlling sleep/wake cycles.

Emily was also very low in all of her female sex hormones (the estrogens and progesterone) and she was also very low in melatonin, a hormone that helps promote restful sleep.

Emily's thyroid appeared to be slightly sluggish and she was deficient in seven different important micronutrients.

Her stool test detected two different parasites, an overgrowth of two different opportunistic yeast species, suppressed immune response in the small intestines, and a very strong sensitivity to gluten-containing foods.

Part of the Hormone Report

Stool Test Results

The Protocol

Emily remained free from coffee and alcohol and began to adopt a gluten-free diet.

She started doing moderate exercise, managing her stress levels, eradicating gut pathogens through an herbal protocol, and supporting her healthy hormone balance through diet, herbs, and lifestyle changes.

She introduced some herbal tinctures such as black cohosh, red clover, vitex, and motherwort to support her female hormone levels. She used a product called Adrenotone from Designs for Health to support the adrenal glands and the balance of stress hormone production through the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis.

Emily supported her micronutrient balance through the introduction of a complete mineral support formula and used the Designs for Health GI Microb-X product as one of the antimicrobial blends for eradicating infectious microorganisms. She also introduced Megaspore probiotic to rebuild beneficial gut flora and to support the immune system. 

For dietary support, Emily began seed cycling and introduced more healthy fats into her diet. She also incorporated detoxification strategies such as dry brushing and rebounding into her daily routine to help her move toxins out of the body in a natural way.

The Transformation

Photo by Patrick Hendry

As Emily gained energy, she was able to reintegrate exercise into her life and she enjoys mountain biking and outdoor sports of many kinds.

After six months on the coaching program, Emily reported feeling better than she had in years despite experiencing some extreme stress, including the sudden death of her partner’s mother.

Over the course of her six months on the program, Emily gained enough energy and mental clarity to make big decisions about her life, including the purchase of a new home and a desire to have a baby.

Emily is now thriving, pregnant, happy in her life, and excited about her future.

Are You Ready for Your Transformation?

Work With Us!

We would be honored to work with you as a private client. We provide testing and coaching options to women in most every state and country. Come check out our coaching options to see if it’s a fit.

---

Bridgit Danner, LAc, FDNP, is trained in functional health coaching and has worked with thousands of women over her career since 2004. She is the founder of Women’s Wellness Collaborative llc and HormoneDetoxShop.com.

Fixing Chronic Fatigue with Shelley Gawith

Shelley Gawith is a Functional Nutritionist in private practice in Wellington, New Zealand. She completed Nutritional Therapy Association studies, IHS Advanced Functional Assessment Training, and is a Certified Gluten Practitioner. In this episode we talk about adrenal health, her amazing health history, and her work in helping busy career women overcome fatigue & anxiety.

Here's what you'll hear:

Min 01:30 Introducing Shelley Gawith's work
Min 04:25 Shelley's health journey with chronic fatigue syndrome
Min 08:30 Shelley's steps to getting better
Min 12:10 Cellular energy & adrenal health
Min 16:40 Root causes of Shelley's health problems
Min 21:45 Work stress & its effects on the adrenals
Min 26:50 Shelley's advice for career women
Min 36:50 Hydrochloric acid
Min 39:05 Gulping water but getting dehydrated
Min 42:30 Using electrolytes
Min 47:40 Shelley's resources

To learn more about Shelley, visit her website here and follow her on social media:
Facebook
Instagram 

Resources:

My favorite electrolyte
31 Day Challenge 
Beautycounter products - non-toxic line of beauty products

Here's the video version of the interview with Shelley Gawith:

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Support These Three Systems for Smoother Peri-menopause

We'll focus on three systems to support the most while in peri-menopause.

1. Balance Your Blood Sugar

This tip is HUGE for peri-menopause, so pay close attention.  When you were younger, you could maybe get away with late-night pizza or drinking binges.  You body is much less forgiving at this age, which you probably already realized.  

You don’t want to gain weight, feel cloudy, or sleep poorly, but, if your like most of us, you want to have you cake and eat it too.

It’s super important to keep your blood sugar balanced to prevent the symptoms of peri-menopause.  Spikes and dips in your blood sugar create an additional stress on your body, and your body is already going through the stress of changing hormones.  

These spikes and dips in your blood sugar also make you cranky, craving carbs and gaining weight.  Sugars also feed the unhealthy bacteria in your gut, and you need a healthy gut to clear old hormones and to make chemicals that make you feel good.

Here’s my best tip for blood sugar: start the day with low sugar and high protein and fiber.  When you start you day this way, you will have less cravings and make better choices.  

Some options:

• Eggs

• Smoothies with greens powder & protein powder

• Trail mix

• Leftovers from dinner

• Organic breakfast sausage

• Chia porridge

• Miso soup with veggies

2.  Love Your Adrenals

Your adrenals are two glands in your lower back that make hormones for energy and stress.  They also make some female hormones (sex hormones) and you rely on them more as your ovarian function declines.

Your adrenals make hormones for stress, energy and sex.  You probably want lots of energy and great sex, but less stress. So create less stress in your life.  

Now, you probably think of stress as being stuck in traffic and late for an important appointment.  That is stressful.  But stress to your body comes in lots of other forms too, like: 

• The blood sugar spikes and dips we discussed

• The late nights of work

• The stress of caring for kids or elderly parents

• Chronic pain

• Eating low-quality foods or inflammatory foods

This list could be longer, but I’ll stop here and give you tip #2 to love your adrenals. Get to bed by 10 PM, take rest breaks during the day, and have fun!

3. Support Detox Pathways

To have hormone balance, you need to clear toxins. Excess hormones re-circulating in your blood stream, or toxins that mimic hormones can lead to peri-menopause symptoms.

Today we’ll talk about two mechanisms that clear toxins and how to support them: the liver and the digestive tract.

The liver is the best known detox organ, for good reason.  It breaks down toxins and used hormones into a form that can be eliminated.  To support the liver, eat foods that contain the nutrients your liver needs to do its tasks.

Some liver-loving foods include: pasture-raised eggs, beets, carrots, lemon, broccoli, chard, dandelion, cabbage, onions and garlic.

Once toxins and used hormones are broken down, they need to be eliminated from the body.  The main exit route is the digestive tract.  If you are constipated or have an inflamed digestive tract, these waste products may not be eliminated.  

Natural sources of fat, such as coconut oil, olive oil, nuts, seeds, avocados, unprocessed meats and fish, are needed by the gallbladder to make the bile that the toxins travel with from the liver to the digestive tract.

Once in the digestive tract, keep your bowels moving with regular exercise and drinking plenty of water.  Reduce inflammation by avoiding inflammatory foods such as sugar, alcohol, gluten and processed dairy products.

Please take one tip from above and get started!

Love these tips?  Want to learn more?  

Learn more about peri-menopause from experts like Ann Louise Gittleman, Dr. Anna Cabeca and Tana Amen at my online Hormone Balance After 40 Summit!  

The summit happened live June 5-11, 2017, but recordings will live on after the live summit.

You’ll hear 30+ experts on the topics like: 

• Boosting your Metabolism

• Reclaiming your Sex Drive

• Restoring Mental Clarity.  

The best part is that it’s all free and you can attend online from any computer or smartphone.  Purchase here for your own Hormone Balance After 40!

The Adrenal Thyroid Revolution with Dr Aviva Romm

Dr. Aviva Romm is a Yale-trained medical doctor, MD, mid-wife, herbalist and the author of the new book "The Adrenal Thyroid Revolution". The book outlines the root causes of Survival Overdrive Syndrome (SOS), and guides you through a natural, holistic plan to reverse it, and rescue your metabolism, hormones, immunity, mind and mood. This book comes out today 31/01/2017.

Click here to download an mp3 of “The Adrenal Thyroid Revolution with Dr Aviva Romm”

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Here's what you'll hear:

Min 02:50 Aviva Romm's history

Min 06:30 Aviva's clinical experience with women and auto-immune diseases

Min 12:40 Survival Overdrive Syndrome (SOS) and the science that connects the immune system with the hormone system

Min 17:00 The three levels of adrenal thyroid revolution for women

Min 22:30 The 5 root causes of adrenal and thyroid dysfunction

Min 26:20 The Epstein-Bar virus (EBV) and Hashimotos

Min 35:30 Aviva's 4-week plan to heal adrenals and support thyroid function

"When sleeping women wake, mountains move" - Chinese proverb

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Dr. Aviva's Resources:

You can explore more of Dr. Aviva's book "The Adrenal Thyroid Revolution" by getting a free chapter of it here.  

And when you buy the book you get two bonuses that she couldn't fit into the book:

1. A free cookbook.

2. A complementary 28-day journal that has a lot of self-care activities and exercises.

To learn more about Dr. Aviva Romm, visit her website here and follow her on social media:

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Twitter

Instagram

Pinterest

Thanks for listening,

Bridgit Danner, Founder of Women's Wellness Collaborative

Is Your Blood Sugar Taking Your Hormones for a Ride?

Come to me, my sweets!

If you're like me, you have a sweet tooth. And if not a sweet tooth, a love of starches, like pasta or chips. And even if you're trying really hard to avoid carbs, you might still be taking your blood sugar for a ride with stress, coffee or lack of sleep.

When I first started to learn about functional medicine, I didn't get how shifts in blood sugar levels were a stress on my hormones. Sure, I knew devouring a giant cookie wasn't a good choice, but I didn't get how it was a bad choice.

For me, knowing how and why are important. This knowledge helps me say no to giant cookies. And when I make healthy choices, my skin is clear and not greasy, my period is not painful, my mood is more even, and my weight is easy to manage.

I'm going to give you a quick summary of the blood sugar roller coaster, and then give you a helpful eBook so you can take action to manage your blood sugar, and tame your hormonal symptoms.

Your body likes a steady supply of glucose (sugar). It uses this glucose as energy for thinking, walking, breathing...pretty important stuff. If you don't have a steady supply of glucose, you can develop symptoms. Some of these can be immediate, like a headache or feeling irritable. Some of these are more long-term, like a lack of hormone production.

So why would you not have a steady supply of glucose? There are two main reasons: low blood sugar and high blood sugar. These two reasons may appear to be opposites, but they are more often connected.

When you raise your blood sugar by having alcohol, a cupcake, a nice chunk of bread, etc., you often take your blood sugar too high, and your cells block any more sugar from coming inside. That sugar that got shut out will usually be stored as fat, and extra fat makes excess estrogen. Meanwhile your cells, which have blocked sugar, won't have their fuel, and you'll feel fatigued, brain dead, etc.

So now you are gaining weight and dragging ass, and you just want a cookie to pick yourself up...but then the cycle starts all over. And your hormonal system, once again, is getting an unsteady fuel supply for its functioning.

Ok, but what if you have good eating habits? Well coffee and stress spike your blood sugar, and excess protein will turn to glucose too. Chronic stress can lead to a long-term state of low blood sugar, as the adrenal glands (your stress/energy glands) also regulate blood sugar and turned stored energy into real-time energy.

In summary, all this blood sugar wonkiness can prevent your body from making hormones, or can produce excess estrogen, leading to symptoms like heavy periods, acne, low sex drive or brain fog.

Does this issue affect you if you're menopausal? Yes! Steady blood sugar is especially important for you as you weather hormonal changes.

Here's that resource I mentioned, my How To Balance Your Blood Sugar eBook:

Click Here to get Blood Sugar eBook

“Have you noticed the connection between your blood sugar and your hormones? Feel free to share below!”

Bridgit Danner, LAc, FDNP

A Holistic Approach To Adrenal Healing With Kelly Graham

Our topic this week on the Women's Wellness Radio is adrenal health. Our guest is Kelly Graham, a nutritional therapy practitioner (NTP) who works with patients to bring them back to the basics, that is guiding them on nutrient dense foods and providing good recommendations on supplementation.

Growing up, Kelly's gut health started going down in her late teenage years. She also had amalgam/mercury filings which negatively affected her health. She worked as a chef and on many occasions worked till late which was chaotic to her body! She had excess weight, her lymph glands were frequently swelling, and was constantly feeling tired even after sleeping for almost 12 hours! She was misdiagnosed and told that she had hypothyroidism and possibly Hashimotos while in fact she had adrenal fatigue.

In this episode we talk about:

1. How one's eating environment when growing up can affect gut health

2. Adrenal glands - what they are,what they do, how to find them (where they are located)

3. Adrenal hormones and their functions including cortisol,sex hormones like DHEA, pregnenolone,progesterone, and testosterone

4. Taking hormones - when there are low levels in the body

Kelly also talks about symptoms to look out for like:

1. Feeling overwhelmed - having a hard time making decisions, constipation, diarrhea, low sex drive, low blood sugar, mental fog
2. Increased cravings for some foods e.g sugary and salty foods
3. Difficulty getting started in the morning
4. Sleeping for many hours but still feel exhausted

Listen to this podcast to get some tips on recovering from adrenal deficiency like the importance of quality sleep, good dieting, body shaming and so much more.

For more resources on adrenal health and adrenal fatigue from Kelly Graham, you can find her on:

Twitter
Facebook Page
Facebook Group
Website

Thanks for listening.

Bridgit Danner, Founder of Women's Wellness Collaborative.

To get a new interview delivered to your phone weekly, subscribe to our podcast atiTunes or through most podcast players.

If you have not yet joined our community, be sure to grab our hidden Hormone stressors quiz here, and come on board!

You Don't Have Adrenal Fatigue by Maria Claps

There are too many people walking around thinking that they have adrenal fatigue. This diagnosis was handed to them after a saliva test and a visit to a holistic clinician. I admit, I used to use this method of testing. I’ve ordered saliva tests on my clients and have coached them in recovering from the maladies of modern day lifestyles, and at that time I too called it adrenal fatigue. It was a good way to learn and it had some value, but the science of lab work is changing.

Many of my clients got better, because when we get adequate rest, deal with our stressors, eat nutrient dense food and take high quality supplements, our bodies usually respond well. But this didn’t mean that they had adrenal fatigue.

So if you don’t have adrenal fatigue, what do you have?

Most likely, you are experiencing a mismatch between your biology and your lifestyle. This shows up in two main ways. The first is nutrition. For the vast majority of our time on earth, we’ve consumed wild game, fish, vegetables, starchy tubers, nuts, seeds and fruit in season. Nowadays, the 6 most common foods in the modern diet are pizza, sugar sweetened beverages, beer, bread, grain based desserts, and fried chicken. This type of diet is inflammatory and is a factor in our modern day chronic unwellness.

The second, lesser known, mismatch between our bodies and our lifestyle is the activation of our stress response system. Our stress response system has two components, the sympathoadrenomedulary system (SAS) which is responsible for our immediate or short term stress response and the HPA axis, which is responsible for our intermediate or long term stress response. The HPA axis consists of the hypothalamus and pituitary glands (in the brain) and the adrenal glands (in the mid back). It helps us process threats to the body (whether those threats are a car accident or refined, nutrient poor food.)

Both of these stress response systems exist for our good. But the protective mechanisms they produce can become harmful over the long term if continually called upon.

Here’s the perfect scenario for understanding this: Imagine you're a hunter gatherer out for a walk on the savannah and all of a sudden a wild boar charges you. It's a good thing that your heart rate, blood pressure increase. It’s a crucial part of your physiology meant to ensure your escape and this your survival. But at the same time these survival mechanisms activate, your digestion and sex hormone production plummet. This is how it’s supposed to be, but it’s a problem when it rarely or never calms down.

Enter the modern lifestyle….traffic, work deadlines, inflammatory food, over-exercise, or its opposite, couch potato syndrome, smoking, OTC drug abuse, lack of rejuvenating activities. The list goes on…I’m sure you get it.

The constant activation of the stress response via the SAS and HPA pathways erodes resilience and paves the way for metabolic breakdown.

The loss of resilience is associated with the modern day disease epidemic and is why stress contributes to so many conditions.

SOME CONDITIONS ASSOCIATED WITH CHRONIC HPA AXIS STIMULATION:

• Depression

• Fibromyalgia

• Excessive exercise

• Diabetes

• Central obesity

• Asthma

• Rheumatoid arthritis

• Eczema

• PMS

• Thyroid disease

If you’ve gone to a holistically minded doctor and you’ve got any number of these problems and a saliva test, you’ve probably been handed an adrenal fatigue diagnosis.

The adrenal fatigue model is loosely based on the work of Hans Selye and his general adaptation syndrome theory. Selye explained the progression of stress over time in 3 stages: alarm, resistance and exhaustion.

THE ADRENAL FATIGUE MODEL WITH THE THREE STAGES OF ADRENAL BURNOUT IS LOOSELY BASED ON THIS MODEL:

• Stage 1 of adrenal fatigue is high cortisol with DHEA on its way down.

• Stage 2 of adrenal fatigue is falling cortisol (which is sometimes in the normal range) and decreasing levels of DHEA

• Stage 3 is even lower cortisol and lower DHEA.

“But is the adrenal fatigue concept really accurate?”

— Maria Claps, HHC, FDNP

Not really. Consider two problems with the “adrenal fatigue” diagnosis:

Most people with “adrenal fatigue” don’t have low cortisol levels. The assessment of adrenal fatigue has depended on saliva measurement of cortisol taken at 4 distinct points throughout the day. Cortisol measured in saliva is only 2-5% of our total cortisol production. The vast majority (around 70%) of our cortisol is excreted in urine. This measurement is called metabolized cortisol. Free (salivary) cortisol is NOT the best marker for cortisol production. Metabolized cortisol, however, is a good marker for overall cortisol production.

This would not matter if free and metabolized cortisol was the same. But often, they are quite different.

It’s possible to have low free cortisol and high metabolized cortisol.

Some conditions with associated with low free cortisol and high total (aka metabolized) cortisol:

• Obesity

• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

• Insulin resistance

• Hyperthyroidism

• Active stress response

• Long term glucocorticoid use

Also, it is possible to have high free cortisol and low metabolized cortisol. This is commonly seen in liver damage and hypothyroidism.

***Special note for hypothyroid sufferers: If you get a DUTCH test and it shows up as high free cortisol and low total (aka metabolized) cortisol, you might be getting overdosed on your thyroid medication***

Therefore, a saliva test is an incomplete picture of true cortisol production.

Even when total cortisol is low, it's rarely because the adrenals are tired and unable to produce it. The control mechanisms for cortisol production reside in the brain and central nervous system, not the adrenal glands themselves. The adrenals produce cortisol but the regulatory mechanisms are primarily outside the adrenal glands. Therefore we should not be calling the problem of low cortisol adrenal fatigue, but instead it should simply be called “low cortisol mechanisms”.

Here are two reasons why cortisol production can drop:

1) Down regulation of the HPA axis – when we are exposed to stress for a long time, there can be a down regulation in cortisol receptor sensitivity. This is the body’s attempt to protect itself from the damaging effects of chronically high cortisol levels. The problem with this is that it actually ends up hampering the body’s ability to produce cortisol. This is an adaptive short term mechanism that becomes harmful in the long-term.

2) Impaired cortisol signaling – High cortisol levels will lead to cortisol resistance. This can be caused by a decrease in cortisol receptor sensitivity and/or a decrease in cortisol receptor expression.

With the DUTCH (Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones) method of testing, which tests both free and metabolized cortisol, we have a greater understanding of the health of the adrenal glands. (We also get to look at sex hormone production and estrogen metabolite breakdown.)

True adrenal fatigue, if the term is to be used at all, should be reserved for those who have Addison’s disease, an autoimmune inability to produce cortisol.

But for the vast majority of us, our “adrenal fatigue” is simply a miscommunication between the brain/adrenals exacerbated by how we were designed to live (nutrient dense food, infrequent activation of the stress response, plenty of exposure to sunlight, connection with nature) and how many of us actually live (too much exposure to electronic screens, nutrient poor food and go-go-go lifestyles).

So what’s a woman to do?

You can get your adrenal hormones accurately (key word here!) and this is called the DUTCH test. This test uses dried urine to measure hormone levels. Precision Analytical laboratory in Oregon is the maker of this test.

Maria Claps, HHC, FDNP

Found This Interesting? Want To See More?

Sign up to get my guide on fixing your perimenopause hormones because knowledge is power.

This guide has everything I wish I knew when I went into perimenopause. Stuff even your holistic and integrative doctor may not be telling you.

You can get it at www.mariascopes.com.

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Five Fun Ways to Fix Your Adrenal Glands

Many people mistake the picture of health for a picture of deprivation. In fact, it’s quite the opposite.  We can enjoy good food, good friends, and lots of fun and pleasure while we enjoy good health as well!

Today we’re going to cover five fun ways to heal your adrenal glands.  The adrenal glands produce hormones for energy and stress-handling, and they take a beating in our culture of chronic stress.

Adrenal function can go awry in three phases:

1. Hyperfunction- You are producing a lot of cortisol and may feel like you have a lot of of energy.  However you may have trouble relaxing, may be gaining mid-section weight, and may have lost interest/focus for sex.

2. Dysregulation- Your adrenals are fatiguing, and your energy is varied.  You may be tired in the mid-afternoon, and relaying on caffeine and sugar for a lift.  You might be getting sick too often.  You may feel like you only have energy late at night.

3. Exhaustion- Your adrenals don’t have a lot to give.  You may get diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome or hypothyroidism.  You may just feel like a shadow of your once energetic self.

There are causes of stress beyond the obvious ones (traffic jams, deadlines, fights), that include things like environmental toxicants, internal parasites and food sensitivities.  

But today we are going to focus on ways to calm and restore your body, that you’ll also enjoy!  These tips support you, whichever phase of adrenal dysregulation you may be experiencing. 

1.  Have unstructured time. 

Is your day planned out and packed from morning to bedtime?  This is very tiring on your system!  Give yourself some time to just wander, relax and do whatever you choose.  If your day is really packed, you may have to actually schedule this time.  

2.  Get out in nature. 

Getting outdoors can shift your perspective away from your worries, and help you see the bigger picture.  This can be a true camping trip, sunbathing in a park, or just walking around your neighborhood.  The fresh air, vitamin D and phytochemicals emitted from plants will all help balance your cortisol. (1) (2)

3.  Vacation. 

With smartphones, laptops and ever-present wifi, many people are working seven days and week.  Taking a long weekend or, better yet, a whole week or month to really unplug and explore is super restorative.  When is your next vacation?!

4.  Read.

Reading, preferably on an old-fashioned paper book without the blue light of a screen, has been studied to be very effective for relaxation.  I also encourage reading fiction, or whatever subjects really ‘takes you away.’  Your body will appreciate this break! (3)

5.  Sleep. 

Sleep is the most restorative thing we do.  It’s so important that it takes up a third of our day!  There is an old saying that every hour of sleep before midnight is worth two hours.  This may be because we produce more human growth hormone when we sleep when it turns dark, instead of staying up. (4) So, especially while you are healing adrenal dysregulation, it’s important to get to bed before 10 PM.  

You may find that you ramp up if you stay up after 10.  This does not mean that you are a nocturnal creature.  It means your circadian rhythm and cortisol rhythm is off.  So you really need to try to get it back on track.  That may mean working with a practitioner, but for starters, avoid sugar and alcohol at night, and end screen time by 8 PM.  

You will find that you feel much better the next day when you are asleep by 10.  The human growth hormone we produce when we sleep repairs our bodies and gives us energy. (5)  Human growth hormone is what we produce more of when we are young, so getting good sleep is like a little fountain of youth every night.  

Please incorporate these five fun cures for your adrenals, and you just might find you want to keep these habits around!

For more information on healthy lifestyle for women, take our free Hidden Hormone Health Stressors quiz!

Contributed by Bridgit Danner, LAc, FDNP

Sources:

1. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2793346/

2. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20074458

3. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/news/5070874/Reading-can-help-reduce-stress.html

4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3720426

5.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12797841