Most all of us have a pretty high level of stress in our lives. As we try to juggle everything in our lives successfully — career, hobbies, spouses, children, finances, and more – it’s no wonder so many of us are stressed to the max. Even the “in-between” stuff like commuting, driving/road rage, waiting in long, annoying lines behind super slow tellers and checkout people, etc. really start to add to the overall stress mix.
Stress is a deeply ingrained human response. Back in the times of early humans, it served as a very valuable means of keeping humans safe by generating the fight or flight response whenever one was presented with danger. Today, our bodies still have the same fight or flight response our ancestors did even though we very seldom need it to protect our lives. With such a finely tuned stress response system, however, our bodies react as if we are faced with a life-threatening situation, even when the stimulus has nothing to do with personal physical safety.
Whenever we experience stress (physical, psychological, emotional, or other), our body releases chemicals in order to prepare us for fight or flight. These chemicals include adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol. At the same time, our respiration and heart rate increase and any blood being used for non-essential processes like digestion is rerouted to our muscles and limbs (I believe this is a contributing factor to why stressed people are chronically constipated to varying degrees).
The difference between modern humans and our ancestors is this: With early humans, after the threat to safety was removed, body physiology returned to a normal state. In today’s world, we’re bombarded with so many stressors that our bodies may function in a state of near perpetual fight or flight response.
Your adrenal glands are ground zero for the fight or flight response. Perched atop your kidneys, the adrenal glands release hormones in response to psychological and physiological cues. Along with generating stress hormones, your adrenal glands maintain metabolic processes, regulate inflammation, and help balance your electrolytes. When daily stressors place your adrenals in a perpetual state of producing hormones to control the fight or flight response, they can eventually begin to work less efficiently. As the adrenals wear out, they may no longer respond appropriately to stress, interfering with their ability to produce the hormones your body needs such as DHEA, progesterone, testosterone, and estrogen. When this happens, you may begin to exhibit symptoms of adrenal fatigue or adrenal imbalance.
Like other glands, your adrenals can exist in a state of hyperfunction (producing excess hormones such as cortisol) or hypofunction (producing too few hormones) as a response to adrenal imbalance.
Since adrenal imbalance is related to high levels of stress and an impaired stress management system, there are a number of factors that can impair adrenal fatigue. Ironically, many of these things are crutches people use to help alleviate any symptoms of adrenal imbalance they may be experiencing. Factors that heighten adrenal fatigue include:
If you believe you’re suffering from adrenal imbalance, here’s what you can do.
The Beauty Detox lifestyle is one that seeks to provide balance. If you feel like you’re suffering from adrenal fatigue, you won’t find a better way to restore your body to balance and good health. Take the time to take good care of yourself!
