Adrenal Fatigue and Acupuncture
Adrenal fatigue (a.k.a Adrenal Burnout or Hypoadrenia) often occurs following long periods of excessive physical or emotional stress. During prolonged stress, the adrenal glands become overworked and respond by making excess levels of cortisol in response to the body’s “fight or flight” system. This pattern not only burns out the body’s capacity to make adequate cortisol, but it also prevents the adrenal glands from producing other essential hormones.
Symptoms of adrenal fatigue include: lack of energy (especially in the morning), a need for afternoon naps, cravings for foods high in carbohydrates, sugar and caffeine, excessive sleep and waking tired. Adrenal fatigue occurs more often in women than in men. Some studies show that adrenal exhaustion may be linked to fibromyalgia and hypothyroidism.
The good news is that this condition is entirely reversible. Although this process may take time, there is a solution – a way to rebuild adrenal reserve and re-balance the body. Some of the key steps include:
- Avoid or minimize the use of stimulants
- Remove food intolerances (especially gluten)
- Stabilize blood sugar (using a moderate or low-carb diet)
- Practice stress management and relaxation techniques
- Have fun, laugh and make pleasure a regular part of your life
- Avoid dietary causes of inflammation (refined flours, sugar and industrial seed oils)
- Ensure adequate intake of DHA & EPA
- Get regular acupuncture treatments
Acupuncture one of the best ways to rapidly recover from adrenal fatigue. The key to acupuncture’s effectiveness here is it’s ability to turn on the “relaxation” part of the nervous system (parasympathetic). When the parasympathetic side turns on and the sympathetic nervous system switches off the heart rate returns to normal, digestion improves, and sleep becomes more deep and restful.
A basic treatment plan for Adrenal Fatigue:
- A health history consultation on the first visit. Follow-up includes specific feedback and advice on diet, supplements and lifestyle factors.
- A custom herbal (powder) formula, taken 3 times a day for the first month. A custom formula will be created based on specific constitutional factors. This condition has different presentations clinically, so an herbal formula would need to be customized based on your “pattern” in Chinese Medicine.
- Acupuncture treatments, given 1 time each week for the first month. After the first month, acupuncture treatments will be scheduled every other week for 4 additional sessions.
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