Those of you who know me know that I love to lift weights. I’ve been faithfully going to the gym four days a week for nearly two years now. Back on the fitness wagon after having children and life derail me temporarily, I love to jump out of bed in the morning at 5:10 a.m. Crazy, I know. But recently, I have been feeling so fatigued and so drained.
After a visit to the doctor and then to Natur-Tyme, a local health and wellness store in Syracuse, New York, I’m on my way to hopefully feeling more energetic. The wellness associate I met with kept talking about adrenal fatigue. She said it so quickly that I barely had time to register what she was talking about. But, after leaving that appointment I began reading all I could.
It seems this is a real condition that affects millions of women in my age group. It’s the idea that our adrenal glands, the ones responsible for generating cortisol when we’re stressed and “adrenaline,” can get tired and burned out from our continued stressful lifestyle. When that happens, they just don’t work as well as they should, causing many of the symptoms I have been experiencing.
As I read more about this, I learned it’s not an official diagnosis and many general practitioners don’t discuss it with their patients. As such, there is no magic pill to help fix this condition. I’m finding that it’s all about lifestyle – exercise, nutrition and stress-management.
So, this spring, I’m doing a little spring cleaning of my wellness approach. While I typically do eat pretty well, I can always improve my food choices. And, while I’ve been taking lots of supplements since starting my workout regimen, there are others I’m trying, based on my research. So far, so good. I only seem to fall asleep on the couch by 8:30 p.m. once or twice a week now instead of nearly every night!
As for my wine? Well, technically, it’s off limits, if I really want to cleanse my adrenals and remedy the fatigue situation. But, given that there are upwards of 35 symptoms of adrenal fatigue, and I have about 14, I’m thinking an occasional glass is still OK for now.
Last evening, I had a 2015 Silvertop Oak Cask Malbec from Argentina. Very yummy! It was hard to stop after just one glass! But, the wellness call is real. I want to feel energetic in life again. So sacrifices need to be made! Cheers!