Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom (116 page)

Functional adrenal testing, which measures the levels of two of the key adrenal hormones, has documented that many women who are tired all the time have adrenal glands that simply aren’t functioning at their peak efficiency— usually as a result of chronic emotional, nutritional, or other kinds of stress. Adrenal dysfunction is also associated with symptoms such as foggy thinking, insomnia, hypoglycemia, recurrent infections, depression, poor memory, headaches, and cravings for sweets.

The adrenal glands are your body’s primary “shock absorbers.” These two little thumb-size glands that sit on top of your kidneys are designed to produce hormones that allow you to respond to the condi tions of your daily life in healthy and flexible ways. But if the intensity and the frequency of the stresses in your life, from either inside yourself (such as your perceptions about your life) or outside yourself (such as having surgery or working the night shift), become too great, then over time your adrenal glands will begin to become exhausted—not unlike a horse that continues to be worked or runs too much without adequate rest, food, and water. Eventually your body will produce many different symptoms in an attempt to get you to pay attention and change some aspects of your life—just as a tired horse will sooner or later stop working, no matter how much you whip it.

Here’s a list of common stressors that over time can lead to adrenal dysfunction. See how many of these apply to you.

UNRESOLVED EMOTIONAL STRESS

Worry

Anger

Guilt

Anxiety

Fear

Depression

Lack of pleasurable experiences

ENVIRONMENTAL AND PHYSICAL STRESS

Excessive exercise

Exposure to industrial or other environmental toxins

Chronic or severe allergies

Suboptimal diet and suboptimal nutrient levels

Glycemic stress from too many refined carbohydrates

Overwork, either physical or mental