What would happen, for example, if you were in the woods and were suddenly confronted by a bear? Your brain would send a message to your adrenal glands to quickly produce more blood sugar and raise your heart rate and blood pressure to help you escape the situation. This is called hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) Axis dysfunction, more commonly known as “adrenal fatigue.” When any type of stress becomes too great or chronic we start to see a problem with how the adrenal glands are adapting to this stress. The adrenal glands help us respond to both internal and external stressors by releasing an appropriate amount of cortisol, which gives us the energy to get through the stress and then recover to a balanced hormonal state. Our bodies are designed to weather stress and stay balanced primarily with the help of our adrenal glands. Different types of stressors can impact the body similarly. Negative stress can come from within the body, from food sensitivities or hidden stressors like parasites and fungus. (1) (2) What is stress and how does it affect the body? When we think of stress we may think of something negative, such as an emotional stressor or “distress” of some kind, but stress can also be positive like excitement, competitiveness or passion. In fact, patients complaining of fatigue make up more than 20% of all primary care visits and 75-90% of all primary care visits have been reported to be related to stress. One of the most frequent issues I see in my clinic is chronic stress and fatigue.
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