My Stress is High

THE HOLISTIC APPROACH TO WEIGHT LOSS

PORTAL

STRESS MANAGEMENT

BLOCK 7 – MY STRESS IS DEBILITATING

This is the adrenal section. I’m sure you have heard of adrenal fatigue before but you may not know about the different types, how they impact a weight loss journey and how to re-balance. This is the section for you.

Mental/emotional stress is very hard on the physical body. It can contribute to heart disease, depression, IBS, pain, insomnia, etc and of course, obesity. Stress can be caused by an imbalance in neurotransmitters and adrenal hormones. The opposite is also true. If you lead a lifestyle or have a condition causing an imbalance in these systems stress can occur. This section looks at possible treatments for all situations.

Why stress reduction is important in weight loss:

When you are stressed your adrenal glands release cortisol which causes blood sugar to go up. This is so that we have resources to run from an attack. If we aren’t running (which we usually aren’t) it causes fat cell development. Over time the adrenals burn out and reduce their ability to secrete cortisol (or start secreting at the wrong times of day). This causes low energy and mood which can make weight loss more difficult.

Where to start:

Start by comparing your symptoms of stress to the lists below. If you see a correlation you might be able to re-balance on your own. Adrenal testing in this situation is very helpful to determine what the course of specific treatment should be.

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SYMPTOMS

Stress and anxiety can show up in many different forms. When we think about symptoms we usually are differentiating between mental/emotional and physical. Here is a short list:

Mental/emotional

Regret – dwelling on the past
Situational anxiety – fear of judgement, failure, embarrassment, social discomfort
Worry – doubt, fear, uncertainty

Physical (usually occurs with some anxious thinking)

Shaking/tremors
Sweating
Racing heart
Palpitations
Stomach pain & nausea
Fidgiting, itchy
Tight muscles

High cortisol: racing mind, nighttime energy, onset insomnia, sensitive to caffeine, recent history of stress/worry

Low cortisol: sluggish (dragging through the mud), panic attacks, maintenance insomnia, insensitive to caffeine, history of significant stress

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WORKUP

Testing in stress (during a holistic approach) depends on the situation and needs to take into account associated symptoms. For example, is there also digestive upset? Are you dealing with rashes, joint pain and allergic type symptoms? Is there also depression, low mood or a history of trauma? Is there pain and fatigue accompanying the stress? A complex of symptoms will better guide testing.

With no associated symptoms (or a pattern that matches adrenal dysfunction – poor sleep, nighttime energy, general inflammation, history of chronic stress, exhaustion with exercise, etc) we test adrenal gland function.

2 Point Saliva Cortisol
4 Point Saliva Cortisol
Saliva DHEA
Epinephrine, Norepinephrine

Need to run labs? Contact us.

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LIFESTYLE CHANGES

A healthy lifestyle in general can help reduce the symptoms of stress. Here are a few specifics that we recommend:

Have a routine of self care – do something each day that is for yourself. An endeavour that brings you joy
Exercise – weights, high intensity intervals and steady state cardio are all proven remedies
Meditate – even if you only sit and breath for 3 minutes (trying to only focus on the breath)
Read – calming, uplifting, enjoyable material
Epsum baths – it is an old remedy but still popular for a reason
Walk among the trees – proven to balance cortisol levels

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SUPPLEMENTS

If we are thinking only about adrenal function we need to consider the following protocols. Testing will guide when to supplement and what complex is most appropriate:

All cases: magnesium bisglycinate, vitamin C (both could be deficient in adrenal imbalance)

Low adrenal release (morning or nighttime) – need to boost: