Don’t Sink Your Boat This Holiday Season by Neglecting Your Adrenal Glands!
Optimal adrenal function provides the wherewithal we depend on to sail through our daily activities with relative ease, focus, and vitality. For many the holiday season can be stressful – emotionally and physically – setting the stage for adrenal dysfunction and then illness, fatigue, and general depletion.
What are Adrenals?
The adrenal glands are tiny glands that direct the body’s metabolic forces from atop of each kidney. From there they govern blood sugar and mineral balance, energy production, and inflammation levels in the body. Like the captain of a ship our adrenal glands navigate the relationship between mind and body, maneuvering to maintain balance through life’s tumultuous sea of daily stressors. Without optimal adrenal function we commonly experience low motivation, feelings of depletion, illness, sugar cravings, fluid retention, low sex drive, lack of focus, and painful inflammation.
For optimal function, our adrenal glands require that we maintain healthy relationships with ourselves, others, our food, and our environment.
What do Adrenals need to stay healthy?
- The adrenal glands require proper nutrition consisting of healthy fats, salts, and B-vitamins.
- They require rest from the demands of our mental pursuits and our fast paced lives.
- They require for us to be kind to ourselves and to move through life with balance.
If you’re already experiencing signs and symptoms of adrenal fatigue, this busy time of year may speed you further towards depletion or illness. Take charge of your health and support your metabolic captains so they may keep you sailing through the holidays.
Here are some quick tips:
- Check your thyroid function at home.
Your thyroid can affect your adrenals too. Here’s how to test it: Take your body temperature 3 hours after waking for at least 4 days. If you’re averaging below 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, then you may have a sluggish thyroid and depleted adrenals. In this case, set up an appointment with your doctor! - Eat more Fat!
Include healthier fats in your diet like avocados, butter, olive oil, organic-free-range eggs, salmon, olives, lard and tallow. - Get your stomach acid checked. If you don’t have enough stomach acid, you can’t properly absorb your minerals and vitamins.
- Take your B Vitamins – especially B5 and B6.
Purchase active B Vitamins (riboflavin-5-phosphate, pyridoxal-5-phosphate, methylfolate, and methylcobalamin) and avoid the cheap brands as they may contain toxic B’s. - Ease your stress – for instance with a massage, reflexology or other form of bodywork.
- Take a nap!
Resting will help you feel refreshed and give your adrenals a needed break. - Get recharged with adaptogenic herbs like Ashwagandha, Devil’s club, and Siberian ginseng.
If you need some help getting yourself ready for the holidays, schedule an appointment with a Naturopathic Specialist at Siskiyou Vital Medicine!
Happy Holidays,
McClane Duncan, ND
Dr. Duncan received his Undergraduate Degree, Bachelor of Science in Biology, from the University of Houston-Downtown. He earned his Doctorate Degree as a Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine from Bastyr University and his Post Graduate Training in Prolotherapy, Neurotherapy, and Ozone therapy from the Klinghardt Academy. He is also trained in Anthroposophical Medicine. His medical approach is rooted in Vitalism, a system of medicine that focuses on cure using the body’s own innate ability to heal. He employs time tested natural therapies as well as the latest medical technology to develop sustainable health plans that empower his patients to take control of their health. It is his intention to make complex medicine simple, reconnect people with their bodies, and teach his patients the foundations of health.