In order to understand how functional medicine can alleviate the symptoms of adrenal fatigue, you have to understand how functional medicine approaches treatment and the definition of adrenal fatigue. First, let’s look at adrenal fatigue.
Your adrenal glands are located just above your kidneys, and like other glands in your body, they release various hormones that control certain bodily functions. Your adrenal glands produce both hormones that are necessary to live, and nonessential hormones, which are important but not necessary for life.
Both cortisol, which helps to regulate your metabolism and helps your body deal with stress, and aldosterone, which helps to control your blood pressure, are produced by the adrenal glands and are essential for you to live. Your adrenal glands also produce adrenaline—also called epinephrine—which gives you a burst of energy in a fight or flight situation.
When your adrenal glands are functioning, but not very well, you have adrenal fatigue, or adrenal insufficiency. The symptoms of adrenal fatigue are nonspecific and may seem vague. They include:
You may develop these symptoms after a prolonged period of stress, such as following a long illness or after the death of a loved one. The theory behind adrenal fatigue is that your adrenal glands can’t keep up with your body’s demands for the stress hormones they release.
At Family Acupuncture and Wellness, our goal is to help you achieve optimal health by addressing the root cause of your problems. Rather than simply prescribing a pill, our team works to figure out why you might need a pill, then works to get all of your bodily systems functioning properly and eliminate your symptoms.
An important aspect of functional medicine is that each patient is approached as a unique individual. If you come to our clinic with a particular problem, we look at you as a whole individual instead of isolating your symptoms and treating just your problem.
As you might expect, when you come to Family Acupuncture and Wellness with symptoms of adrenal fatigue, our team works to address the underlying cause for your adrenal glands not functioning well. Often, that means helping you find ways to cope with chronic stress, or addressing inflammation, or a bacteria imbalance in your gut.
Whether dietary changes can help balance your gut bacteria or lower the levels of inflammation in your body, or acupuncture can relieve some of the stress and tension you’re carrying, our team will guide you through the changes necessary.
In addition to nutrition and acupuncture, treatment for adrenal fatigue may include:
If you’ve been feeling tired or experiencing other symptoms that may be related to adrenal fatigue, book your appointment at Family Acupuncture and Wellness online or by phone today. Our team can help you feel restored and more like your usual, energetic self!
