You Don't Have to Settle for Feeling Crappy

Maybe there’s a more elegant way to say that. When you don’t feel well, you’re tired - so tired - have researched what the causes might be, have implemented diet and lifestyle practices, have been to the doctor, received a diagnosis, taken the resulting prescription medication religiously which caused rapid hair-loss for three months, but you still feel crappy, you know you must do something differently. When I was feeling like this, I knew I wasn’t going to settle for sub-par health. I had the worst fatigue of my life - worse than the sleep-deprived state of being a new parent - and I knew I needed to take control of my health. That’s when I sought out a health care practitioner, who I paid for out of pocket, to get the testing I needed to understand what the underlying issue was.

I suspected hormones. I’m in that age-range where I expect a lot of symptoms due to hormonal shifts. But the results that came back were unexpected. It was not perimenopause. Not yet at least. My cortisol was low. So low that it never went above average levels throughout the day. Aren’t we supposed to be worried about high-cortisol with stress? What’s with low cortisol? Well, it is involved with the underlying cause of my many unflattering symptoms. A diagnosis of Hypothalamus Pituitary Adrenal (HPA) Axis Dysfunction. In layman’s terms: Burnout.

That’s when things turned around. Now I knew what was wrong, and was working with a practitioner who understood this issue and could help me fix it. She gave me helpful lifestyle interventions and suggestions for supportive supplements that worked. Once I was able to incorporate those changes into my daily routines, I steadily regained my energy, motivation, drive, clear-headed thinking, focus, happiness, and calm. I am back!