Adrenal Protocol

[keninottawa]

Hello all,

I have secondary hypogonadism, potentially due to hypopituitarism (my LH and FSH are consistently low). I am trying to resolve any adrenal problems that I might have before revisiting an endocrinologist this summer to (potentially) go back on TRT. My last bloodwork was abyssmal, and I feel as though I've been pushing myself too hard over the last few months with work, training, and overall lifestyle. As such, I figure my adrenals could use some replenishing, as it were.

How does this daily supplementation protocol sound?

3,000-4,000 mg Vitamin C (split upon waking, after training, afternoon, evening)
500 mg Korean Red Ginseng (split morning, afternoon)
500 mg adrenal cortex extract (split morning, afternoon)
1,000 mg Pantothenic Acid (split morning, afternoon)
50 mg Zing (before sleep)
Cut caffeine intake in half

Any input is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

- Ken

[hardasnails1973]

Originally Posted by keninottawa

Hello all,

I have secondary hypogonadism, potentially due to hypopituitarism (my LH and FSH are consistently low). I am trying to resolve any adrenal problems that I might have before revisiting an endocrinologist this summer to (potentially) go back on TRT. My last bloodwork was abyssmal, and I feel as though I've been pushing myself too hard over the last few months with work, training, and overall lifestyle. As such, I figure my adrenals could use some replenishing, as it were.

How does this daily supplementation protocol sound?

3,000-4,000 mg Vitamin C (split upon waking, after training, afternoon, evening)
500 mg Korean Red Ginseng (split morning, afternoon)
500 mg adrenal cortex extract (split morning, afternoon)
1,000 mg Pantothenic Acid (split morning, afternoon)
50 mg Zing (before sleep)
Cut caffeine intake in half

Any input is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

- Ken

Sounds to me that you need to examine your lifesttyle and make some radical changes to help your adrenals to heal. You need to identify and not assume the phase of adrenal burnout you are in through urine testing or salvia testing. If your sleep sucks I would stay off the computer 3 hours before bed time to let your self wind down and do some belly breathing exercises to help calm your nervous system. If need be drink a small glass of red wine before bed becuase it helps increase gluthione which is main antioxident in your body.

Add in
300 mgs panthithene BID
magneisum 500-600 mgs before bed time mag glycinate
50 mgs zinc picolate before bed
50 mgs P5p before bed
500mcg melatonin time released before bed time.
if you suspect corisol is high then 100 mg Phospoho serosine

[superone]

hardasnails1973 ,


what supps would you recommend for somebody with adrenal fatigue, and low Cortisol/DHEA?


I know Cortef is usually the standard from what i read but any other natural supps that will help my adrenals heal quicker?


Thanks.

[keninottawa]

Thanks for your comment.

Lifestyle changes are indeed in order; these past few months have been particularly hard in terms of work -- I'm a graduate student and just learning to balance the workload with the rest of my life.

In the gym, I'm really going to cut back and ensure proper recovery. Also, I need to keep workouts abbreviated.

I'm not sure I have full-blown AF, but I want my adrenals to be running well before I address my other endocrine issues.

[hardasnails1973]

Examine your lifestyle and eating eating habits over the past 6 month,
Majoirtiy most of the time its undereating and over traning is the main reason. You need to get not just the right amount of sleep, but also the proper REM sleep inorder for your body to properly heal. I commonly hear same story over again and again. I sleep 8 hours but I feel like crap in the morning. You need to get into a nice dream state to know you are in a restful restorative sleep. Supplements are just an aid until you change how you live. You are low cortisol but more so one would need to see a 24 hour urine to actually reconfirm this. This 24 urine can be run by your primary dr and it will also help to validate salvia testing for future comparison.

For low cortisol
1 examine life style, dietary, sleep patterns
2. examine posible low thyroid - low thyroid feeds adrenal and adrenals can feed low thyroi.
3. Increase sea salts to 1/2 tsp morning with 1 tsp apple cider vinegar in a nice 8 oz of warm water. Also repeat this in the mid afternnon
4. Tyrosine 500 mgs morning and mid afternoon helps repair adrenals
5. Get some sunlight. You could have low exposure to sunlight which causes melatonin over flow which will lower cortisol out put. sunlight turns adrenals on. Check vitamn D status
6. b-5 1000 AM and mid afternoon
7. vitamin C ester - 1000 with each meal 3,000 max
8 Good multivitamin not GNC crap
9. isocort
10. MACA 1 tsp morning and mid afternon


In order to design a complete program I would have to do a 2-3 hour consultation with you to come up with a solid personalized program.

[keninottawa]

Hardasnails,

Thanks for the list. I'll certainly get the sea salts going and I'll look into Tyrosine.

I have overtrained in the past and know well how that feels. Lately, I have been training hard, but I haven't ever felt overtrained. However, I'm now taking two weeks off from the gym as I travel through Germany; I'll see if I feel any different after having not trained for that long. If I feel much better, I'll know that I've been going too hard in the gym.

[hardasnails1973]

I think you answered your wone question will a viable solution. Once the chain reactions starts its important to listen to your body and prevent it from doing any further damage

[pmgamer18]

Hard gave you some dam good advice but you think your Hypopituitary if you are then it's not that your burned out from working out and stress it's your pituitary not telling your adrenals and Thyroid to make more hormones. You would need to do some testing to prove your secondary don't take any Isocort or HC even glainds until you can get an ACTH Stim. test to see if your secondary.
ACTH stimulation test - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
If you find you are then all that is needed to to support your body with the hormones your low on. When working out make sure you don't burn up all your cortisol or if you are secondary you should be on HC or Cortef 20 to 25 mgs total a day most do 10 mgs in the morning and 5mgs every 4 hrs. On this if you work out or get stressed out to bad your levels will fall and you can end up on the ER this happened to me 2 x's last yr. they had to give me a big shot of HC so carry info about what your on and what is wrong with you.
911! Adrenal Crisis / Cushings-Help.com Support for Addison's Disease and Adrenal Insufficiency

Do read these FAQ's links and all the links in them.
Stop The Thyroid Madness » Frequently asked HYPOPITUITARY questions….and their answers
Stop The Thyroid Madness » ADRENALS FAQ–the most frequently asked questions

Originally Posted by keninottawa

Hello all,

I have secondary hypogonadism, potentially due to hypopituitarism (my LH and FSH are consistently low). I am trying to resolve any adrenal problems that I might have before revisiting an endocrinologist this summer to (potentially) go back on TRT. My last bloodwork was abyssmal, and I feel as though I've been pushing myself too hard over the last few months with work, training, and overall lifestyle. As such, I figure my adrenals could use some replenishing, as it were.

How does this daily supplementation protocol sound?

3,000-4,000 mg Vitamin C (split upon waking, after training, afternoon, evening)
500 mg Korean Red Ginseng (split morning, afternoon)
500 mg adrenal cortex extract (split morning, afternoon)
1,000 mg Pantothenic Acid (split morning, afternoon)
50 mg Zing (before sleep)
Cut caffeine intake in half

Any input is greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

- Ken

[keninottawa]

Thanks for the advice, pmgamer.

Just curious, though, I thought that working out produced cortisol rather than using it up.

Also, I read the hypopituitarism link that you sent me, and it mentioned that men often have TSH levels of 1.8 and lower... My last labs gave me a TSH number at around 2.6... Does this mean that I'm not hypopituitary? I've had consistently low LH and FSH levels in my labs, though a couple of rounds of Nolvadex last year was enough to raise them, so the pituitary is 'responsive', I suppose.

Also, since Vitamin C is known to reduce cortisol, should I be taking it if I am concerned that my adrenals mightn't be up to snuff?

Thanks,

- Ken

[pmgamer18]

Hi Ken no if your TSH is this high it's a flag going up that you need your Thyroid checked by a Dr. that know about Thyroid. Most say they do but you read everyday about someone on there Dr.'s treatment and he is wrong.

If your LH and FSH are low coming off Nolvadex then this can mean your pituitary can't work on it's own.

You need Vit. C and other supplements to help your body when you have a pituitary problem. I never heard Vit. C lowers Cortisol unless one is over doing the dose.

You can read my story at this link after this story was put on the site I later found out my Ferritin levels are very low below normal and now I am on Iron pills and feeling my best ever now. You need to check all the things a pituitary does and things that are low or low normal treat them.
Stop The Thyroid Madness » Phil’s Story

[keninottawa]

OK...

I don't think I am hypothyroid per se; I've had constipation ever since I've been faced with hormonal problems, and I do have dry and irritated skin, but I'm the type that has trouble gaining weight (as opposed to the opposite) and my metabolism seems fine. Of course, there might be something indeed wrong with my thyroid (as the consipation indicates), and I want to have it checked when I next see an endo this summer.

Just curious -- what should I ask from my endo when Inext see him/her? I've already been on TRT, and I know that this alone won't help me. I want to take a holistic approach to my endocrine system and address the crux of my problem. I've had a pituitary MRI done before, and it turned up negative, so I'm OK there. And my pituitary did respond to SERMs, Phil; the LH and FSH did not stay high after I ceased SERMs, though.

Here are my symptoms:
- Very low libido
- Difficult maintaining muscle mass
- Low energy
- Brain fog
- Constipation and other occasional digestive problems
- Puffy face
- Low facial hair growth (I'm 23 and cannot grow a beard)
- General malaise
- Dry and irritated skin

And the bloodwork I've had done over the past few years have indicated:
- Below range/at lower threshold T and Free T
- Very low FSH, LH, and low E2
- Apparently high TSH values (in the mid-2's)
- Normal Ferratin
- Normal Prolactin

After I came off of TRT in late 2005, my LH and FSH were through the roof:
- LH 11 IU/L
- FSH 20 IU/L
Free T and T were still low, and SHGB was at 40 nmol/L. My then-endo reported that this might've been part of recovery and "may return to normal". She said that there "is no need for him to return to the clinic".

Thank goodness I didn't stay on with her!

Any input you guys can provide is greatly appreciated.

- Ken

[keninottawa]

By the way, I've been following said adrenal protocol for five or six days now and I actually feel pretty good, despite cutting my coffee consumption in half!

[hardasnails1973]

WHose adrenal fatigue suggeston ?
When it comes to adrenals I knwo them very wel through a nutirtinoal standpoint as well as change in life style.
I take a generic adrenal prgram and add alittle spice to it..I prefer people do not reside to meds unless all natural alterantives have been atleast given a 2-4 month period to work..

[JimRat]

pmgamer18-

QUOTE: ..."I later found out my Ferritin levels are very low below normal and now I am on Iron pills and feeling my best ever now."

What symptoms do you feel low ferritin causes? Mine is currently 15 and I feel like garbage plus hypothyroid as well....

[keninottawa]

Hardasnails,

No one's adrenal suggestions in particular; i've taken these dosage protocols from a number of different online sources.