By Mary Ann Wilson, RN
I hope you have more free time than I do to enjoy your summer! We’re headed into the studio for a month of production, taping a new series, the 1500 Series. I feel like I am literally eating, drinking and breathing Sit and Be Fit! I wake up in the middle of the night thinking of new choreography or fresh ideas I want to share with you. Often times I can’t get back to sleep for hours. The next day, I am dragging….which is a perfect lead-in to the topic of this month’s newsflash, ADRENAL FATIGUE. If you find yourself feeling low on energy and often tired, there may be a scientific explanation. I’ve been reading a book by Dr. James Wilson called, Adrenal Fatigue – The 21st Century Stress Syndrome. Adrenal Fatigue occurs when the adrenal glands are not able to handle the amount of stress put on the body. Cortisol, one of the hormones produced in the adrenal glands, is increased during times of stress. This natural process starts to go a little haywire when we maintain high levels of stress over an extended period of time. The cortisol levels stay high instead of returning to their normal levels. These high levels wreak havoc on the body, resulting in an array of unwanted symptoms including: thyroid and metabolic dysfunction, cognitive decline, depression and a weakened immune system. On Dr. Wilson’s website there is a self-quiz that you might be interested in taking. It is one way you can get an idea of whether or not you are suffering from adrenal fatigue. Here is the link.
http://www.adrenalfatigue.org/take-the-adrenal-fatigue-quiz
Also on Dr. Wilson’s website is a soup recipe that appears at the end of this newsflash. I wanted to pass it on to you because nutrition is one of the important ways to relieve adrenal fatigue. Two of the overall nutritional recommendations are:
1. Avoid sugars, starchy carbohydrates, white flour and processed grains, alcohol, coffee
2. Try to eat organic, non-genetically modified, non-processed foods
Other recommendations for reducing adrenal fatigue include:
1. reducing stress (probably the single most important thing that you can do)
2. get at least 8-10 hours of sleep (with no artificial light, including the television)
There is much more I could share on this topic but pre-production work is calling. Will I really be able to reduce my stress levels during this very demanding month and a half? It will take a super-human effort to pull it off, but the entire Sit and Be Fit team and I are willing to try!
Let’s commit together to give our adrenal glands a break this summer, making it a priority to relax and de-stress every single day. I look forward to catching up with you in September (we won’t be sending out an August newsflash!) Until then, stay healthy, strong and stress-free.
My best to you always,
Mary Ann
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