Individuals with adrenal fatigue and low cortisol levels don't experience energy and warmth, rather they feel cold, fatigued, and may even shiver after exercise. Stress reduction, reduced exercise load, increased rest, and comprehensive adrenal support is necessary.
Adrenal fatigue has emerged as one of the most common disorders of the 21st century. It affects millions of people worldwide, causing extreme tiredness, lethargy, body aches, chills, dizziness, and more. Sometimes, its symptoms can be debilitating.
Symptoms of high cortisol include:
Anxiety and irritability. Trouble falling asleep and staying asleep. Nervousness. Shakiness.
Extreme dizziness from low blood pressure. Having trouble handling stress. Feeling very cold or very hot. Salt cravings.
Both high and low cortisol can also trigger symptoms of low metabolism such as feeling fatigued, depressed, cold and experiencing decreased memory and poor concentration.
Adrenal Fatigue Symptoms and Thermoregulation
Adrenal fatigue interferes with the ability of the hypothalamus to respond to changes in temperature.
They're often a sign that your body feels too cold or is fighting off an illness. Many people feel chilled when they have a fever. Warming your body with more clothes and heat can ward off cold chills. If a sickness causes chills, see your healthcare provider.
Symptoms said to be due to adrenal fatigue include tiredness, trouble falling asleep at night or waking up in the morning, salt and sugar craving, and needing stimulants like caffeine to get through the day. These symptoms are common and non-specific, meaning they can be found in many diseases.
The adrenal fatigue theory suggests that prolonged exposure to stress could drain the adrenals leading to a low cortisol state. The adrenal depletion would cause brain fog, low energy, depressive mood, salt and sweet cravings, lightheadedness, and other vague symptoms.
Stage 1: Alarm
This first stage is characterized by an increased output of cortisol and adrenaline in response to stress. The body's response is called the “fight or flight” response. As the stress continues, the adrenal glands start to become taxed due to the increasing demands by the body for cortisol production.
Our stress response systems will begin to feel overloaded and the effects of overexerting the adrenals. Symptoms will begin in our body such as digestive issues, jitteriness, body aches/pains, irritability, nervousness, sense of sickness, depression, irregular sleep patterns, blood pressure elevated, etc.
Acute adrenal crisis is a medical emergency caused by a lack of cortisol. Patients may experience lightheadedness or dizziness, weakness, sweating, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, or even loss of consciousness.
Lack of vitamin B12 and iron deficiency can cause anemia and lead you to feel cold. Good sources of B12 are chicken, eggs and fish, and people with iron deficiency may want to seek out poultry, pork, fish, peas, soybeans, chickpeas and dark green leafy vegetables.
Some people naturally tend to feel colder than others without any discernible cause. However, cold intolerance can also indicate an underlying medical condition, such as hypothyroidism, anemia, or peripheral artery disease.
Long-lasting fatigue is a common symptom of adrenal insufficiency. People with Addison's disease may also have darkening of their skin. This darkening is most visible on scars; skin folds; pressure points such as the elbows, knees, knuckles, and toes; lips; and mucous membranes such as the lining of the cheek.
Too little cortisol may be due to a problem in the pituitary gland or the adrenal gland (Addison's disease). The onset of symptoms is often very gradual. Symptoms may include fatigue, dizziness (especially upon standing), weight loss, muscle weakness, mood changes and the darkening of regions of the skin.
In response to stress, the adrenals release greater amounts of cortisol. Adrenal fatigue is thought to occur when the adrenals have become overtaxed by excess cortisol release and can no longer produce levels of cortisol necessary for optimal body function.
Initial signs and symptoms are nonspecific, such as nausea, vomiting, fever, and lower chest/abdominal pain along with hypotension, altered mental status, and obtundation.
It is frequently mistaken for psychiatric disorders, such as depression, apathy, anxiety or even psychosis, and already in the originally described cases by Addison it is obvious that these traits often precede other symptoms.
Gastroenteritis and Syndrome of Inappropriate Secretion of Antidiuretic hormone (SIADH) are the most frequent reported misdiagnosis in patients with adrenal insufficiency (AI).