Are the supplements you’re taking working for you or are they burning a hole in your wallet?
This blog post explores the most common errors we see in our adrenal fatigue community when it comes to choosing supplements to EFFECTIVELY support you adrenal fatigue recovery.
We get asked questions about fasting and adrenal fatigue all the time.
Is it safe? Will it help us recover? What about my blood sugar issues?
On today’s blog we are sharing our thoughts on time restricted eating or intermittent fasting and how to do it effectively so that it supports your adrenal fatigue recovery instead of doing the opposite.
Some of the symptoms are often so common that we come to see them as normal— fatigue, feeling tired in the morning, anxiety, sleep issues, etc. While others are less common and a bit more worrying.
Today, I want to address some of the most common complaints we hear about in our Adrenal Fatigue Community on Facebook and give you a few supplement tips that you can use to help with them.
Storms.
We’ve seen them before, we’ll see them again.
When I say "storm", I'm referring to something that has the potential to cause a whirlwind of stress in our lives.
Sometimes, huge storms roll in-- devastating events that are hard to make sense of.
Sometimes, the storms are quick
Sometimes they last a really long time and the severity varies.
One thing all storms have in common is that they all pass.
It’s easy to say, “I want to make my health a priority” but how do you put it into action and hold yourself accountable?
When you are fatigued and burnt-out it’s easy to use your fatigue and lack of energy as an excuse.. and when we do this perpetually it keeps us stuck. Here are our tips for staying accountable and helping you to continue moving forward.
If you’ve been at this adrenal “stuff” for some time, most likely you’ve heard of the vagus nerve. You know it’s important, but you’re not sure EXACTLY why.
Well, it’s CRUCIAL that you understand this FOR YOUR RECOVERY.
Are you ready to find out why this is said to be the most important nerve in the body?
When you understand the connection between the vagus nerve and all the symptoms you’re feeling, I imagine it will be a big motivator to start incorporating practices that keep this nerve functioning at it’s best.
The Vagus nerve is one of our 12 cranial nerves. These cranial nerves start in the brain and are each connected to different organs in the body. When these cranial nerves become compromised it impacts the associated organs and that organ’s function/s.
The vagus nerve is said to be the most important nerve for 2 reasons:
1. It’s the only nerve controlling our ability to decrease stress. It’s in charge of controlling the parasympathetic nervous system, our rest and digest state.
2. The nerve involves so many organs (not just the gut) and their level of function. (which is why symptoms are so vast)
These cranial nerves become compromised for various reasons; traumas and stressful situations in our lives; physical, mental or emotional. This includes abuse, addiction, divorce, the death of loved one, surgeries, illnesses and even a high-stress lifestyle and addition to stress.
The vagus nerve starts in the brain and travels to the gut. But what many don’t know is that on the way to the gut, the vagus nerve goes through the heart, the liver, pancreas, gallbladder, kidneys, ureter, spleen, lungs, female sex organs neck (pharynx, larynx, and esophagus), ears and the tongue. No other nerve in the body has such a broad and far-reaching effect as the Vagus Nerve.
So can you see that when this nerve is compromised it can cause many health issues, such as…
1) Either feeling wired or tired, no in between
2) Food sensitivities
3) Anxiety and/or depression
4) Poor digestion
5) Poor nutrient absorption
6) Trouble detoxing
7) Brain fog
8) Poor sleep
9) Chronic inflammation
10) Migraines or headaches
11) Heart disease
12) Poor circulation
13) Fibromyalgia
14) Autoimmune conditions
15) Blood sugar imbalances
16) Mood swings
and more…
Do you see why you want your vagus nerve functioning at its best?
If you're stressed constantly, your stress response is overstimulated, and you’re in sympathetic overdrive. This makes your adrenals pump out more cortisol, which exhausts the adrenals and create an imbalance of hormones. You need the vagus nerve functioning at it’s best - in order to balance and heal the nervous system.
· Helps control anxiety and mood
· Increases stomach acidity and other digestive enzyme production - low levels of these are correlated to the root cause of gut issues
· Controls heart rate variability, heart rate and blood pressure
· It controls blood sugar balance
· In the liver it controls bile production and detoxification
· Controls bile release to help break down fats
· Promotes general function including water balance, glucose control and sodium excretion which helps control blood pressure
· Controls voiding of urine
· Reduces inflammation
· Controls fertility and sexual pleasure including orgasms
· Controls ability to taste and saliva production through salivary gland control
· Activates tear production in the eyes
So you’re probably starting to see the connections here. And possibly wondering, what can I do to love up my vagus nerve and get it working FOR me, ASAP…
Here are two simple exercises to stimulate the vagus nerve.
1. Deep and Slow Breathing
This sends a signal to our brain and the vagus nerve to lower our heart rate and blood pressure. This lessens the flight or fight response and increases the rest and digest response.
Make this a part of your daily life.
Do this upon rising every morning: Inhale for count of 5, allow the belly and rib cage to expand out slightly with your breath, hold the breath for the count of 5 and then exhale the breath for the count of 8-10. As you push the breath out completely you will notice a drawing in of the belly toward the spine and rib cage back to center. Enjoy this intended movement of the diaphragm.
2. Singing, humming or chanting
Singing, humming, and mantra chanting all increase heart rate variability and works the muscles at the back of your throat, which helps stimulate the vagus nerve. So next time you feel like singing your heart out in the shower or car, do it, it’s great for your health and your vagus ;)
And if you’re tired of hearing these suggestions, they seem too easy and/or they just don’t work…
You’ve maybe tried them here and there (without noticing a difference). But, I’m curious have you honestly given these types of practices a go for longer than a couple days or a week? Have you been consistent?
If you want your adrenals to actually heal and your hormones to balance out (and you want them to stay that way for the rest of your life), start incorporating practices that stimulate the vagus nerve on a daily basis. I challenge you to add 5-10 minutes of slow, deep breathing or chanting to your morning routine. I believe you will see shifts almost immediately.
I’d like you to open your mind to the fact that it can be that easy. With consistently, these exercises do work. It can be that easy. We just have to break old patterns.
Here’s another way to start loving up the vagus nerve - start reacting differently to life. And this is a habit that’s hard to break, right? This is about interrupting the stress pattern you have in place and probably have had in place, for a very long time. Interrupt it, stop it in it’s track and create a different pattern or pathway in the brain.
“Stress Pattern Interrupt” Practice
Find a simple word or phrase that is calming to you and embodies what you want to create instead of stress. When you’re start to feel anxious or overwhelmed, repeat the word or phrase until you feel less resistance or you feel lighter. Or you can ask a certain type of question (question examples below). You can also think of something you are grateful for.
A few examples:
SLOW
CALM
All is well in my world
I am safe
I am grounded
What would it take for me to have more ease or calm in this moment?
How can I experience more peace right away?
I acknowledge I’m not feeling great right now, but I’m so grateful for…(my home, my children, clean water, healthy food…)
I acknowledge I’m not feeling great right now, but each day I’m getting better and better.
Be the energy of the word, phrase or question. (Trust you know how to do this).
Questions, comments? Please share below in the comments and after a week of stimulating the vagus nerve report back.
To your amazing vagus nerve,
Angela (& Danielle)
One of the most common questions I get is how I healed my stage 3 adrenal fatigue without drugs and in just months.
Here's the truth—it was a process. It was collaboration of changes in my diet, lifestyle, stress reduction and more. But once I committed to healing on all levels, my healing went into fast forward mode. Today, I want to share one of the most powerful tools that came from somewhere I least expected.
At that time, I was becoming curious about holistic health and the idea of addressing all aspects of the SELF to heal the physical body. That's when I came across the book, Heal Your Body, by Louise Hays.
This is where I started learning about the power of affirmations.
First, we must understand the power of my own thoughts in relationship to our physical health. To put it simply, our physical body mirrors our thoughts and beliefs. So when we are suffering with conditions like adrenal fatigue, learning how to use positive affirmations to shift my thinking opens us up to powerful and dramatic healing.
It's so easy to get frustrated with adrenal fatigue. Everything seems hard when you're always exhausted. And not getting quality sleep is the worst.
When I was miserable and exhausted everyday, the practice of positive affirmations helped to fill my worried and hopeless mind with positive messages and in turn, they kept my spirits high. And what was even cooler than that, I started to see my physical body start to respond to the positive messages I was sending it.
Once I realized the power of my thoughts were directly connected to what was going on in my physical body it opened me up for amazing healing to flow in.
Let’s be honest there is a lot of negativity in this world and if you get caught up it in it will take us down!
We must realize affirmations can be negative or positive. If we talk about how bad things are, we are affirming it. And in turn, we are welcoming in more of the same. Our words are powerful beyond measure.
Luckily, though the opposite is true too. When we fill our mind with positive message that make us feel better we can attract more positive things into your life, like healing and great health.
The real power comes when we learn to recognize the negative thought in the moment and then re-frame it. And don't worry practicing affirmations is not masking or burying thoughts and emotions to fester up later.
It's about recognizing your thoughts, gaining self awareness. It's okay to be with those feelings for a moment. Then you have a choice: to stay in this negative place or replace the negative thought with a or neutral or positive one.
It's choosing to look at the situation in a completely different way. This has the power to you open up to new insights and new possibilities.
You might not believe in the power of positive affirmations until you give it a fair try for yourself.
So, when you do find yourself in a dark, sad, worried or mad state (and we all experience these times and there is no shame it in) here's where to turn...
All healing and health is flowing to me now!
I am always safe and protected!
My hormones are being restored to their natural, perfect state!
I am confident in my full recovery!
I'm learning what my body needs to be in a perfect state of health!
It's my time to heal!
I deserve great health!
I choose hope over fear!
Regardless of my setbacks, I always have the will in me to fight back!
Each morning, I wake up rested and refreshed!
I trust in my body's ability to heal!
Why are positive affirmations even necessary, you might be asking? Well, they aren't necessary if you're happy with your life and your current health.
But if you want a better, healthier and happier life you need to spend more time thinking of what you want, instead of the lack there of.
Again, we must understand our physical body mirrors our thoughts, beliefs, and feelings.
So what it all comes down to my friend is choosing thoughts that make you feel better so you can attack more pleasing and satisfying experiences, great health, ...
Remember reciting affirmations are not about ignoring or masking your problems, but rather retraining your brain to look at situations in a different way.
So now what?
1) Tweak the above to work for you or make your own.
2) Choose a couple at a time or all 11.
3) Write them down in a journal or notebook. Put them in clear view, like on your bathroom mirror or your fridge.
4) Read them aloud to yourself at least twice daily, I recommend first thing in the morning and right before you go to bed.
It's that simple. Ready to open up the floods gate to healing?
Which affirmation is your favorite? Or share your very own affirmation with me.
Happy and healing vibes,
Angela
