This is my advice to anyone trying to find normal:

The trick to living "normal" with Addison's is finding your new normal. As with any change in life, having a baby, living on your own, etc...life is never going to be the same as it was and you have to make adjustments. The same can be said for all with Addison's, you have to make the proper adjustments in life to live your new normal. Some of us may have fewer complications than others, thus giving us the ability to live pretty dang closely to what normal for us before the disease. While others have more complications and have to work harder at finding a new normal they can accept and be happy with. I'm thankful that my normal is pretty dang close to what it was prior to Addison's. I can still do all the things I did before however I may need an extra bit of HC here and there, some extra salt, more fluids, etc... To constantly compare what life was before is just plain crazy because we will never be what we were before, we are dependent on synthetic cortisol the rest of our lives and with that comes unwanted side effects, but there are plenty of ways to prevent them if we just accept it, educate ourselves, and take the time to do it :)

I really appreciate you telling me how you accept having the disease. That is really important. If you don't mind me asking, what is your sex and age and when were you diagnosed? I am 20 and was diagnosed with Addison's Disease at age 17. I was born with it but they did not find it until then, so for me, life was a constant struggle and I have never had a moment of "normal". What if you had not had a chance to understand what normal was before you were diagnosed? To look around and see how other people live and to not know how that feels? I have made it my own type of normal, like you said, but I find that having to take medications and having side effects, the high risks of pregnancy, the difficulty to handle normal stresses of life to be far from what I can call "normal", though I have accepted it is MY normal. I want to know how people with Addision's Disease truly feel when they compare themselves to others without such issues. It is more difficult for me to understand "finding a new normal" because I have never found it in the first place. We have all grown to be strong people because of our illness and wanting to be greater than it.

I'm 31 and I was diagnosed 2 years ago this month after a 6 month struggle of being in and out of the hospital, losing an insane amount of weight (I don't remember the exact numbers because that whole time period was very hazy), meanwhile juggling being a new stay at home mom and passing out all the time. It was hell to say the least. Right before I was finally diagnosed I had come to terms with passing away. I couldn't think straight half the time, I couldn't eat or hold anything down, I had family tell me I looked like pure hell because my skin was literally sagging off my bones and doctors had no clue what was going on with me, even though on several occasions I told them I was convinced I had Addison's. When I finally got the diagnosis I was relieved and for about a week afterward I was crushed and devastated but instead of letting my fear consume me and prevent me from living, I dug deeper into our disease to understand it and learn how I can best achieve a normal life. The one key thing I've learned since having this disease, is we really have to be in tune with our body and listen to what it says. There are plenty of ways we can prevent a crisis from happening if we listen to our bodies. I get busy living and forget to listen and it has resulted in a few crisis situations but overall my day to day is as good if not better than it was prior.

Since being diagnosed I have had a successful pregnancy and during that experience I came to find out the "complications" we could experience during pregnancy really are only a smidgen higher than that of a normal person's pregnancy as long as our AD is under control :) I had battled fatigue for a long long time before being diagnosed and I had a lot of the classic symptoms of Adrenal Fatigue but no one diagnosed me with it. I've had Hypothyroidism since I was 12 but I was diagnosed with it after being chronically ill for 4 years. However during that time I still played softball, basketball, volleyball, hiked mountains, rafted, swam, etc... and tried to live as normal a life as I could given the circumstances. I don't compare myself to others because I don't know all of what they go through on a day to day basis nor do I know how they truly feel (their aches and pains, etc..). My hubby has severe arthritis in his knees and has since childhood but he pushes through the pain and you'd never know he had any problems if he didn't tell you. Bottom line is that God created us this way, we weren't made to be "normal". He gave us these obstacles to make us stronger and He doesn't give us anything He knows we can't handle. Comparing yourself to others in any other way than to inspire you to become a better person is craziness in my opinion. We aren't made to be like anyone else. Each life was created to be an individual unique person.

In parting I'll share with you my favorite quote said by Napoleon Hill:
"Just as your body requires healthy foods & a balanced diet, so does your mind. Make sure you feed it plenty of positive thoughts"

This disease is far from easy, but we have the power to not let it consume us.

- Kristen

I don't think there is a normal any longer for me. I have had AD now for 10+ years and am now complete endocrine failue. Which means by side the Addison's mt thyroid is failing (my meds have been upped 4 times in 4 months), and after 6 years being able to push off the actual start of having diabetes, I think I am finally going on insulin this month. But I was able to not do that by diet and exercise before. But I have been in a crisis almost every month now since June, and in and out of the hospital.

Before all that I lived my life in increments of 15-30 minutes at a time and then would have to rest and recover for an hour or so. So life has been very limited for me since I got AD. Before AD I was riding a bike 100 miles a week, besides work, marriage, and two small kids. I had a really busy, fulfilled life before AD. I feel lucky I didn't get it when I was young. I am now 56. Feel free to message me if you have any questions.

What's normal? That was the first thing I had to learn who made up this normal book of rules? I use to think I was the only lazy one that slept in or went to bed before eight. Life is not gong to end if I choose to work with my son then can't move to get dinner done, they do get fed. I think I try to think of Addison as similar to diabetes or heart disease. There lives go on, their norm is different than mine, but normal to them. If we were in a wheel chair everyday, I would consider my day normal. I guess I'm trying to say, you can make life what ever u want, sure we may have a more strict day. I know to snack protein foods through the day, I know to always carry my emergency bag w my sol vial for an emergency injection, I know if I need to get something done I have to rest before and I prepare for at least two days to follow by limiting chores, cooking trips out. I keep a pad for list taking, it chills me out, plus I feel successful when I mark them off. I am learning my limits, how to handle a crash and unexpected hospital visits, keeping a bag packed with pj, book, phone list, charger... takes some of the stress away. I use my caller ID To screen calls during times I'm peaking if their stressful people I just don't answer. I've been sick for a long time but only in the last two years was correctly diagnosed. It almost cost me my life. But I have managed to home school three children work Bible School x 3 years, did turkey and trimmings, I know that I am limited in time but it's my time not Addison!s time. I work to control it not let it control me. I may need to alter or change things to manage but it's how I choose to do that gives me the upper hand. Some days I can do nothing but survive, but I do what I can when I can and on my form of normality. Hope I've helped use anything I may have said that makes since. And know your going to fight a great fight, you've already started by just asking the question. Hang tough, kimberly