Addison's Disease Support Group

Addison's disease (also known as chronic adrenal insufficiency, or hypocortisolism) is a rare endocrine disorder. It is estimated that it affects about 1 to 2 in 100,000 people. It occurs when the adrenal glands, seated above the kidneys, fail to produce enough of the hormone cortisol and, sometimes, the hormone aldosterone

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Endocrine System
/ Addison's Disease Support Group

re: Hydrocortisone

deleted_user
deleted_user
My MD did a ACTH/ CORTISOL blood draw at 11:30 AM...(why not in the early am...i have no clue) anyways...3 weeks later to see him and review it... My ACTH was 5.2 and my cortisol level is 11....this is WITHOUT STEROIDS... to me, it seems that is why I have no energy and feel like crap....but he said "your holding your own, so lets not put you back on HC yet." I feel like it is low enough to be on a low dose. any suggestions?
22Lynn
22Lynn
I would guess he is trying to get your adrenals to kick back in. The steroids will only turn them off more. But if you feel badly I would see a Naturopath Dr and get adrenal support that way. A lot of the people on the thyroid forum are doing this instead of steroids. You might want to post there and ask what is working for them. They are a great group of people, very educated and helpful. Hope this helps you.
22Lynn
22Lynn
I just looked at your profile. Did you know that they think chronic fatigue is now caused by being under treated for your thyroid? It is one of the newer ideas. I would definitely post on the hypothyroid site with how your feeling. Good luck.
Silkakc
Silkakc
What was the range for the Cortisol? 3-23?
deleted_user
deleted_user
I assume that the measurement of your cortisol was in ug/dL, which are the old units. The conversion to System International units is to multiply by 27.59, which gives your number as 303 nmol/L. The range at 8am is 300 - 700 nmol/L, so if your test was at 11.30am, you would be at the low normal range, which would be what he meant by holding your own. My level was 157 nmol/L when I went on Cortisone 9 mths ago, and last week it was un-readable, which my G.P. said would have been due to the use of Cortisol, although it was very quick to drop.

I have Secondary Addison's due to Pituitary Gland Failure, so my tank is now going to stay pretty empty.

You might feel pretty lousy now, but if you went back on steroids, you could go in the opposite direction fast, and reach the point of no return, even on a low dose.

It may be better to suffer for the next 3 months and get tested again, and if your numbers are still around the same, review it then. I think that 22Lynn is correct in that she is probably trying to get your adrenals to kick in.
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