Oh for goodness sake. Sorry about the typos. :P

Is there a reason you aren't trying steroids in a dose that would be appropriate for you? Are you hoping to restart your adrenals?

I understand trying to get them started again but sometimes you are past that point. That's when you need to start taking the steroids, dose correctly through your day to get good coverage and stress dose or up dose if your sick or having a bad day. It worries me how low your cortisol was and no steroids if you have an emergency.

Just an aside, I think I would change doctors or Naturopaths. It doesn't sound like a good plan for you or that they really know what they are doing with this condition.

Hope your better now that your off supplement. I'm afraid your cream will do little to help your adrenals, it's not enough. Plus if you want to restart your adrenals any steroid can stop or cause further shut down. Sorry your having such a hard time.

Thanks, Lynn. You are right - the doctor doesn't believe in cortef. I am quite sick of this.... (Sorry - very bad pun!)

Oh no!! Hate that that happened to you.

But - the good news is..... IF it hadn't been for all of YOU and all the support here on this site, I would never have realized that there was something wrong at all. I would not have known how to recognize the symptoms.

Unreal. I'm not an expert with adrenal stuff, but It seems to me if you start feeding your body adrenaline, your adrenals have to work harder than ever to deal with it, wearing them out even more...

I'm so sorry but glad you figured it out! Where did you get the idea to use Hydrocortisone anti-itch cream? That never would have occurred to me

I agree! With more adrenaline, the imbalance should logically be even worse. And now my fingers are all swollen and I can barely get my rings off. Have to do some research and find out why THAT is happening.

I got the idea about the topical cream from the Stop The Thyroid Madness first book.

http://www.drkaslow.com/html/adrenal_insufficiency.html

Bingo. Swollen fingers.

This is the first time this has ever happened to me. It is not an accident that it is happening after 3 days on bovine adrenal extract.

DANG! This makes me so furious!!!

Oh - The website explains that it's because I have so little cortisol that my body can't process the sodium I have available internally. It swells up in order to conserve the sodium, not because I have too much.

I have had the same reaction to adrenal supplements. I can even drink the Shakelogy drink from Beachbody because it had adaptagens. I take the "good stuff"-hydrocortisone baby!!

I took a well reputed adrenal support that had NO glad in it, it was for energy support etc. Well it send me hyper.

Sometimes I think we need to think KISS, keep it simply silly.

Hope you feel better soon.

Thanks, Everyone!!! I tossed all the supplements after I consulted Dr. Google and found out that E V E R Y single adaptagen I had been ingesting specifically LOWERS cortisol levels!

Also - the DHEA I was on does the same thing: lowers cortisol!!!!

WTF?????? (And yes - the head of my seminary says it is ok to use "that word" if no other word will do....)

Dr. Google says licorice root and grapefruit are natural substances that might help.

I am so emotionally overwrought right now - I am just going to try to be Mindful and not over-react.

I am grateful for the slow-release T3 that the doctor prescribed for me, but WHAT ON EARTH WAS HE THINKING???? Did he attend the Throw The Spaghetti Against The Wall School of Medicine????

I am going to take a few really deep breaths and then see how I can afford a new doctor.... with my $3,000 deductible and accumulated debt from LAST year's Medical Adventure.

GGGGGGGGRRRRRRRR!!!

So glad you are all "here!" I am so blessed to have your support.
xoxo

I hope you get steroids instead of supplements. When your cortisol is that low steroids are sometimes the only answer. Talk to Mbutterfly and Gage. They both have a lot of info about adrenal failure. Good luck with the new doctor. Money is always a factor when you get sick. I just found out this week $72,000+ has been submitted by my 4 specialists, bloodwork, and multiple tests this year so far. I'm really thankful for insurance.

Here's the thing:

"Supplements" are ok in some people for some issues. But, I'd never suggest that a diabetic take a supplement and ditch the insulin, ya know?

Have you considered taking meds that will actually increase your cortisol levels? Steroids (hydrocortisone, prednisone, many-many others) have gotten a really bad rap. Why? Because when they were studied - they were studied in MASSIVE dosages - NOT in small dosages that mimic human "normal" levels. In some cases, the studies were based on dosages thousands of times (in one case 10,000 times) larger than normal levels.

If you're only replacing what's missing, you're not doing your body harm.

Just as with thyroid hormones - they're not dangerous if you're only REPLACING what's MISSING. It's only when you "over do it" or grossly under-medicate the problem that there's serious consequences, ya know?

I can only share my own experiences:
I paid alternative therapy doctors, nutritionists, therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists (much to my chagrin), paid for supplements out the wazoo, paid specialists (md's), paid endocrinologists (to make me worse), and then finally, my family doctor said, "You're wasting your money and your time." And he rx'd what I was missing. It's only then that I got better.

Maybe getting better isn't a big wide spread plan...but a simply plan to get enough thyroid meds and cortisol to feel better?

I know that sounds easier said than done, but keep harping on that point and eventually you'll get the help you need.

And, if you truly have a cortisol shortage - 1% hc cream isn't going to cut it.