Fasting with Adrenal fatigue

(Katherine Simzer) #1

Hello all!! I have been looking through the forum and can’t seem to find out much about anyone fasting with adrenal fatigue. I keep reading online not to do it till adrenal fatigue has been fixed. Any of you have experience?? Has it helped with energy to fast?? Has it made it worse??
Thanks for any help :grin:

#2

Have you been doing keto? How long? Has that helped your adrenal fatigue?

(Katherine Simzer) #3

I have been keto for about 6 months, not always 100%, I’ve fallen off many times. It has not helped my adrenal fatigue, I hoping to fast for my insulin resistance, I just keep reading to not fast :frowning: I don’t want to make the adrenals worse

#4

You could try intermittent fasting at first and if that feels fine then see how 1 day goes. I don’t know much about adrenal fatigue or what it does, Google says it’s not an accepted medical diagnosis but that adrenal insufficiency (Addison’s) is. Good luck!

#5

Fasting when you’re not fat adapted is a pretty severe stressor (if you’re otherwise ok in terms of stress and adrenals, it’s worthwhile - but still, a stressor).

Fasting when you are fat-adapted should be a much different situation since your body can access energy regardless of whether you’re eating (though I’m sure that the degree of your insulin resistance plays a part in this).

My theory is that a lot of the panic about fasting (and in particular about women fasting) is because we look at folks in the sugar burning camp and watch them fast, and they will in fact show signs of stress (spiked cortisol, etc) which are just not going to happen or at least not to the same degree if your body can easily access its fat stores.

BUT - of course this is highly individual and it depends on the severity of your adrenal situation, how fat-adapted you are, how much fat you have to access. I bet that there’s something about this somewhere in the podcasts, and in any case @powertrix’s suggestion to try IF seems like a good one.
Also my guess is getting enough salt is probably especially important for you.

(Naomi Brewster) #6

When I first started keto I found that fasting stalled weight loss and I felt pretty miserable doing it. I felt like I had taken a step backwards in my bodies healing journey. I didn’t even IF for about 6 months (though did only eat 2 meals a day). Then I naturally started to extend my fasts and felt great doing it. The longest fast I have done is 9 days and while not saying that it was a piece of cake (some days I would be so hungry I could hardly concentrate) I actually felt quite energetic and after the fast ended I was full of beans and weight loss going steadily. All this to say I think that first 6 months I had to take time to heal and reduce cortisol levels. I don’t have any science but just go by how I feel and if I get the results I want.

#7

Hi @CuriousKat!

I have been looking through the forum and can’t seem to find out much about anyone fasting with adrenal fatigue. I keep reading online not to do it till adrenal fatigue has been fixed. Any of you have experience??

All I can add is that I plan to not do IF specifically for the sake of my adrenals. Im just guessing about this, and wasn’t given any warning by my doctor etc.
I started keto really recently in an attempt to be proactive while I wait on the doctors to figure out the causes of the adrenal issues. Can I ask how you knew about yours? For me, the first flag was a type of sleeping and exhaustion i had never experienced before. Insulin resistance tests showed the adrenals didnt produce enough cortisol. So in the meantime it can be labelled as adrenocortisol insufficieny or hypocortisolism (like the more well known hypothyroidism) but the docs want to do more tests to establish whether its Addisons or whether the cause is elsewhere. And so, I wait… impatiently! Next test is this week.

I have also been a little anxious that starting Keto would put more strain on the adrenals, but I hope the overall benefit will outweigh that. I have definitely been more tired since starting, and assume im still experiencing keto-flu. So I cant speak to whether or not it will increase my energy eventually. However, Ive already learned that BPC is my new best friend, and will give me a predictable cognitive boost about 30-60 minutes after it. Only cognitive (and a little mood lifting) and not physical.

Have you found your energy levels increasing on Keto in general? Have you had a different result on the insulin resistance test? Keep us updated! Its reassuring to see others here with adrenal issues, and Im not the only one!

Wish I could be more help with the IF, but im here for any chats you want to have about keto and adrenals :slight_smile:

Take care and well done on all you’ve achieved so far!! Accomplishing anything while managing adrenal fatigue takes x100 more effort, so give yourself a nice pat on the back regularly :hugs: :1st_place_medal:

XoC