adrenal support - caution

[Guest guest]

Just found out that I have HIGH cortisol. This would explain why HC

didn't work for me longterm. Weirdly, it did help a little in the

beginning. Anyway, I'm in the early stage of adrenal failure and am

releasing excess cortisol. Supplementing with pregnenolone is

supposed to block cortisol - at least that's what I read. It really

has been helping me although in fits and starts.

Just wanted to caution people to first find out what is going on

with their adrenals. If you are excess cortisol, you do NOT want to

supplement with cortisol. Since I've been treating with pregnenolone,

my belly has shrunk and my clothes are fitting better. Excess

cortisol can make you gain weight.

Val

[Guest guest]

Hi Val-

Interesting about your success with pregnenolone and how it affects cortisol

levels. I have high cortisol in the AM then normal the rest of the day. When

I tried preg (25 mg w/ breakfast) I ended up from day one being so hungry

(and craving carbs) that I could have eaten the paint off the walls :>) As

soon as I stopped, the problem ended. A friend had the same experience, but

her cortisol is on the low side. I do better with some HC. Someone suggested

I might have " cortisol resistance. " (haven't found much info on that). When

I was doing an HC taper, the week I was on 50 mg once in the AM, I lost all

food cravings, lost weight without effort, and had lots more motivation

(though still fatigued). This sure is some sort of a puzzle.

Dana

_____

From: frequent-dose-chelation

[mailto:frequent-dose-chelation ] On Behalf Of seashell_555

Just found out that I have HIGH cortisol. This would explain why HC

didn't work for me longterm. Weirdly, it did help a little in the

beginning. Anyway, I'm in the early stage of adrenal failure and am

releasing excess cortisol. Supplementing with pregnenolone is

supposed to block cortisol - at least that's what I read. It really

has been helping me although in fits and starts.

Just wanted to caution people to first find out what is going on

with their adrenals. If you are excess cortisol, you do NOT want to

supplement with cortisol. Since I've been treating with pregnenolone,

my belly has shrunk and my clothes are fitting better. Excess

cortisol can make you gain weight.

Val

[Guest guest]

> I tried preg (25 mg w/ breakfast) I ended up from day one being so

hungry

----That's a really high amount. I started at around 5 mg. After a

few weeks I'm now at 10mg in the a.m. and 10 mg. at night.

When

> I was doing an HC taper, the week I was on 50 mg once in the AM, I

lost all

> food cravings,

---I still struggle with the cravings a bit. ;(

I'm also high estrogen so I think pregn. is helping with that also.

I just started nat progesterone so will see if that helps things.

In a couple of weeks I want to start Armour. Hopefully, once I feel

stronger, I will be able to start chelation again. Such a journey !

>

> _____

>

> From: frequent-dose-chelation

> [mailto:frequent-dose-chelation ] On Behalf Of

seashell_555

>

> Just found out that I have HIGH cortisol. This would explain why

HC

> didn't work for me longterm. Weirdly, it did help a little in the

> beginning. Anyway, I'm in the early stage of adrenal failure and

am

> releasing excess cortisol. Supplementing with pregnenolone is

> supposed to block cortisol - at least that's what I read. It

really

> has been helping me although in fits and starts.

>

> Just wanted to caution people to first find out what is going on

> with their adrenals. If you are excess cortisol, you do NOT want

to

> supplement with cortisol. Since I've been treating with

pregnenolone,

> my belly has shrunk and my clothes are fitting better. Excess

> cortisol can make you gain weight.

>

> Val

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Val and Dana,

Where are your guys' DHEA levels at? That is tied in with your cortisol levels

too, on the stages of adrenal fatigue link.

http://www.chronicfatigue.org/ASI%20Normal.html

So maybe your responses to pregnenolone has something to do with your DHEA

levels, since preg is a precursor to DHEA?

More below-------Jackie

In frequent-dose-chelation Dana Black wrote:

Hi Val-

Interesting about your success with pregnenolone and how it affects cortisol

levels.

--------Val, do you remember where you read that? Not that I'm saying you're

wrong, because I really don't know, but I don't recall reading anything like

that, and in AI page 161, Andy says that pregnenolone can be converted into

progesterone and cortisol, besides DHEA, so I thought it was a precursor to

cortisol. But maybe it helps regulate it, whether it's high or low? Anyway, if

you can find the source, I'd be interested.-------Jackie

I have high cortisol in the AM then normal the rest of the day. When

I tried preg (25 mg w/ breakfast) I ended up from day one being so hungry

(and craving carbs) that I could have eaten the paint off the walls :>) As

soon as I stopped, the problem ended. A friend had the same experience, but

her cortisol is on the low side. I do better with some HC. Someone suggested I

might have " cortisol resistance. " (haven't found much info on that). When I was

doing an HC taper, the week I was on 50 mg once in the AM, I lost all food

cravings, lost weight without effort, and had lots more motivation (though still

fatigued). This sure is some sort of a puzzle.

---------I agree, it's a big puzzle, because I believe all these hormones

interact, and understanding them all and how they affect each other is very

complex. I'm trying to learn and understand all of this too.

Dana, have you asked about the preg and being hungry, and how

good you felt on 50mg/day of HC? I wonder if that would have lasted if you

would stay at that high of a dose. Maybe like Val, it would have helped

temporarily.

And I do wonder about things like cortisol resistance, and actually resistance

to other hormones too, because why not, if people can have insulin resistance?

It may be why we might need higher levels of hormones than what is normal,

because they're not getting into our cells.

And back to hormone interactions and balance. I think that is another key

here also. If other hormones are low or out of balance, they need to be

addressed too, not just HC for adrenals. I have addressed some of my low

hormones, such as DHEA, cortisol, and progesterone (also taking pregnenolone),

but now I have to address others, such as thyroid and testosterone, and maybe

others. I think I have tried taking extra HC at times to feel better, and it

doesn't really help, because I think there is something else out of balance. So

that's what I'm in the process of looking into now. I think I may have

pituitary problems affecting alot of my hormones, so much more than just

adrenals.----------Jackie

Dana

_____

From: frequent-dose-chelation

[mailto:frequent-dose-chelation ] On Behalf Of seashell_555

Just found out that I have HIGH cortisol. This would explain why HC

didn't work for me longterm. Weirdly, it did help a little in the

beginning. Anyway, I'm in the early stage of adrenal failure and am

releasing excess cortisol. Supplementing with pregnenolone is

supposed to block cortisol - at least that's what I read. It really

has been helping me although in fits and starts.

Just wanted to caution people to first find out what is going on

with their adrenals. If you are excess cortisol, you do NOT want to

supplement with cortisol. Since I've been treating with pregnenolone,

my belly has shrunk and my clothes are fitting better. Excess

cortisol can make you gain weight.

Val

[Guest guest]

>

> Hi Val-

>

> Interesting about your success with pregnenolone and how it

affects cortisol levels.

>

> --------Val, do you remember where you read that? Not that I'm

saying you're wrong, because I really don't know, but I don't recall

reading anything like that, and in AI page 161, Andy says that

pregnenolone can be converted into progesterone and cortisol,

besides DHEA, so I thought it was a precursor to cortisol. But

maybe it helps regulate it, whether it's high or low? Anyway, if

you can find the source, I'd be interested.-------Jackie

----------------

Jackie,

Yeah, its a bit confusing because pregnenolone is a precursor to

all the hormones including cortisol. But I believe the body is

smart enough to use what it needs from pregnenolone. In my case, it

might be progesterone or prenenolone itself?

Anyway, here is the link

http://www.yleo-oils.com/prenolone.htm

I worked with a woman who sold essential oils and she used alot of

them herself. She seemed to be a pretty healthy woman. I've always

been curious about essential oils since they've been around since

forever.

Val

[Guest guest]

In frequent-dose-chelation seashell_555 wrote:

> I tried preg (25 mg w/ breakfast) I ended up from day one being so

hungry

----That's a really high amount. I started at around 5 mg. After a

few weeks I'm now at 10mg in the a.m. and 10 mg. at night.

--------I know everyone is different, and I do seem to be one who tolerates

larger doses of things, but I just wanted to note that I started out on 25mg of

preg and 25mg of DHEA (one capsule), and I was fine with that. When my DHEA was

still low on my second test, we upped it to 50mg total, 25mg at breakfast, and

another 25mg at noon. I haven't retested since that. But anyway, we are all

different, and starting low, and slowly building up, is always a good

plan.----Jackie

When

> I was doing an HC taper, the week I was on 50 mg once in the AM, I

lost all

> food cravings,

---I still struggle with the cravings a bit. ;(

----------You guys just made me think of something. I've been craving carbs

at night, so maybe my cortisol is low then? I haven't tried taking any adrenal

support in the evening. Might have to give it a try.---------Jackie

I'm also high estrogen so I think pregn. is helping with that also.

I just started nat progesterone so will see if that helps things.

-----------Progesterone is needed to offset high estrogen, and pregnenolone is

a precursor to progesterone, so maybe it is helping. I think the progesterone

cream helped me alot. My overall sense of well-being and even my sleep

improved, once I started using progesterone cream and supplementing some of

these other low hormones. I started all of them around the same time, so I

don't really know which one did what.---------Jackie

In a couple of weeks I want to start Armour. Hopefully, once I feel

stronger, I will be able to start chelation again. Such a journey !

-----------Yes, such a journey. I am going to do some more testing for

thyroid and other hormones, so we'll see where that leads. Possibly thyroid

support. Not sure if my problem is pituitary, or antibodies, or both or what.

I'll keep you guys posted. But I am definitely at the point of needing

something beyond adrenal support. Let's keep in touch on this.

Thanks----------Jackie

>

> _____

>

> From: frequent-dose-chelation

> [mailto:frequent-dose-chelation ] On Behalf Of

seashell_555

>

> Just found out that I have HIGH cortisol. This would explain why

HC

> didn't work for me longterm. Weirdly, it did help a little in the

> beginning. Anyway, I'm in the early stage of adrenal failure and

am

> releasing excess cortisol. Supplementing with pregnenolone is

> supposed to block cortisol - at least that's what I read. It

really

> has been helping me although in fits and starts.

>

> Just wanted to caution people to first find out what is going on

> with their adrenals. If you are excess cortisol, you do NOT want

to

> supplement with cortisol. Since I've been treating with

pregnenolone,

> my belly has shrunk and my clothes are fitting better. Excess

> cortisol can make you gain weight.

>

> Val

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

> -----------Yes, such a journey. I am going to do some more

testing for thyroid and other hormones, so we'll see where that

leads. Possibly thyroid support. Not sure if my problem is

pituitary, or antibodies, or both or what. I'll keep you guys

posted. But I am definitely at the point of needing something

beyond adrenal support. Let's keep in touch on this. Thanks--------

--Jackie

---------------

Jackie,

I would definitely look into thyroid support. From all my

reading (and I do alot!) thyroid support is essential to symptom

relief. Tietelbaum goes so far as to say Fibro patients,if low in

thyroid, will not recover without support. The big question is what

kind? T3, Armour, 's syndrom?? Yet another labryinth to go

through..

On another note, have you ever been tested for mycoplasma, and all

the other nasties out there? A friend of mine has gotten huge

relief from antibiotic therapy. She feels like a new person with it

and thinks she's been battling some underlying infection for years

without knowing it.

[Guest guest]

Hi Jackie-

My DHEA was 1 in June un-supplemented (was also 1 in the late 1990s). I'm

now supplementing with 20 mg in the AM. Nothing (so far) seems to make much

difference in the long run (hopefully chelation will be the key). I'm still

pretty fatigued, weak, and unmotivated most of the time, no matter what I

do. I definitely had the same reaction (cravings, etc) when I supplemented

with 50 mg DHEA several years ago as I did taking too much preg. Now that

I've been off progesterone and estrogen, it should be interesting to see

where all my other hormones (as well as p and e) stand, though now I'm on HC

and DHEA, so who knows. . .

I guess I need to have another chat with . It seems like I've gotten

some unclear guidance (like telling me to read Safe Uses of Cortisol instead

of offering any specific guidance - I guess she may just want me to have a

better understanding first). I've read much of the book and still find it

confusing. Jefferies recommends 5 mg 4 times per day for just about

everything. That dosing schedule didn't work too well for me, though I might

not have done it with consistency for a long enough period of time. She

wanted me to do the 1-week tapers, but that didn't work for me, and I

question that anything can " reset " my adrenals until I unload some mercury.

I also think you're correct that it's likely doubtful that the 50 mg once a

day dose would have continued to work so well.

Maybe it's just my brain fog. She suggested that maybe I should look into

for thyroid. I seem to be bringing up my temps with Armour, and as I

understand it, there are signs of high rT3 which I don't have, though I've

not been tested specifically for that. At this point I'm so mentally

fatigued that it's hard to take the bull by the horns (so to speak) with all

of this. I didn't sleep much of last night, so today is pretty much a bust.

As always, thanks for your feedback.

Dana

_____

From: frequent-dose-chelation

[mailto:frequent-dose-chelation ] On Behalf Of Jackie

Hi Val and Dana,

Where are your guys' DHEA levels at? That is tied in with your cortisol

levels too, on the stages of adrenal fatigue link.

http://www.chronicf <http://www.chronicfatigue.org/ASI%20Normal.html>

atigue.org/ASI%20Normal.html

So maybe your responses to pregnenolone has something to do with your DHEA

levels, since preg is a precursor to DHEA?